Evanston Dance Ensemble, the pre-professional dance company in residence at Dance Center Evanston, will present the final show of its 25th anniversary season. Throughout its history, EDE has been highly regarded for both original works as well as adaptations of classics including Alice in Wonderland, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. This season has been no exception and will culminate in March with Silver Lining: Celebrating 25 Years of Dance featuring a dozen dances curated from the EDE quarter-century-deep repertoire.
Choreographers include EDE Artistic Director Christina Ernst, plus Keesha Beckford, Laura Berman, Julie Cartier, Mike Gosney, Elijah Richardson, Enid Smith and Allison Kurtz Volkers. Notably, there will be a piece choreographed by EDE alum and rising national star Keerati Jinakunwiphat as well as a piece by EDE founder Bea Rashid. The show will open with the rarely seen “Unbreakable,” a remarkable piece choreographed by Ernst 35 years ago.
Silver Lining will be presented at the Josephine Louis Theater on the Northwestern University campus at 20 Arts Circle Drive in Evanston. Performances will be held at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 17 through Saturday, March 19 with an additional 2 p.m. matinee on Saturday. Tickets are $15 for students and $25 for adults and are available at http://tinyurl.com/silverede or by calling the Northwestern box office at (847) 491-7282. Each ticket is a kind of passport to view a selection of the very best of the 25-year history of EDE.
Artistic Director Ernst calls Silver Lining “a showcase of the determination and creativity of the ensemble members and choreographers. Dance demands the entirety of each dancer and is highly valuable because of the senses of hopefulness, beauty and life it provides.”
Since its inception, EDE has developed the artistic dance talents of almost 250 young dancers ages 12 to 18. With a commitment to creating professional-caliber performances in a wide range of dance styles utilizing top choreographic and theatrical talent, EDE’s reputation for creating innovative, exciting productions for audiences of all ages continues to grow.
“We have created a unique collaborative and creative atmosphere for our dancers, which has helped them to grow both technically and artistically,” explains Ernst. “You can see in them the benefits of their working with dancers, choreographers and designers who are top professionals in their fields.”
EDE’s 25th Anniversary Season opened in the fall with Connecting Point: The Young Choreographers Project featuring original pieces choreographed and danced by members of the ensemble. In December, EDE was featured as in past years in the Evanston Symphony Orchestra’s annual Holiday Concert.
Looking to the future, ede2 ,whose members are 12 through 14, will tour its original production of The Story of Our Block this spring under the direction of new ede2 Artistic Director Kara Roseborough. There will also be several performances of the show at Studio5 Performing Arts Center April 9 and April 10. The EDE annual Fancy Dance benefit will be held at Studio5 on April 9.
For more information, visit the EDE website.