I'd Like to Welcome You to "RAW: The Journey"

The Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, as you might imagine, employs many very talented and creative people, often who are involved in a variety of artistic endeavors throughout the community. Josette Serrill, the Center’s new Web and Systems Manager, is one of our talented employees, who has had a passion for dance since her youth, and is now  a company dancer for Underground Dance Company Hardcore, when she is not working hard on our website www.MyAlaskaCenter.com! Below, she tells us about UDC’s upcoming production.

Josette Serrill on far left with two fellow UDC dancers

Underground Dance Company Hardcore is presenting RAW, which stands for “Real Attitude Within,” designed to take the audience on a reflective journey of the past to gain a clearer understanding of the love, work and struggle that each individual has gone through to get to where they currently stand.

The journey begins with an empty stage and a lone voice.

“Hello.

I’d like to welcome you to RAW: The Journey.

You don’t know who I am.

Let me give you some insight into my experiences.

What makes me who I am, the details of my journey.

As you sit there, focus on my story,

As I tell you my thoughts,

As I show you my experiences.

Reflect on them and discover who I am.”

The script continues throughout the show as the dancers take the audience on a journey that every person can relate to at some point in their lives. The following are selected excerpts of the show script. Each dancer has been asked to respond with how they interpret each story they will be telling on stage this weekend. 

Sound is what drives me, especially the sound of victory.

“Music and sound is how I express myself. How I share my success, sadness and joy.”

With the support from the people who know me best, who accept me, I go out in the world and, regardless of what society thinks, I express my real attitude within.

“Being the youngest sibling and only girl, I felt lost in figuring out who I was. I always tried to follow in my brothers' steps, picking their careers and life choices and it always led to failure. It wasn’t until I found my passion and talent for dance that I truly felt like I had an identity. I express myself through movement. It’s the language I use to communicate.” 

I share a passion with the people I surround myself with. I’m committed to them as they are to me. I look to these people for wisdom, support, and encouragement. We are Family.

“I think of [our] crew. A group of people that come together, not only for performance and technique, but for friendships and lasting memories. Hardcore has gone through so much together over the years. No matter what, we come together as a crew and support each other and, most of all, have fun dancing.”

Be prepared for high energy dance, extravagant costumes, and a reflective journey through your past with RAW: The Journey. Tickets are currently available for this performance at the Dena’ina Center March 7th and 8^th. 

by ACPA employee Josette Serrill, a member of Underground Dance Company Hardcore

Interview with Alaska Dance Theatre Artistic Director Gillmer Duran

We recently caught up with Gillmer Duran as he was preparing for ADT's Tyranny of the Senses & New Work running April 12 and 13, 2013.

Q: According to your biography, you began your formal dance training at the age of 21 in Venezuela. Can you tell us a little about why you were drawn to dance, and how your journey eventually led you to Anchorage and Alaska Dance Theatre?

A: I truly enjoyed dancing since I was about 5 years old; my family used to encourage me to perform in parties or in front of whoever and I just went and did it shamelessly! I did start my ballet formal training at 21. But, previously, I had studied Venezuelan Folk dances, jazz, and contemporary dance, then ballet. I always kept dance in my life since I was 11 years old, until I got out of high school. Then, I decided to pursue dance as a career thanks to my friend Elliot Ortiz. I saw a performance of a professional couple from Miami City Ballet that came to my city and that was it- I got bitten by the worm of dance! I remember it being very athletic and incredibly inspiring. After graduating from high school, I studied banking, receiving a technical degree as a credit officer. Then, I worked in a bank for about three years as a home loan officer. My mother was really happy! Now, since I was already bitten by the dance worm, I always kept an interest about dance and arts in general. While I was interviewing one of my former mentors for a fixed loan, she expressed that if I wanted to pursue a career in dance, she could help me to continue my training, and then offer me a job in her company. I have been very lucky to have found very intelligent, encouraging and great role models that affected my life in many, many positive ways. My professional dance career started about 20 years ago. During all this time, I had the great privilege of working with true experts in the field. I had to do in about four years what is supposed to take eight, so I always had to put my actions in front of my words and work extremely hard to compensate for all the time needed. Along the way, dance taught me that there is not an easy route in this field. In order to be successful at something, I had to try my best -always- which is not an easy thing. To this day, I know that determination, experience and my relentless drive brought me here to share the gift of dance with this outstanding community.

Spotlight on the Center’s Resident Companies: Alaska Theatre of Youth

Young performers in the 2011-2012 season's production of Peter Pan

It is a gift to watch a child experience live performance for the first time. Whether they are attending an event at the Center, or participating on stage, it is amazing to see their minds and hearts expanded with the thrill and experience of live theatre. This is the gift that Alaska Theatre of Youth (ATY) has been giving local children for 29 years. Founded in 1983, John Goldring and a determined group of community members formed ATY as a means to empower youth through theatre. Local children make up the majority of the cast in each production and perform to many of their peers who come to see the shows. In those 29 years, many of the children who participated in the early productions have gone on to become successful theatre professionals and culturally-aware adults. Many alumni now work and volunteer with current youth participants, or bring their own children to productions, passing on the good work.

Executive Director, Jessica Jacob says this of ATY’s future at the Center: “Alaska Theatre of Youth is a gateway for families and school children to be introduced to the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts. For many of our young patrons, it is their first time visiting the facility to see or participate in a live performance.  It is our hope that we are building not only the next generation of performing artists and theatre technicians of the highest quality, but also building future generations of discerning and enthusiastic theatre audiences, ensuring the vitality of the performing arts in our community for years to come.”

Alaska Theatre of Youth fosters collaborations and partnerships with a variety of organizations such as McLaughlin Youth Center, UAA, Pacific Northern Academy, Service High School, Stellar High School and Theatre Artists United. ATY is also committed to ensure that youth from any background can participate regardless of ability to pay, and offers complimentary tickets and scholarships to social service agencies and families in need.

ATY presents a Mainstage Season of five productions in the Sydney Laurence Theatre every year. In addition to their regular season, they offer a Spring Break Camp and Summer Conservatory for children to study theatre arts a bit more intensively. In the 2012-2013 season, ATY will produce: Disney’s Little Mermaid Jr. (October 12-20, 2012), A Christmas Carol (December 7-15), The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (December 8-14), Honk, Jr. (February 15-23) and Wizard of Oz – The True Story written by local playwright Ron Holmstrom and students from the Ann Seaton School (February 15-23).

For more information about Alaska Theatre of Youth and their current offerings, visit their website at: http://alaskatheatreofyouth.org/.

For tickets to ATY performances, visit CenterTix at: http://www.myalaskacenter.com/events/promoters/promoter_aty.php.

A Ghost at the Center?

As is often the case with any building of cultural significance, the Center has its own ghost story. Since the Center opened in 1988, people working in the Sydney Laurence Theatre have experienced some peculiar happenings. These peculiarities have sometimes been attributed to a “friendly gremlin” or ghost, affectionately referred to by staff as “Syd” (nothing to do with Sydney Laurence himself).

 Some of the peculiarities that occur in the Sydney Laurence Theatre include theatrical lights flickering and house lights turning on and off when no one is near the light switches.  A drifting red haze has reportedly been seen in the follow spot light booth even though there is no red light in the booth. There have also been a mysterious set of dusty footprints found in a void area inside a wall where no one could have walked without literally going through the sheetrock.

Floating red orb in the Sydney Laurence Theatre- photo effect or Syd?

The Sydney Laurence Theatre Production Manager Wendy Odden points out that theatre people are a superstitious group. “We consider Syd a ghost with a sense of humor who likes to prank us.  Most theatre technicians will greet Syd coming in and say good night going out and attribute the lack of problems to those courtesies, because when a technician doesn’t greet Syd, he pranks them.” 

Whether you believe in ghosts or not, here at the Center we give our Syd his due respect. So, the next time you’re in the Sydney Laurence Theatre, give a nod and say hello to Syd and don’t forget to say goodbye as well!