OUR NEW SHOW
Snow White and the Seven Deadly Sins
SoMar Dance Works and the Allen Zurcher Quartet (AZQ), announces their new production, Snow White and the Seven Deadly Sins. The concert is Saturday February 21st at 7:00 p.m. at the Walker Recital Hall on the campus of Mercyhurst University located at 501 E. 38th Street, Erie, PA. Admission is free and open to the public.
Imagine a fairy tale princess, a magic mirror, a myriad of immoralities and mixing it all with jazz tunes and innovative choreography. What you get is a concert of dance, music, and serious sins. In other words, SoMar Dance Works is back on stage reunited with the Allen Zurcher Quartet. For this concert they’re focusing their lens on the less-than-virtuous side of humanity: Envy, Lust, Greed, Sloth, Gluttony, Pride, and Wrath. This multi-media event will explore some of the darker aspects of human nature and the world we inhabit.
“We’re always looking for intriguing themes for our concerts, and this year we found ourselves drawn to the idea of the seven deadly sins” explains co-artistic director Mark Santillano. “While delving into the rich history of the topic, we began asking what makes an act sinful, and what makes a sin worthy of this particular list.” These questions provided the spark that ignited the choreographers’ creative fires. Santillano added, “We included Snow White because we wanted to approach the topic from a unique (and hopefully, humorous) perspective.”
While the seven dwarfs are not a part of this production, there are five dancers and five musicians bringing their talents to the project.
Dancing on the program along with SoMar directors Mark and Solveig Santillano, are Sara Lawrence-Sucato, Maya Richards, and Jo Theisen. Providing the music are Bradley Amidon, Kelly Armor, Liz Sesler-Beckman, Chris Von Volkenburg, and Allen Zurcher (director of AZQ).
Santillano adds “Performing with live music is always a great thrill for us. The energy and excitement are unmatched, and these people are among the best in the region.”
This concert is made possible in part by contributions by JazzErie, The Music Performance Trust Fund, and the Local 17 Music Fund, and the ongoing support of the Mercyhurst University School of the Arts and the Department of Dance.
SoMar Dance Works features the dances of Solveig and Mark Santillano. Serving as co- artistic directors, choreographers, and dancers, Solveig and Mark are seasoned performers who have danced all over the world. Their choreography has been influenced by their association with their former companies, Pilobolus Dance Theatre and Momix. Solveig and Mark are also the proud recipients of the inaugural Erie Arts & Culture Artist Fellowship. More information can be found at www.somardanceworks.com.
SoMar Dance Works made its premier in 1999 at the Missouri Fine Arts Academy. Since that time, SoMar has performed at the Erie Art Museum, Erie Festival of Dance, the American College Dance Festival, Celebrate Erie, The Brick Church for the Performing Arts in Lovell, Maine, Unitarian Universalists in Community concert, Luther Memorial Concert Series, The Fredonia Opera House, Grand Valley State University, overseas in Gothenburg, Sweden, Austria’s Young! Tanzsommer, and numerous Mercyhurst University programs, where the company is in-residence.
For more information contact: Mark Santillano
(814) 824-2176 office somardanceworks@yahoo.com