Diavolo Merges Contemporary Dance and Elaborate Sets in Performance at the Ordway

Diavolo, an L.A.-based contemporary dance company, utilizes an athletic and risk-taking movement vocabulary to create powerful visuals speaking to a broad spectrum of the human experience. Diavolo comes to the Ordway on March 25, as part of Ordway's Target® World Music and Dance Series.

The dancers, gymnasts and actors of Diavolo consider themselves teammates with the task of managing dangerous situations created by surrealist sets and everyday objects that serve as the architectural performance environment. Common items such as doors, chairs and stairways not only serve as a backdrop to the movement, but company members collaborate on and around the objects to tackle themes of fear, destiny, faith, modernization and survival.

Diavolo's performance at the Ordway highlights favorites from the company's repertory including "Knockturne," a love duet that tracks a six-year relationship in six minutes; "Bench," an exploration of human confrontations; "Humachina," a piece showcasing the struggle between human motion and machinery; and "Trajectorie," a visceral and emotional journey set on a Galleon, which expresses the transcendence of the human soul against all odds.

As part of Diavolo's time at the Ordway, company members are collaborating with students from Macalester College and the University of St. Thomas to create a performance based on aesthetics and choreographic structure similar to Diavolo's work. Dance students from both Macalester and the University of St. Thomas are choreographing the movement and an engineering class from the University of St. Thomas is building the sets and pieces in a design class. Company members will be visiting the schools for the second of three visits from March 20 - March 26 and the final performances will take place at Macalester College from April 30 - May 2. The collaborative project between Macalester College, the University of St. Thomas and the Ordway is part of the Ordway's Campus Connections program. Diavolo will also be reaching out to the community by taking part in master classes and workshops at the Saint Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists.

Ticket holders to Diavolo's performance at the Ordway are invited to attend a special, free Ordway Extra in the Marzitelli Foyer before the show at 6:30 p.m. Company members will also participate in a post-show Talk Back directly after the performance on the Ordway stage. To learn more about Ordway Extras and Post-show Talk Backs, visit ordway.org/events.

Ordway Center for the Performing Arts
Now celebrating its 25th anniversary, the Ordway is widely recognized as one of the nation's leading not-for-profit performing arts centers and Saint Paul's most elegant and inviting performance space. The Ordway's Main Hall and McKnight Theatre stages attract diverse audiences with an array of productions encompassing the finest in American musical theater, world music, dance, jazz, and vocal performance. In addition, each year Ordway presents its Flint Hills International Children's Festival and serves over 50,000 children and adults through its Ordway Center Education programs. The Ordway is part of a unique Arts Partnership with The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Minnesota Opera and the Schubert Club, hosting their renowned productions each season. The Ordway is also proud to sponsor the Saint Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists, a professionally guided academic and artistic environment that trains aspiring pre-professional performing artists in the areas of instrumental and vocal music, theater and dance.

Performance and Ticket Information
Diavolo
Target® World Music and Dance Series
Thursday, March 25, 2010
7:30 p.m.
$30.50 - $35.50

Ordway Center for the Performing Arts
345 Washington Street
Saint Paul, MN 55102

Box Office: 651.224.4222
Groups: 651.282.3111
ordway.org

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