[NEohioPAL] PRESS RELEASE: Verb Ballets moves to Shaker Hts., offers classes

[Dan Kilbane]

For Immediate Release

Contacts:

At
Verb Ballets:                                               For
Media:  

Margaret Carlson                                            Dan
Kilbane

216.397.3757,
ext. 3                                       216.513.3654

margaret-carlson at sbcglobal.net                   kilbanedan at yahoo.com

www.verbballets.org

 

Verb Ballets

Moves to Shaker Heights, Adds
Rehearsal Studio and Dance Classes

Dance For Everyone

 

March 7,
2011 -- Cleveland, OH -- Verb Ballets, Cleveland’s National Repertory Dance
Company, is pleased to announce the company’s move to a new home in Shaker
Heights.  Included in this
significant change, Verb Ballets offices will add a rehearsal studio, and inaugurate
dance classes in the new home.  The
Board of Trustees, Director Dr. Margaret Carlson, the dancers and staff have
been working diligently for months to make the big move.  This forward motion for Verb Ballets
was made possible with the generous support from the City of Shaker Heights,
The Cleveland Foundation and The Gund Foundation.  To celebrate the move, the company will hold a party-benefit
at the new home on Friday, April 15, 2011 (details to be announced soon).

 

The
company has moved to the bustling Warrensville-Van Aken neighborhood.  Verb Ballets’ new address is as
follows:

 

3445 Warrensville
Center Rd.

Shaker
Heights, OH 44122-5206

Phone
numbers remain the same:

216-397-3757
Office

216-397-7872
Fax

(use the
north entrance of Christ Episcopal Church)

 

“Our lives
as gypsies have finally come to an end!” states Director Dr. Margaret Carlson,
“We’ll be able to rehearse and operate our business from the same location, and
we’ll have dressing rooms for the first time!  There are gobs of places nearby to run out for lunch or
snacks and even a grocery store! The studio will be very large (over 2000 sq ft
with no poles or obstructions). 
It’s awesome!”

 

In addition
to bringing Verb Ballets offices and rehearsal studio under one roof, the
company can now offer its own brand of contemporary dance classes.  The first session will begin April 2,
2011.  Classes will be held in
eight-week sessions.

 

Eight-week
session 

April
2 - May 26, 2011

Dance
For Everyone

 

Please
contact Education/Outreach Director Katie Gnagy at 216.397.3757, or visit www.verbballets.org for a class registration form.

 

You must
register by March 25, 2011 to secure your placement in class.

 

Katie Gnagy

Education/Outreach
Director

Verb
Ballets

3445
Warrensville Center Rd.

Shaker
Heights, OH 44122

216-397-3757,
ext. 2

kgnagy at verbballets.org 

Class Schedule

Tuesdays

 

6:00-7:15
p.m.: Dance Training Camp (Teen/Adult) with Richard Dickinson

 

Dance
Training Camp:  Whether you are new to dance or just
want to get back in shape to pursue a more advanced dance class, Dance Training
Camp is for you.  DTC is an exercise and conditioning-based class
using modern, ballet and Pilates-like training techniques to get you feeling
great about yourself.  No previous training necessary. Just come and enjoy
the feeling of moving through space with strength and flexibility.

 

Richard Dickinson is the Rehearsal Director for Verb Ballets
and an adjunct professor at Youngstown State University. He has an MFA in
contemporary dance from Case Western Reserve University and is a
classically trained ballet dancer. 
Mr. Dickinson is the former artistic associate for Hubbard Street Dance
Chicago; ballet master and principal dancer for Ohio Ballet; director of the
Boston Ballet II and a soloist with Boston Ballet.

Wednesdays

 

6:30-8:00
p.m.: Teen/Adult Ballet with Troy McCarty

 

Adult
Ballet: This ballet
class is perfect for those who have a previous knowledge of ballet technique,
adults who want a class that is challenging and musical but not stressful or
stern, current or former dancers, dance instructors, working professionals,
anyone who wants a ballet class that will leave you refreshed and
stimulated--both physically and artistically.  The class will work on grace, precision of movement, elaborate
formal gestures, steps and poses. 
Coordination, strength, flexibility, rhythm and musicality are all
emphasized.  Ballet shoes required.

 

Troy McCarty is an internationally recognized ballet master.
He has worked for Ballet Nacional de Cuba, Hong Kong Ballet, Hong Kong Academy
for Performing Arts, Ballet British Columbia, Calgary City Ballet, and was the
director of the Vancouver City Ballet School and Company. He owns White Cloud
Studios in Cleveland. 

Thursdays

 

6:00-7:30
p.m.: Teen/Adult Contemporary Modern with Michael Medcalf

 

Teen/Adult
Contemporary Modern:  Includes the elements of classical
distortion, counter balance of weight distribution, and asymmetrical shapes and
design in conjunction with irregular meter and rhythms.

 

Michael
Medcalf is a Cleveland native and Cleveland School of the Arts graduate.  Medcalf’s work as a choreographer and
modern dance instructor has received numerous commissions, awards and
fellowships from the Ohio Arts Council and various dance companies, colleges
and universities throughout North America.  Additionally, he has
choreographed for opera, musical theater, and contemporary dance companies
nationally.  In 1998, Michael
Medcalf established Cleveland Contemporary Dance Theatre (CCDT) in
Cleveland, Ohio.  In 2007, Northern Ohio Live magazine honored Medcalf for his
contributions to the dance community by awarding him with its Award of
Achievement.  Mr. Medcalf currently
co-directs and performs with the Greene/Medcalf Movement Project, serves as an
Artist-in-Residence at the Cleveland School of the Arts, consults for Cleveland
Metropolitan School District, and teaches modern dance at the Cleveland School
of Dance.

Saturdays

 

10:00-11:00
a.m.: Wigglewords (ages 6-8) with Katie Gnagy

Wigglewords:  Full of fun and energy, the Wigglewords program uses movement
to teach literacy skills to children of all ages.  Students will learn to bend and stretch their bodies to form
the letters of the alphabet while improving knowledge in spelling, phonics
rules, identification of vowels and consonants, rhyming, and storytelling.
Wigglewords keeps children active and energized with a variety of word and
movement games.  No previous dance
training necessary.  

Katie Gnagy is
originally from North Carolina, where she received her training at the North
Carolina School of the Arts.  After
graduating from high school, Ms. Gnagy moved to New York, and in 2005 received
her bachelor’s degree in fine arts from Purchase College Conservatory of Dance.  Ms. Gnagy also trained and performed
with Ballet Contemporaneo de Burgos, Spain, for two summers under the
leadership of Kazuko Hirabayashi. 
Katie debuted with Verb Ballets in the summer of 2005.  She has
been the Verb Ballets’ Education/Outreach Director since 2007.  She currently serves on the Board for
the Ohio Alliance for Arts Education.

 

About
Shaker Heights

Just eight miles from downtown Cleveland, Shaker Heights is a tranquil, yet cosmopolitan and distinctive suburb. The
City has a national reputation for excellence in city services, architecture,
natural beauty and superior
public education.  Shaker Heights is a town
of tree-lined neighborhoods and architecturally charming homes that invite residents to stroll,
chat with each other, and to stay for a lifetime! Its proximity to life's
essentials, its remarkable schools and its fabulous homes make Shaker an extraordinary
community.  Many new residents make
their homes in Shaker each year, and each year many former residents come back home.  Shaker Heights is a great place to do business. The City has committed itself to
growing its commercial base, attracting new and cutting edge endeavors, and
broadening its tax base to include a diverse roster of competitive enterprises.
Learn more from the Economic Development
Department.  Designed
around two rapid transit lines, Shaker Heights is the only
suburb on the east side of Cleveland with a rapid transit system. Ride the
rapid to downtown, sports arenas, the waterfront, or the airport!  Shaker Heights is a regional leader in
the growing Green Building/Sustainable
Community practices movement. It is one of the only
communities in the Midwest to have adopted legislation supporting green building. 

 

About
Verb Ballets

The Verb
Ballets organization has established the company as Cleveland’s National
Repertory Dance Company.  Coolcleveland.com recently stated “Verb Ballets has a way of upping the ante and hitting
the jackpot…every time they perform.” 
Verb Ballets was named one of “25 to Watch in 2004” by Dance
Magazine, the
country’s leading news magazine covering dance, and recently the magazine
bestowed more kudos on the company by naming Verb Ballets one of 5 “Great Tiny
Troupes” in America.  Verb Ballets
discovers, collects, interprets and stages choreography that matters to the
region and to the world of dance.  As
a curator of expressive movement that is globally connected and nationally
respected, Verb Ballets has a mandate to support and foster emerging talent,
present excellence in contemporary choreographers and revive and honor modern
dance classics.  The company is now
in its ninth season.

With
“Imagination, Strength, Uniquely American, Verb Ballets” as this season’s
theme, the company presents works of gusto, creativity, boldness, and what it
means to be an American, a strong, proud figure fighting the odds.  The Plain Dealer recently hailed Verb Ballets as
“vibrant…bold…poetic…”

The Verb
Ballets company includes Ashley Cohen, Erin Conway
Lewis*, Antwon Duncan, Katie Gnagy, Stephanie Krise, Garrett McCann, Kara
Madden, Rebecca Nicklos, and Brian Murphy. The Rehearsal Director is Richard
Dickinson, and Artist-in-Residence is Terence Greene.  *on leave of absence

 

Major sponsors of Verb Ballets include AHS Foundation, The Bascom Little
Fund, Millie L. Carlson, Change For Charity, the City of Shaker Heights,
Cuyahoga Arts and Culture, The Cleveland Foundation, Ralph S. Graham, The George Gund Foundation, Kulas Foundation, The
Laub Foundation, Lubrizol Foundation, The McGregor Foundation, Kenneth Milder,
John P. Murphy Foundation, The National Endowment for the Arts, The Ohio Arts
Council, and Shah Capital Management. 
Additional individual sponsors include Chuck and Ann Ennis, David R.
Pierce, Alan Miles Ruben, and Robert M. Shwab.

 

Additional
sponsors include Baumgarten & Company, LLP; Cedar Hill Communications;
FITWORKS; WCLV; and WCPN/Ideastream.

 

The Ohio
Arts Council helped fund this organization with state tax dollars to encourage
economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all
Ohioans.

 

Verb
Ballets is generously funded by Cuyahoga County residents through Cuyahoga Arts
and Culture.

 

Dr. Margaret Carlson (Director,
Verb Ballets) has international expertise in performing, teaching,
choreographing, and working in a variety of settings. Dr. Carlson was an
original member of the Cleveland Ballet, serving as a Principal dancer from
1972-1983. Also a member of Actors Equity, she performed in numerous musical
theatre tours throughout the 1970's, including Sweet Charity, Ballroom, How
to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Brigadoon, Mame, Hello Dolly! and The
Merry Widow. For many years, she choreographed for the Cleveland
Opera.  Dr. Carlson served as
Director of the School of Dance at the University of Akron from 1985-1993. In
1993, she became Dean of the School of Dance at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing
Arts, until she returned to Cleveland in 1999. She then served as the
Development and Education Director for the Cleveland San Jose Ballet. She
consulted both nationally and locally through her company, Carlson Consulting
Group, Inc., with groups that have included The American Dance Guild, Chinese
Performing Artists of America, Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, Ohio
Ballet, Dancing Wheels, Ohio Youth Ballet, Ohio Conservatory of Dance, Tom and
Susana Evert Dance Theatre, and White Cloud Studios. Dr. Carlson founded the
American Alliance of Dance Artists and served as its first President. She has
served as a Board member and officer for Kids on Broadway, DANCECleveland, the
Cleveland Ballet Council, the American Dance Guild, the Council of Dance
Administrators, the Hong Kong Ballet, the Hong Kong Dance Company and The Hong
Kong Jockey Club Music and Dance Fund. She served as the secretary of the
International Organization for Transition for Professional Dancers, a
sub-committee of UNESCO, based in Switzerland from 1998-2006, and was Treasurer
and Board Member of the American Dance Guild in NYC and was its vice-president
for 10 years.  She is known for her
work as the regisseur for the works of Ian (Ernie) Horvath. She received her
doctorate from Durham University in the United Kingdom.





      
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