----------------------------------------- GROUNDWORKS DANCETHEATER OCTOBER 11 & 12, 2019 @ 7:30pm Presented by Cleveland State University Department of Theatre and Dance Allen Theatre Mainstage - Playhouse Square TICKETS: 216-241-6000 | www.playhousesquare.org<http://www.playhousesquare.org/multicategory/category/cleveland-state-university> $25 / $30 (General); $10 (Students / Children under 18) CSU Students FREE in person at Ticket Office with CSU ID CSU Faculty / Staff $5.00 off with CSU ID and code FAC Groundworks DanceTheater Inaugurates 8th Season at Playhouse Square Will feature new work by guest choreographer Brian Brooks GroundWorks DanceTheater, a resident company of Cleveland State University, will present its eighth season at the beautiful Allen Theatre in Playhouse Square with two performances of critically acclaimed modern dance. Performances take place Friday, October 11 and Saturday, October 12 both at 7:30 pm. The showcase will include a new work by award-winning choreographer Brian Brooks<http://www.brianbrooksmovingcompany.com/>. Brooks leads his own company in New York, Brian Brooks Moving Company, and is also currently serving as the inaugural Choreographer-in-Residence at Chicago's Harris Theater for Music and Dance. A 2013 Guggenheim Fellow, other recent awards include a NY City Center Fellowship, Joyce Theater Artist Residency and Mellon Foundation Creative Artist Fellowship. "It has been a creative high point for GroundWorks to be able to collaborate with Brian Brooks on the creation of this new work and to bring it to our audience," commented Executive Artistic Director David Shimotakahara. "For me personally, it has been a privilege to be able to observe the work of such an established artist unfold. His work constantly allows us to discover new connections, without asserting a particular interpretation. It is about form and action, and that speaks volumes." The fall series will also feature the return of two distinctive works from GroundWorks' repertory: Remora, choreographed by Eric Michael Handman<https://groundworksdance.org/portfolio-items/eric-handman/?portfolioCats=93> and Chromatic, choreographed by David Shimotakahara<https://groundworksdance.org/about/david-shimotakahara/>. Originally created for GroundWorks in 2015, Remora is rooted in its physicality, the demands of its execution, its complexities and its nuances of timing, which together exert a compelling experience that we connect with outside of any particular narrative. Choreographer Eric Handman is also an Associate Professor at the University of Utah's Department of Modern Dance. "While researching music for Chromatic," says Shimotakahara, "I came across Conlon Nancarrow's work by accident. I was immediately taken by its idiosyncratic qualities and unique sound. His experimentation, composing on player piano rolls as a way of layering complex rhythmic and tempo changes, gives his work a certain driven, automated quality. Also in Nancarrow's music you hear all types of social dance forms - tango and dance hall rhythms and themes. I was inspired by this juxtaposition, a mash up of influences, from which something very human and almost whimsical emerges." Chromatic was originally created and staged in 2016. For the new season, GroundWorks welcomes new company members Michael Arellano and Spencer Dennis to the Allen Theatre stage, joining artists Alexis Britford, Nicole Hennington, and Annie Morgan. Ticket information can be found at www.playhousesquare.org<http://www.playhousesquare.org/multicategory/category/cleveland-state-university> or by calling 216.241-6000. -----------------------------------------