PassionDance Company show set

PassionDance Company invites the public to its fourth major dance gala, entitled ?Darkness/Catharsis: The 1990s, A Fairfield Dance Gala?  at the Stephen Sondheim Center for the Performing Arts for three performances at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and at 2 p.m. Sunday.

Ticket prices are: $10 general admission; $5 with a student identification.

The program is produced by Hilary Jordan, featuring PassionDance Company, in association with Passion Dance Studio.

It began with the Berlin Wall coming down, the beginning of a radical age of change, followed by the Gulf War Oil Spill which prompted a new feeling of responsibility. Democracy and Capitalism spread with neo-liberalism, the information age, global communication and commerce. Generation X came of age and embraced environmentalism, entrepreneurship, tattoos, piercings, the new genres of ?alternative? rock and gangsta? rap.  It was about pointing out truth. It was about the ?inner child,? seeing victim/abuser relationships and giving voice to inner sensitivity ... for the first time emotions were considered important. This led attention to diversity and a belief in the uniqueness of each person, minorities being treated fairly, reparations for past wrong or abusive actions, rehabilitation, ?InnerHealing,? This included third-wave feminism, political correctness and affirmative action.  The ?90s was a time of ?bein? and keepin? it real? after the big hair, big glitter, big spending excess of the ?80s. The music and art of the ?90s highlighted injustice, emotional truth, spirituality. Post-Modernism dawned, and with it the new viewpoint that everyone is a star, the average person featured and valued ... as opposed to just a favored few.

?We believe these ?90s values and aesthetics are reflected in the body of work coming together in this production,? Jordan, said. ?We will move you, figuratively and literally!?

According to Jordan, unity and diversity are juxtaposed in the dances, and catharsis, or authentically experiencing feelings that have  until now been in darkness, is celebrated in this show. This is a noble, sincere expression of healing, the comedy and tragedy of adolescence, spiritual evolution, learning to live with and for ourselves. This production is about all parts of being human ... the angry parts, the vulnerable parts, the silly parts, the animalistic and the spiritual parts.Questions are provoked, theories discussed visually. All you have to do is sit back and allow your heart to connect with us.

Jordan said if you like the music of Dead Can Dance, Jesus Jones, Van Halen, Hole, Nirvana, Tori Amos, U2, Tool, Sheila Chandra, Bjork, Fugazi, Portishead, The Cranberries, Aqua, Korn, Fatboy Slim, Q-Tip, Loreena McKennit ... you will enjoy this show.

She also said if you have enjoyed the ?Women in Rock: A Fairfield Dance Gala,? ?Fairfield Local Music Dance Gala? or ?The Provocative 1980s: A Fairfield Dance Gala,? you will love this performance more than the others!

Jordan said if you enjoy her choreography and the choreography of Wendy Stegall, Sankari Wegman, Anna Bruen, Gina Roethle, Alexandra Warwick, Eli Torres, David Furstneau, Mali Davidson, Sarah Langthorne, Alaris Todar, Megan Robinson, you will love this show.

She continued, come see your friends perform: Shoan Dieter, Briggs Shore, Sondra Ward, Sara Hawthorne, Marandah Franke, Meret Giacomini, Stephanie Faulkner, Alexandra Joy, Ayla Spersma, Chrissy Corazza, and more.