5/12/14 12:06 PM CityDance DREAMscape gala includes great dancers of every skin tone - The Washington Post

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CityDance DREAMscape gala includes great
dancers of every skin tone
Peter Zay - The Charlotte Ballet's Anna Gerberich and Pete Walker.
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By Rebecca Ritzel, Published: May 11 E-mail the writer
Theres been a lot of discussion lately about race and dance. The latest issue of Pointe
magazine has three black ballerinas on its cover. And while there were no black ballerinas at
Saturdays CityDance DREAMscape gala, there were dancers of color doing everything else,
and what was so gratifying about the evening was that it never felt like diversity night.
Rather, it seemed that co-producer Rasta Thomas had sought out the best guest artists he
could in every genre, and by extension, dancers of every skin tone ended up onstage.
For the second year, CityDance rented out the Lincoln Theatre and put on the gala to
support the free after-school classes it offers at six city schools. Virtuosic duets are a staple
of dance galas, and of the eight on Saturdays program, the best was easily Sasha Janess
Lascia, performed by Pete Leo Walker and Anna Gerberich of the Charlotte Ballet.
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5/12/14 12:06 PM CityDance DREAMscape gala includes great dancers of every skin tone - The Washington Post
Page 2 of 6 http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/theater_dance/citydancn-tone/2014/05/11/311ae8bc-d923-11e3-a837-8835df6c12c4_story.html
Granted, Walker is a beast and Gerberich is his offstage partner, but Janes creates lifts that
you wont see anywhere else. Lascia was his first ballet, made for himself and the woman
who is now his wife. Its set to a languid Handel aria, and at one point, both dancers loll on
the floor. Walker slowly rises, and even though both dancers have their arms outstretched,
he balances Gerberich across his back.
Two duets featuring members of Philadanco
easily overshadowed one performed by
dancers from Ailey II. Ulysses Doves well-
crafted Bad Blood opens with Janine
Beckles and Adryan Moorefield seated on a
bench, but this is no meet-cute pas de deux.
Beckles and Moorefield take turns ignoring
each other, and when they do connect,
theyre fierce, with a recurring theme of
spinning in and out of lifts like tumultuous
lovers. When Dawn Comes, featuring
Moorefield and Jennifer Jones, was equally
unsentimental.
But this wouldnt have been a gala without
some schlock, and that came courtesy of
Thomass company, the Bad Boys of Dance.
The adult audience went wild for their
shirtless torqueing to Michael Jackson and
failed to notice that the CityDance students
did a better job of staying in sync.
Far more deserving of applause was the
Washington Ballets Brooklyn Mack, who
performed a fireworks finale from Le
Corsaire. About 60 students were in the
balcony during the first half of the gala, and
they squealed for every jet or high-fan kick.
These moves are somewhat standard in
professional dance, but the youthful
enthusiasm was infectious. Keep on
dancing, kids, and someday you can do the
same.
Ritzel is a freelance writer.
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