Theatrikos brings Clare Barron’s Pulitzer Prize finalist Dance Nation to the Flagstaff stage. An army of competitive dancers navigates ambition, friendship and desire as they plot to take over the world. Our pre-teen heroines, played by a multi-generational cast of women, know that every plié is a step toward finding themselves and unleashing their power.
The actors themselves, not only take the audience on a soul searching journey, but are on this journey themselves. “This play has already been life changing for me,” said actor Linda Sutera. “The audience is going to experience an entertaining, powerful, and beautiful show.”
“I think if we all look back, we would pick 13 as the age we would never want to relive! In Dance Nation, the audience will have a chance to look back on some of those moments—to remember the shock of going through puberty, the discovery of one’s body, the lovely wickedness of using ‘unacceptable’ words, and the joy and pain of those young friendships. As tough as those times might have been, what we went through at 13 shaped the journey of the rest of our lives. It is so easy to look back at the difficulties of that age and forget the wonder, the joy of budding dreams, and the excitement of what the future might bring. I hope that the audience will find the wonder as well as the regret, by reflecting on themselves through this amazing play,” said actor Susan Chastain.
“For me, at 71, being involved in this play has caused memories to resurface that have given me a better perspective on that complex time of my life, and on the shining moments and bumps in the road that have shaped me as a person and as an actress since then,” she said.
In developing his character in the show, actor Brian Price said, “The thing I am enjoying the most about the show is creating the character of Dance Teacher Pat, and not only establishing his relationship to the Dance troop as a whole, but the relationship he has with each individual girl, as well as their parents.”
It should be noted that Dance Nation contains strong sexual themes, language and images and may be offensive to sensitive theatre goers. Please use discretion when choosing this performance. May not be suitable for audience members under 15 years of age.
