Publication Date: Friday, June 25, 2004
A rare breed
A rare breed
(June 25, 2004) Teen Dance Company stresses creativity over competition
by Robyn Israel
Bret Easterling used to be a lot more competitive when it came to dancing. Winning trophies was the goal, and artistic expression was the farthest thing from his mind.
"I'd come up with tricks and be more show-offy," he recalled. "I was more into winning the competition than creating art."
Today, Easterling's attitude is very different. Dance is no longer a means to an end, but rather a creative art form that he always aims to take to a higher level.
He credits his new outlook to Teen Dance Company, where he has been performing for the last five years.
"It definitely improved my dancing and my outlook on dancing -- greatly," he said.
Founded in 1999 by Darlene Easterling (Easterling's mother), Teen Dance Company's mission is to cultivate teenage artists who possess technical proficiency, creative depth and artistic social awareness. The mission is realized through an intensive training program, a guest artist series, a dance exposure program, a presentation schedule and a community outreach program.
Members are exposed to the full spectrum of dance, from classical to modern. But the real emphasis is on ballet.
"Teen Dance Company is very strong in ballet technique and ballet training," said Kei Nishimura, who has performed with the company for two years. "Other companies train you in jazz and tap and other specific areas of dance, but here they concentrate on ballet being the core of dance."
Unlike other teen dance companies, which enter competitions, Teen Dance Company is more interested in adjudication. For that reason, the group is really more of a performance company -- a rarity in the world of teen dance.
When Nishimura, 17, first saw Teen Dance Company perform, she knew she wanted to part of the company, and auditioned the following season.
"They looked like they were working hard and having fun -- and I wasn't getting that at my other studio," said the Castilleja student, who's been dancing since the age of 5.
This weekend the company will present its second of two annual shows, "One World and Other Repertory." The performances will take place on Saturday and Sunday at the Cubberley Community Center Theatre.
Audience members will be treated in the first half to various numbers from the company's repertory, while the second half of the program will showcase dances from around the globe. These include Spanish, Indian, Japanese, Chinese, African and Polynesian dances. The last number will be a 30-minute tap dance that fuses various world dances. The dances have been created by eight different choreographers.
Learning the new numbers has been somewhat of a challenge for Nishimura.
"You really have to clear your slate, retrain your body and relearn every placement," she said. "Polynesian dance is so hard. It's all about your fingers."
Easterling said that performing in the show's Spanish number has forced him to call on his acting skills.
"You have to have the pride in you -- you can't just go through the movements. You have to have that spark, that passion. You have to look like you've grown up in the country."
Easterling, a Palo Alto High School junior, utilized a different kind of passion when he choreographed a special piece for Teen Dance Company's spring show. Entitled "Suicidal," the dance was inspired by the suicide of Easterling's friend, who was a fellow Paly student
The piece, Easterling said, was his way of coping with the grief and shock he felt in the aftermath of his friend's death.
"I didn't go to the funeral, as I thought it would just be close friends and family. Bu then I learned that everyone in our grade had gone and I felt badly. I wanted to give my tribute to him, since I couldn't do it at the funeral."
The three-section piece begins with a lone dancer on stage, surrounded by other dancers moving chaotically. The second section, accompanied by acoustic guitar, shows everyone else looking at each other in disbelief, as they attempt to make sense of the tragedy. The third section, designed to represent acceptance of the death, shows the dancers moving together in unison. The piece ends with another suicide, and is intended to represent the second suicide that happened at Paly several months later.
Nishimura, who played the role of the second suicide, was impressed by Easterling's choreography.
The key goal of choreography is getting your message across to your audience, and Bret did that so well," she said. "He put emphasis on the emotions -- the disbelief, the acceptance -- more than the movements themselves. That made it a great experience for me."
The piece earned Easterling first place in the Olympiad of the Arts, a Bay Area arts contest held quadrenially (to coincide with the Olympic Games) and awarded at Mission College. The honor, awarded to Easterling in April, included a certificate and a financial prize.
"Suicidal" marked Easterling's second attempt at choreography, but he hopes to do more in the future. Both he and Nishimura will be competing in July in New York for national teen dance titles; Brett at the New York City Dance Alliance; Nishimura at Jump.
Asked about all the long hours and hard work required by Teen Dance Company, both Easterling and Nishimura said they did not mind in the least.
"Sometimes I stay up all night doing homework, but it's worth it," Easterling said.
Arts and Entertainment Editor Robyn Israel may be contacted at risrael@paweekly.com
What: Teen Dance Company presents "One World and Other Repertory."
Where: Cubberley Community Center Theatre, 4000 Middlefield Road in Palo Alto
When: Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 3:30 p.m.
Cost: Tickets are $22 adults; $15 students and can be purchased by calling (650) 283-5678 or by visiting www.teendancecompany.org.
Info: Please visit www.teendancecompany.org.
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