Central Wisconsin News

The University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Department of Theatre and Dance will close its spring season with "Danstage 2025," a showcase of new dance works by faculty and guest artists. Performances are scheduled from April 11 to April 13 at the Jenkins Theatre in the Noel Fine Arts Center.

"Danstage 2025" will unfold at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, April 11 and 12, and at 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, April 12 and 13. The event will feature original choreography by faculty members Sarah Olson and Michael Estanich, and guest artists Pamela Luedtke and Jeffrey Peterson.

Tickets are priced at $27 for adults, $24 for seniors and UW-Stevens Point staff, and $16 for youth. They can be purchased at tickets.uwsp.edu, via phone at 715-346-4100, or at the Information and Tickets Office in the Dreyfus University Center.

Pamela Luedtke’s piece “Echoes of Self,” co-choreographed with Katelyn Altman to Johann Sebastian Bach’s Goldberg Variations, is a collaborative modern dance work. It includes a live performance by classical pianist Nell Buchman. Originally a duet presented last fall at the Waupaca Bach Festival, it is now restaged for "Danstage 2025" with six dancers from the UWSP Dance Program. The dance reflects the passage of time and self through a poem by Stana Luedtke.

Jeffrey Peterson’s “Side By Side” is a group work featuring 16 dancers set to "First Circle" by Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays. "Side By Side" celebrates rhythm and community and was restaged by Peterson during his February residency with the UW-Stevens Point Dance Program.

Sarah Olson will present two new pieces: “Looking for a Sliver of Light” and “Spring Blossoms.” The first explores hope amid darkness to music by CoH and Travis Lake, with a cast of eleven dance students. "Spring Blossoms" is a contemporary ballet piece inspired by Tchaikovsky's Waltz of the Flowers, performed by an ensemble of eight.

Michael Estanich will debut “Our House Upended,” a dance theatre work combining movement, text, and sculpture to illustrate contemporary life. It features a set design of floating tables and an abstract minimalist house by Mattie Ruona, a student at UWSP.