Hubbard Street Dance Company To Celebrate 35 Years
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Chicago's Hubbard Street Dance company is planning a special full-evening dance program to mark its 35th anniversary this fall.
As WBBM Newsradio's Regine Schlesinger reports, Hubbard Dance resident choreographer Alejandro Cerrudo will create the full-length dance program, using as his inspiration the late artist Marc Chagall's iconic "America windows" stained glass panes at the Art Institute.
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"The word magic keeps coming to my head" to describe the dance program, Cerrudo said.
Chagall's windows are also turning 35 this year; like Hubbard, they debuted in 1977.
Standing before the windows at the Art Institute, Cerrudo went into some detail about his vision.
"I will take the inspiration from these windows: the magic, the colors, the emotions that these windows transmit to me and try to put it into an evening of dance," he said.
For the title of the program, Cerrudo says he is thinking of something like, "A Thousand Pieces."
"I've thought about the many pieces of glass in the windows, and how the little pieces come together to make a whole beautiful artwork," Cerrudo said.
The program will be set to the music of American composer Philip Glass, who celebrated his 75th birthday last month. Cerrudo insists there is no pun intended with the musical choice.
"Absolutely not," Cerrudo said. "But Philip Glass music and these panels convey magic," he said.
The dance program will be dedicated to Mayor Rahm Emanuel, a former dancer himself, who has made the arts a priority for his administration.
The Hubbard Street Dance company was founded by dance teacher and choreographer Lou Conte, in his studio at Hubbard Street and LaSalle Boulevard in River North. The company made its debut on a New York stage in 1983, and developed relationships with a roster of famed choreographers, including Twyla Tharp.
Cerrudo, a native of Madrid, Spain, was named the choreographic fellow for Hubbard Street in 2008 and became the first resident choreographer for the company the following year.
The program will be performed from Oct. 18 through Oct. 21 at the Harris Theater in Millennium Park.
