Aspiring Choreographers to Get an Audience

“I’ve always liked listening to music and making up dances for myself,” said 11-year-old Becky Power. “But the only audience I ever had for them was my family.”

Tonight, Becky and nine other budding dance makers will have the audience they crave.

After devoting part of their summer vacation to workshop sessions in the craft of choreography, the youngsters will put their new knowledge on the boards at the California Ballet’s sixth annual Choreographers Concert, which begins at 8 p.m. at the City College Theater. The performance will feature an assortment of students from the school and a scattering of company dancers. The range of styles includes ballet, modern and contemporary jazz dance.

As Laurie Lowry, director of the concert, said in an interview at the studio: “The best way for any artists to learn their trade is to simply do it. We give them a chance to work with dancers, costumes, lighting and a real stage--and we get an audience to look at their work.

“Since these kids are choreographing for dancers of varying levels of ability, it’s a real challenge. They perform on a professional stage, and that puts more pressure on them than doing it in the studio, so they really put out a lot of effort.”

At 14, Maya Culbertson is a 4-year veteran of the concerts, and she’s one of their biggest boosters.

“I get to do dances, which is an opportunity that would not be available to someone my age. I love making dances. It’s my dream to be a choreographer,” she said.

“This is my second time,” said 16-year-old Kara Scott. “I like being able to express myself through dancing, and this really gives me a chance to be on my own. I get dancers to work with, and I can do anything I like with them.”

Lowry believes the program fills an important void for aspiring choreographers.

“All I ever got to do was choreograph for school plays when I was younger,” she said. “The kids do a lot of experimenting here, but most of them have had a lot of experience dancing and seeing other people work.

“Then we examine their work, and, if necessary, we make them rework certain sections. But it goes beyond learning how to choreograph. They learn how to conduct rehearsals and how to convey their ideas.”

Most of the participants are under 16, but Kathy Roach, who created two works for tonight’s concert, has a master’s degree from United States International University. Yet she hasn’t been able to break in as a choreographer.

“If you’re not working for one of the larger studios, you don’t get a chance,” she said. “That’s why I’m here.”

“It’s even hard for older choreographers to put on programs,” Lowry said. “It’s expensive, and they don’t have dancers to work with. Here, we’ve taken all that worry away from them. We put the show together and sell the tickets. All they have to do is create.”