Presenting Denver Dance Festival

Date: February 8, 2020
Location: The Robert and Judi Newman Center for the Performing Arts, June Swaner Gates Concert Hall, 2344 E Iliff Ave, Denver, Colorado 80208.
Cost: Free
Time: Ballet:12:30pm – 2:00pm; Modern/Contemporary: 2:15pm – 3:45pm
Parking: Paid parking can be found inside the Newman Center visitor parking lot.

The audition is open to dancers who are Colorado residents ages 18 years and older living in the state of Colorado. Dancers will be asked to bring a headshot with a one page resume adhered to the back for each choreographer.

Please arrive 30 minutes prior to the audition for check-in, paperwork and your individual time to get mentally prepared on the stage. The audition will not include a class, so please arrive warm and ready to dance.

Presenting Denver and the Newman Center are hosting the initial audition. Dance companies or choreographers will be responsible for all follow up communication after the audition with dancers they have an interest in continuing a dialogue with. Please be sure to include a current phone number and email address on your resume.

For dancers selected for the Artist-in-Residence Public Stage piece, Presenting Denver will handle dancer contracts and Edgar L. Page: Feel the Movement will handle communications, scheduling and rehearsals.

Dancers are welcome to register for one or both of the audition times. Space is limited to 40 dancers per genre. Registration is available on a first come, first served basis.

REGISTER: BALLET AUDITION

REGISTER: MODERN/CONTEMPORARY AUDITION

Questions? Please see our Frequently Asked Questions section for more information.

Photo by Kevin McNearney. Courtesy of Christina Noel.

Christina Noel | Ballet

Christina Noel has been teaching ballet 48 years, apprenticing first under the tutelage of her grandmother, a former soloist with the Brussels Opera. Christina received both her ballet training and her teacher training from Finis Jhung principle dancer with the Harkness Ballet; Richard Ellis & Christine DuBoulay, soloists with the Royal Ballet, Patricia Stander from the London Festival Ballet and ballet mistress for Stars of American Ballet Theater, Patrick Franz from the Paris Opera and Hilda Morales soloist with American Ballet Theater.  In 14 years as a professional dancer, Christina performed with Chicago Ballet, Tucson Ballet, San Diego Ballet, Nevada Dance Theater, and Colorado Ballet, and taught for the companies’ affiliate schools as well as guest teaching in Vermont, California, New Mexico and Colorado. Since 1987 Christina has taught at the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities, developing their program and directing and choreographing for their youth company, Arvada Center Dance Theater. Ms. Noel has taught company class for Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble. Most recently, Christina presented at the International Association of Dance Medicine and Sciences international conferences about proper teaching techniques for ballet.

Photo by Heather Gray. Courtesy of Katie Elliott.

Katie Elliott | Modern/Contemporary

Katie Elliott founded 3rd Law Dance/Theater with Jim LaVita. 3rd Law Dance/Theater is an award-winning modern/contemporary dance company with a passionate belief in the power of live, in-the-moment performance. The company has been creating a panorama of evening-length works and site-specific installations since 2001. 3rd Law’s creative vision merges a powerful, energetic bodily idiom with a thoughtful and personal spirit where the individual voice of each dancer is honored. 3rd Law is a past recipient of the Colorado Dance Alliance “Cutting Edge award for innovative use of 21st century technology and choreography and  the “Living Legends of Dance in Colorado” in 2016 honoring companies that have made an outstanding contribution to dance. In recognition of her body of work, Elliott received a Neodata Endowment Fellowship for artistic excellence. Currently 3rd Law is under the artistic direction of Elliott and composer Paul Fowler.

See below for commonly asked questions related to the Dancer Audition.

CHECK-IN

Where do I check-in?

Check-in is located in the Joy Burns Plaza lobby at the Newman Center. Please arrive 30 minutes prior to your audition time for paperwork.

What time does check-in open?

Check-in will open 30 minutes prior to each audition time slot.

What paperwork will I need to turn in and fill out at check-in?

Dancers will be asked to complete release of liability forms and use of imagery release forms at check-in. These forms must be filled out prior to the audition. Please arrive no later than 30 minutes prior to your audition time for paperwork.

Dancers will turn in their headshot with their one page resume adhered to the back (glued, taped, or stapled) for each choreographer. Presenting Denver will email you prior to the audition to inform you of how many headshots and resumes to bring to the audition. 

Will I have to wear an audition number?

Yes. Presenting Denver will provide you with an audition number at check-in.

HEADSHOT & RESUME

How will I know how many copies of my headshot and resume to bring?

Presenting Denver will email you prior to the audition to inform you of how many headshots and resumes to bring to the audition.

Can I email my headshot and resume to Presenting Denver prior to the audition and have you print it?

No. Dancers are responsible for bringing their own printed headshots and resumes.

What size should my headshot be?

Please bring a vertical headshot that is 8 x 10 inches. 

What if I don’t have a headshot?

Headshots do not have to be professionally taken. Please bring a vertical headshot that is an 8×10 inch identifiable photo of you.

What if I don’t have a professional or current headshot?

Headshots do not have to be professional or current. Please bring an 8×10 inch identifiable photo of you.

What should I include on my resume?

Please include your name, address, phone number, and email address. Please outline any dance related education and/or experience.

Will I receive my headshot and resume back?

No. The headshots and resumes will be given to the choreographers.

WHAT TO EXPECT & WHAT TO WEAR

Will I have time on the stage prior to the audition? 

Yes. Dancers will have the time remaining after turning in their paperwork and headshot/resumes to be on stage. Please note this time will range from 0-15 minutes depending on how quickly you get through the check in process. 

Is there a class included as part of the audition?

No. Please arrive warm ready to dance and learn phrase work.

What should I expect at the audition?

Dancers will learn phrase work at the audition by a choreographer that is not connected to the festival. The festival choreographers will watch and take notes. There will be two portions to the audition, one for modern/contemporary and one for ballet/pointe. Each portion of the audition will include a very short center warm-up (without ballet barres), across the floor with jumping, and center phrase work. Improvisation will be included in the modern audition. Dancers will be split into rotating groups to perform the phrase work in front of the choreographers.

What should I wear to the audition?

Dancers are asked to wear a leotard and tights and/or top and pants. Please wear tight fitted clothing that will allow the choreographers see you execute the movement clearly. Please tie long hair back so that the choreographers can see your face.

Ballet dancers are asked to bring soft sole ballet shoes and pointe shoes if applicable. 

What if I don’t do pointe work? Can I still take the ballet audition?

Dancers are welcome to participate in the ballet audition event if they do not work on pointe. Please note, some choreographers may be looking for dancers with pointe experience.

Will there be marley on the stage?

Yes.

Can I use rosin on the stage?

No.

Can I audition for more than one audition dance genre?

Dancers are welcome to register for one or all of the audition genres. Space is limited to 40 dancers per genre. Registration is available on a first come, first served basis.

If I register for one section of the audition, does that register me for each audition genre?

No. You will need to register for each audition time slot and genre. Space is limited to 40 dancers per genre. Registration is available on a first come, first served basis.

Will photography and video be taken at the audition?

Yes.

Will I have access to use any of the photography and videography taken at the event?

No.

Can parents or others watch the audition?

No. This is a closed audition.

ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE: PUBLIC STAGE PIECE

The 2020 Presenting Denver Dance Festival Artist-in-Residence, Edgar L. Page: Feel the Movement will be creating a short piece during tech week June 15-19, 2020 prior to the dance festival weekend. Edgar will be selecting dancers to perform in a piece made for the Public Stage showcase performances on June 20-21, 2020. Dancers for this piece will only be selected from this audition.

Will dancers be compensated?

Each dancer will be contracted and compensated a stipend for their total involvement in the creation and performance on the Public Stage piece at the 2020 Presenting Denver Dance Festival. The contract will provide necessary details.

When and where will rehearsals take place?

Rehearsals will take place June 15-19, 2020. A rehearsal schedule will be provided by Edgar L. Page: Feel the Movement. Rehearsals will take place in the Byron Studio at the Newman Center.

When is dress rehearsal? What are the performance dates?

Dress Rehearsal: June 19, 2020. Time is to be determined.
Performance: June 20-21, 2020 at 6:00pm

How will I know if I have been selected?

Presenting Denver will contact selected dancers and provide them with a contract to be signed via a docusign program.

DANCE COMPANIES & CHOREOGRAPHERS

Which dance companies or choreographers are seeking dancers?

The below companies will be attending both sections of the audition.

• Claire Kendall Creative Projects
• jk-co
• Candice Barth

Can I find out information about rehearsal schedules, payments, or details about the dance companies or choreographers prior to the audition?

This and other information will be the responsibility of the dance companies and choreographers to communicate. Presenting Denver does not have this information.

How will I know if I have been selected by a choreographer or dance company?

All choreographers and dance companies will be responsible for following up with dancers they have an interest in after the audition. Please note that some choreographers and companies may host follow up auditions or have other next step processes. All questions, communication, contract negotiations, and any other details or outcomes will go through the companies and choreographers – not Presenting Denver or the Newman Center.

Is the audition just for festival project or for other work?

This is at the discretion of each dance company or choreographers. All choreographers and dance companies will be responsible for following up with dancers they have an interest in after the audition. Please note that some choreographers and companies may host follow up auditions or have other next step processes. All questions, communication, contract negotiations, and any other details or outcomes will go through the companies and choreographers  – not Presenting Denver or the Newman Center.

QUESTIONS

Who do I contact with questions about the audition?

Please contact Presenting Denver at admin@presentingdenver.org with questions. Presenting Denver works from a home office, so please do not show up without an appointment.