Friday, November 10, 7:30 p.m.
St. Ambrose University's Galvin Fine Arts Center, 2101 North Gaines Street, Davenport IA
With Time Out Chicago raving, “The most entertaining dances seem to come from Giordano Dance Chicago,” this exhilarating Windy City ensemble brings its high energy, enthusiastic choreography, and half-century of history to the Galvin Fine Arts Center as the latest guests in the Quad City Arts Visiting Artists Series.
Founded in Evanston, Illinois, by dancer, teacher, and choreographer Gus Giordano, the troupe originated in 1963 under the name Dance Incorporated Chicago, and became the Giordano Dance Company in 1966 after many of its live performances started airing on Chicago's PBS station WTTW. A few years later, the company performed its expressive jazz-dance stylings for the touring Bolshoi Ballet, whose members were so impressed by the group that they were invited to tour the Soviet Union in the early 1970s – the first American jazz company ever to do so.
Now under the artistic direction of its late founder's daughter Nan, the Giordano Dance Ensemble is dedicated to expanding the definition of jazz dance through innovative movement and music selection, and its international-tour schedule has found the ensemble's talents playing to audiences in Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland, and Japan. Giordano Dance Chicago also leads more than 300 courses each year through the company's signature program “Jazz Dance, Science, & Health” and continues to earn plaudits nationwide, with Dance Magazine calling the company's 50th-anniversary performance “a burst of pure dance joy that left the audience breathless and ready for more.”
Admission to Giordano Dance Chicago's November 10 performance at St. Ambrose University is $11-17, and more information on the ensemble and the Visiting Artists series is available by calling (309)793-1213 or visiting QuadCityArts.com.
