Dance troupe, brass quartet to meld energy Diverse pieces set for UM concert

When a local dance company joins forces with a world-class group of musicians, the result is a fusion of energy neither could achieve on its own.

“Energy” is the word dancers from the Robinson Ballet Company and members of the Los Angeles Brass Quintet use when they describe their collaboration May 11-12 at the Bangor-based ballet company’s spring concert.

“You never quite know what it’s going to be like,” said Robinson’s co-artistic director, Kelly Holyoke. “You feed back and forth. It’s very exciting.”

There’s no theme for the concert, but that’s what Holyoke loves about it.

Unlike their classical “Nutcracker” performance with the Bangor Symphony Orchestra each Christmas season, Holyoke and the rest of the company use the spring event to let loose.

“We all get a chance to do what we like. There’s usually something for everyone,” Holyoke said.

This year, that means a smoldering Latin-inspired dance, a fresh take on Aaron Copland’s “Appalachian Spring,” a classical ballet piece called “Baroque Suite,” and the light-hearted “On the Quay.”

Two of the four pieces will be accompanied by the Los Angeles Brass Quintet.

The quintet is in Maine through Chamber Music America’s Rural Residencies Program, on a grant from the National Endowments for the Arts. The group has been based at The Grand Auditorium in Ellsworth. Robinson Ballet has given a spring concert for the past few years at The Grand. Grand director Bob Bahr had the idea for the quintet and ballet to collaborate.

“We’ve been working with schools, churches and getting involved with as many organizations as possible,” said Liesl Perkins, who plays French horn with the quintet. The group was founded in 1995 and its members held down other jobs teaching music and freelancing with orchestras in the Los Angeles area. They saw the residency program as an opportunity to focus on the quintet.

While in Maine, they have found time to hone their craft as a group. In March, they won the International Brass Quintet Competition in Athens, Ga., and they are headed to France in June for the World Brass Quintet Competition.

The group, made up of Perkins, Nathan McIntyre, Jason Foltz, Richard Candelaria and Steven Suminsky, has been in Maine since September, and will leave at the end of May. This is the first time the musicians have collaborated with another group during the residency.

“It adds a different dimension. The energy is really exciting,” said Perkins.

During the Latin piece “Armando’s Rhumba,” the quintet is right up on the stage and integrated with the dancers.

Another piece the quintet will perform is the “Baroque Suite,” with music by Vivaldi and Bach. The group made a CD for the dancers to rehearse with, and had their first live rehearsal a few weeks ago.

“It brings it to a whole new level,” said 16-year-old dancer Erica Schweikert, who is the solo dancer in the “Baroque Suite,” among other roles. “It brings a whole new energy.”

Stephanie Dunham, also 16 and with roles in each of the pieces, said, “It’s more motivating. You can see the other people doing their thing.”

Another piece, put together by returning guest choreographer Terry Lacy of New York, is “Appalachian Spring.” It follows a girl (Rebecca Breau) and her dog (Ian Robinson) walking along the Appalachian Trail. A large set with ladders and trampolines is used, with dancers portraying things in nature such as water, fish, flowers and a snake.

“On the Quay” is a story of sailors on leave. “It’s light, funny,” said Holyoke.

Some of the featured dancers are local high-school students Dunham, Schweikert, Breau, Robinson and Caleb McGary. Thirty dancers in all, most of them high-school age, take the stage for the show. They practice almost every day of the week, for three or four hours – sometimes up to six hours a day.

The 20-year-old Robinson company, though known for its professional performances, is built around families. The artistic directors (Holyoke, Maureen Lynch and Keith Robinson) and their children are seen on stage, and lots of siblings.

And while some of the costumes are professionally done, many of them and the backdrops and props are created by the troupe or family members.

Shows are 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday at Hauck Auditorium on the University of Maine campus in Orono. Tickets are $14 for adults, $10 for seniors and $8 for 18 and under. Tickets can be purchased at the Grasshopper Shop in Bangor, Dr. Records in Orono, or by calling 942-1990.