Choreographers' Showcase 2024

Come enjoy an evening of dance at the CREC Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts Half Day Program’s Choreographers’ Showcase! On Saturday, October 26, 2025 our students will perform the work of professional choreographers based in New York, Tennessee and Connecticut in this year’s Choreographers’ Showcase.

Choreographers’ Showcase is a rare opportunity for high school dancers to learn and perform with critically acclaimed choreographers. The performance brings world-renowned choreographers, and their original works, to the Learning Corridor's Theater of the Performing Arts in Hartford.

This year, the Academy welcomes the following featured artists:

·        An excerpt from Psalm by legendary choreographer José Limón, as staged by Nina Watt

·        Urban Bush Women’s Walking with ‘Trane, excerpt from "The Quartet"  choreographed by  Jawole Willa Jo Zollar and Mame Diarra Speis, restaged by Tendayi Kuumba

·        Presidential Tango by Laura Glenn staged by Dance Chair, Alexa Melonopoulos Fleury

·        An original work by alumnus Rickey Flagg ’09, now of the Collage Dance Collective (Memphis)

·        Alone Together choreographed by faculty member Thomas Giroir

The CREC Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts Half Day Program is thrilled to present the following work in this year’s program.

·        The Academy is delighted to continue our relationship with the José Limón Dance Foundation, Inc. José Limón is credited with creating one of the world’s most important and enduring dance legacies, and we are honored to present Limón’s Suite from Psalm. Staged by former company member and Hartt Dance Division faculty member Nina Watt, Psalm was first performed August 19, 1967 at the Connecticut College American Dance Festival by the José Limón Dance Company.

·        We are pleased to welcome Urban Bush Women (UBW) back to the Academy. UBW is a groundbreaking Black women-led theatrical dance company and social activism ensemble. Walking with 'Trane, choreographed by Jawole Willa Jo Zollar and Mame Diarra Speis, and restaged by Tendayi Kuumba is inspired by the life of John Coltrane and his seminal jazz suite A Love Supreme.

 ·        Our students will also be presenting Presidential Tango by Laura Glenn, staged by dance chair Alexa Melonopoulos Fleury. Laura was a longtime faculty member at the Julliard School and director of Hartford’s own Works/Laura Glenn Dance. Presidential Tango proves to be a witty, fast-paced dance piece set to a soundtrack of cleverly manipulated snippets from President Reagan's speeches.

·        Alumnus Rickey Flagg, Class of 2009, came home to create an original work on our dancers. Rickey currently dances professionally with Collage Dance Collective, a Memphis-based ballet company and conservatory on a mission to inspire growth and diversity of ballet.

·        Faculty member Thomas Giroir rounds off our program with a contemporary ballet piece inspired by his students.

 The evening will begin with a pre-performance reception honoring Kim Stroud and her longtime and outstanding commitment to the Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts Half Day Program in her roles as Dance Department Chair, Assistant Director of the Arts, Director of the Arts and Director/Principal. In honor of her service, we are establishing a scholarship in her name.

Reserved seat tickets for adults are $15 and $5 for students and seniors. Group rates are available. Tickets can be purchased online, by phone, or in person.

•         Online at http://www.crec.org/theater (additional charges apply)

•         Reception and scholarship donations can be made here Reception and Scholarship Donations

•         By phone at 860-757-6388, with Visa, MasterCard, or Discover between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday