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December 19, 1997

Dance company celebrates African-American tradition

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, a modern dance company rooted in the African-American experience, will perform at 8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 17, in Loeb Playhouse in Purdue University's Stewart Center. The performance is presented by Purdue Convocations with support from Friends of Convocations and Purdue's Black Cultural Center.

The dance company's founder and artistic director, Jeraldyne Blunden, will lead a discussion of the evening's program at 7 p.m. in Room 214, Stewart Center. The discussion is free and open to the public.

Dayton Contemporary Dance Company participates in the American Dance Festival's Black Tradition in American Modern Dance project, which is reconstructing and touring great black works in American modern dance. The company has a repertory that includes works by such choreographers as Alvin Ailey, Talley Beatty, Donald McKayle and Eleo Pomare. The New York Times has called the dance company "one of the nation's most vital and accomplished small modern-dance troupes."

Dayton Contemporary Dance Company's participation in the American Dance Festival on Tour is funded in part by a grant from the Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Fund, which promotes the vitality of the arts nationwide by encouraging interactions between artists and communities. The fund is one of the largest private supporters of the performing, visual and literary arts in the United States.

Tickets for the Jan. 17 performance are $16 for the public and $11 for Purdue students at campus box offices. Charge by phone at (765) 494-3933 or 1-800-914-SHOW.

CONTACT: Jeff Langford, Convocations publicist, (765) 494-9712; e-mail, jilangford@convos.purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@purdue.edu

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