Annex Dance Company will revisit the evening length work THE RED SUITCASE April 7th and 8th at 7:30 pm at the City Gallery at Waterfront Park, 34 Prioleau Street, Charleston, SC 29401. Kristin Alexander, Annex Artistic Director and choreographer, created THE RED SUITCASE in response to local artist Mary Walker‘s collaborative traveling exhibition, also entitled The Red Suitcase, which includes work from eleven different artists from all over the country. Tickets are priced at $18 for adults, $15 for students, $10 for children 12 and under, and can be purchased online at http://tickets.annexdancecompany.org.

THE RED SUITCASE premiered during the 2016 Piccolo Spoleto Festival, almost three years after Walker had originally discussed her idea of a travelling art exhibition presented in a vintage suitcase. “I was immediately drawn to Mary’s idea of work by different artists being displayed in something so compact, like a suitcase,” states Alexander. Having collaborated with Walker in the past, Alexander was intrigued by the challenge of so many pieces of art influencing her own creative process in choreographing one cohesive concert. The content of each box in the suitcase is different from the next, and the movement vocabulary, music choice, and number of dancers in the corresponding section of choreography reflects the diversity of the artwork, while still finding similar themes and shapes.

In the spirit of the suitcase, Alexander invited a number of performers to dance with the company during the creation and premiere of THE RED SUITCASE. Alexander says, “My choreographic process was influenced by new bodies that have different tendencies, approaches, and ways of looking at movement.” This year, several new dancers are working with the company and returning collaborators, including Eliza Ingle, dance artist, educator and critic, and Evan Parry, actor, on the remount of the work. These individuals were selected through an audition process open to members of the community. Reflecting on the rehearsal process Alexander states, “With this group of new dancers I have loved watching the choreography evolve, especially as they have found their own connections with existing movement phrases.” Alexander hopes this remount of the work opens up possibilities for taking THE RED SUITCASE to new cities and having dancers in the various communities perform with the company.