Page 8 | West End Word September 7 – 20, 2018

Dynamic Performances Slated For Fall

Dance Preview
by Regina Popper
Dance audiences will find a range
of gems from quirky to elegant in the
display of local and national troupes
performing in St. Louis this season.
(Some start times may be earlier than
8 p.m.) For tickets, check company
websites, the venues or MetroTix.

SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER
Dance St. Louis’ Wewolf
On Sept. 15, the Wewolf company,
based in Los Angeles, offers St. Louis Wewolf’s “Henry and Edward.”
fans the first chance to see its new | photo courtesy Dance St. Louis
“Henry and Edward,” an abstract
interpretation of the Dr. Jekyll and Mr.
Hyde clash. Catch the awe-inspiring
contortions their bodies can assume,
but then add hip hop, threading and
breakdance to this mix of contemporary
dance. The Saturday performances
are at 2 and 7:30 p.m. at the Grandel
Theatre, 3610 Grandel Square in Grand
Center.

Karlovsky & Company Dance

Back from a successful choreograph-
ic exchange trip to France in June, the
company presents “Playful Pairings:
Dance, Beats, Wine and Treats” (lim-
ited to 50), on Sept. 22. This tasting of
wine and treats pairs fun new dance
and live music in designated spots
within the Grandel Theatre. The Dark
Room’s Samantha Pretto is chef in
charge.
On Sept. 21 and 27, “Dine on Dance,”
the Karlovsky troupe’s free, outdoor
lunchtime series, is offered from noon
to 1 p.m. The series is now in its 15th
year. Bring a lunch on Friday, Sept. 21,
to Strauss Park, located at Washington
and North Grand in Grand Center. On
Thursday, Sept. 27, the troupe will
perform at the Old Post Office Plaza,
9th and Locust streets. See Karlovsky
Karlovsky & Company Dance performs “Remembrance.” | photo by Bob Morrison
dancers, plus MADCO 2, Groupo
Atlantico and others, with live music
from Rick Kramer (drums) and Tory
Starbuck (electronics).
MADCO
Witness “Revival” at the Touhill
Performing Arts Center at the
University of Missouri-St. Louis, Sept.
28-29, at 8 p.m. Ten dancers perform
five “best of the best” Modern American
Dance Co. works originally premiered.
On Oct. 26 and 27, MADCO 2 (the
young company) performs at 8 p.m.
Meet the company’s new dancers in
the intimate Whitaker Hall “black
box” style theater space of the Touhill
Theater.
NOVEMBER-DECEMBER
Saint Louis Ballet
Saint Louis Ballet’s “Romeo &
Juliet” takes the Touhill Theater main
stage in Shakespeare’s tale of tragic
love set to Prokofiev’s classic music
Nov. 2-4. “The Nutcracker” spins its
magic at the Touhill Dec. 14-23.
Dance St. Louis
Season subscribers can only see “An
Evening of Ballet Stars” with dancers
from top U.S. ballet companies in a
one-night-only special event on Nov.
11 at Washington University’s Edison
Theatre.
The Big Muddy Dance Company’s
“Lemp Legends: A Ghost Story.”
| photo by Gerry Love
Big Muddy Dance Co.
“Lemp Legends: A Ghost Story”
offers a dance evening exploring the
infamous tale of the Lemp family &
brewery, Nov. 16-17, 8 p.m., at Edison
Theatre, 6465 Forsyth Blvd., on the
campus of Washington University.
See complete dance schedule (through
spring) at www.westendword.com.

GetLOOP’d - Friday, 9/7 from 5-8 PM

as The Loop Celebrates it’s monthly
First Friday Loop Walk. Look for
special sales on some of your
favorite pieces of art in the gallery.
Artisans in THE LOOP is a contemporary art gallery
offering a wide variety of handcrafted, functional,
and affordable artwork designed by our
40+ local and national artists.
6511 DELMAR BLVD., ST. LOUIS, MO 63130 • 314-833-3540
September 7 – 20, 2018
The Cabaret Project Series Cathedral Concerts Opens
The Cabaret Project of St. Louis and
Jazz St. Louis are co-presenting a
series of shows featuring award-win-
ning artists from the worlds of
Broadway, cabaret, records and TV.
All performances take place at Jazz
St. Louis’ Ferring Jazz Bistro, 3536
Washington Ave. Dinner and drinks
are available the night of each show.
For tickets or more information, visit
www.thecabaretproject.org or call 314-
571-6000.
• Sept. 26 & 27: Liz and Ann
Hampton Callaway, Sibling Revelry.
Showtimes: 7:30 p.m. both nights, plus
an 11 a.m. performance on Sept. 27.
Tickets $11.50-$41.50.
• Oct. 24 & 25: Darius de Haas, A
Bernstein Thing. Showtimes: 7:30 p.m.
both nights. Tickets $11.50-$36.50.
• Dec. 5 & 6: Christine Ebersole &
Billy Stritch, Snowfall. Showtimes:
7:30 p.m. both nights. Tickets $11.50-
$46.50.
Gaslight Cabaret Festival
The Gaslight Cabaret Festival kicks
off on Friday, Oct. 19, and runs through
Sunday, Nov. 18, at The Gaslight
Theater, 358 N. Boyle Ave. in the
Central West End.
• Oct. 19 & 20: Jillian Louis &
William Michals, Broadway’s Greatest
Hits of All Time! Showtimes: 8 p.m.
both nights. Tickets $35-$45.
• Oct. 26 & 27: Faith Prince.
Showtimes: 8 p.m. both nights. Tickets:
$35-$85.
• Oct. 28: Jimmy Webb. Showtime:
7 p.m. Tickets: $45-$100.
• Nov. 1: Bob Gerchen, Joe Cocker:
Never Forget. Showtime: 8 p.m. Tickets
$30-$35.
The Callaway sisters open The Cabaret
Project Series Sept. 26-27.
• Jan. 25 & 26: Lea DeLaria, Big Boo
Live! Showtimes: 7:30 p.m. and 9:30
p.m both nights. Tickets: $11.50-
$46.50. For mature audiences.
• March 6 & 7: Marilyn Maye, It’s
Better With A Big Band. Showtimes:
7:30 p.m. both nights. Tickets $11.50-
$46.50.
• May 15 & 16: Shoshana Bean, Star
of Wicked and Hairspray. Showtimes:
7:30 p.m. both nights. Tickets: $11.50-
$36.50.
• Nov. 2 & 3: Carrie St. Louis.
Showtime: 8 p.m. Tickets: $35-$45.
• Nov. 8: Lonnie McFadden.
Showtime: 8 p.m. Tickets: $30-$35.
• Nov. 9: Katie McGrath, Aunt of the
Year. Showtime: 8 p.m. Tickets $30-
$35.
• Nov. 10 & 18: Ken Haller, Happy
Haller Days! Showtimes: 8 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 10, and 7 p.m. Sunday,
Nov. 18. Tickets: $30-$35.
• Nov. 11: Caroline Zarinelli, In
Pursuit of Magic. Showtime: 7 p.m.
Tickets $30-$35.
• Nov. 16 & 17: Christina Bianco,
Diva Moments. Showtimes: 8 p.m. both
nights. Tickets $35-$45.
West End Word | Page 9
Chamber Series & Fall Season
Cathedral Concerts, an independent
nonprofit that brings sacred and
classical music to St. Louis from world-
class musicians, presents the Chamber
Series, running Sept. 18-Oct. 16, at St.
Louis area churches.
Concerts are free and begin at 7:30
p.m., with featured performers Kristin
Ahlstrom, violin; Shannon Farrell
Williams, viola; Bjorn Ranheim, cello;
and Matthew Mazzoni, piano. Chanticleer will open the Cathedral
The Chamber Series provides Concerts’ regular season on Oct. 2.
its audience with beautiful music,
and a way to preview what they can
experience when they attend one of The Cathedral Concerts season
Cathedral Concerts’ events at the begins Oct. 2 with “Chanticleer,” at the
Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis. Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, 4431
Lindell Blvd. The season continues in
Chamber Series Schedule 2018 with:
• Sept. 18: Fontbonne University Dr. Jennifer Pascual, organist, on
• Oct. 5: Holy Spirit Catholic Church  Sunday, Nov. 4
• Oct. 9: Saint Joan of Arc “Christmas at the Cathedral” on
Catholic Church 
• Oct. 15: Historic Trinity
Lutheran Church
Saturday, Dec. 1 and Sunday, Dec. 2
The season runs through April 2019.
Visit www.CathedralConcerts.org for a
• Oct. 16: Saint Joachim and Ann complete schedule.
Catholic Church
FAUSTival Continues Through Dec. 8
The FAUSTival, an artistic Patrons may purchase tickets to
collaboration among five each event separately, or buy
theatre companies, continues a FAUSTival pass and see all
through Dec. 8. five plays for one bargain price.
Each company – Equally Passes can be purchased at
Represented Arts (shows www.brownpapertickets.com.
have concluded), Midnight Visit participating companies’
Company, Theatre Nuevo, respective websites for more
Slightly Askew Theatre details about the individual
Ensemble and the Post- productions.
Romantics – will present its take on the For more information, showtimes,
Faustian myth. dates and locations, visit faustival.org.
the gaslight FALL
PRESENTS cabaret festival 2018
Broadway’s Greatest Hits of All Time! Tony Award Winner 4-Time Grammy Winner
Jillian Louis & William Michals Faith Prince Jimmy Webb
FRI/SAT - OCT 19/20 - 8:00pm FRI/SAT - OCT 26/27 - 8:00pm SUN/MON - OCT 28/29 - 7:00pm
Best KC Entertainer 2017 On Broadway, Glinda in Wicked, Sherrie 24 Million YouTube Views
Lonnie McFadden in Rock of Ages, Lauren in Kinky Boots Christina Bianco
THUR - NOV 8 - 8:00pm Carrie St. Louis FRI/SAT - NOV 16/17 - 8:00pm
FRI/SAT - NOV 2/3 - 8:00pm
Happy Haller Days
Aunt of the Year Joe Cocker: Never Forget Ken Haller In Pursuit of Magic
Katie McGrath Bob Gerchen SAT - NOV 10 - 8:00pm Caroline Zarinelli
FRI - NOV 9 - 8:00pm THUR - NOV 1 - 8:00pm SUN - NOV 18 - 7:00pm SUN - NOV 11 - 7:00pm
Tickets & Information:
GaslightCabaretFestival.com 314.725.4200
Call the West End Grill and Pub for dinner: 314.531.4607
THANK YOU
SEASON
SPONSORS: 358 N. Boyle Ave.
St. Louis, MO 63108
Page 10 | West End Word
Creative Destruction At COCA
Art Review
by Dickson Beall
In the midst of “creative destruction”
at the Center of Creative Arts (COCA),
the new exhibition “Figures, Fables &
Fiction” opens Sept. 7 in the center’s
Millstone Gallery.
Echoing change in both the building
and in new programs at COCA, each of
the nine artists represented speaks a
piece of truth about the transient nature
of life itself. Guest curated by Nancy
Newman Rice, the exhibition parallels
Rice’s own works (not included in the
exhibit), which bring the viewer to the
brink of another dimension, inviting
fresh contemplation and understanding.
Dominic Finocchio
Dominic Finocchio’s arbitrary
figures are painted from internet images
or his own photography and set in
surreal compositions, conveying what
might as well be outer space.
In “A Lingering Imbalance,” a solemn
figure pulled from a fashion magazine
stands on a bridge to nowhere, its
deep and barren landscape devoid of
buildings, trees or other people. Atop a
wall, isolated peacocks gaze nowhere, as
an unleashed dog appears equally alone
and lonely.
Elements of fantasy within an
apparent narrative, Finocchio’s
depictions seem possible yet
implausible. Figures express the
contemporary condition — lost in a
global yet unconnected world.
John Joseph Hunn
John Joseph Hunn places figures
in an even more isolated framework —
that of icons and altarpieces of earlier
centuries. Yet these are not saintly
figures from familiar myths or fables.
They reflect today’s individuals, often
lost in computer devices, lonely and
seeking answers in coffee shops, trains
and homes, isolated from community
other than the artificial digital
community.
With 21st-century hairstyles,
strangely seductive poses or 19th
century military attire, they pose
questions of physical place and
historical time, as well as challenging
responsibility to effect change, as does
the figure confronting the viewer in
Hunn’s “Revolution.”
Nicole Cooper
Nicole Cooper creates images that
parallel evolutionary biology, offering
“A Lingering Imbalance” by Dominic Finocchio, oil on canvas.
“The Harvesting Boat” by Victor Wang. The texture on the canvas is inspired by the
farm’s soil where Wang worked in China. |photo courtesy of the artist
fictions of skinless bodies with prismatic
time shifts, while exploding time and
space. With energetic brushwork, vivid
colors and layers of unfurling flesh, she
imagines the continuously evolving
force of humanity tracing its lineage
back to ancient marine relatives.
Cooper’s figures morph into one
another and share bodily systems in
“Shape Shifter.” Veins weave around and
through the fleshy forms, representing
connections of kinship through blood,
suggesting constant growth and change.
Victor Wang
International artist Victor
Wang paints the human face as a
vehicle to express worry, wonder,
sadness and pleasure. There is a rich
autobiographical element in his work,
relating to his experience of living
through China’s Cultural Revolution.
Sunflowers frequently appear and are
a metaphor connoting his background
and providing an emotional stage. The
texture and earthiness on the canvas
are inspired by the farm’s soil where he
worked in China. In “Sunflower Hat,” a
likely immigrant woman sits anxiously,
while background figures struggle in
|photo courtesy Nancy Rice
September 7 – 20, 2018
Figures, Fables
& Fiction
…
Sept. 7-Nov. 4
…
Millstone Gallery
at COCA
524 Trinity Ave.
University City
water or are caught in a fishing net.
Jill Downen’s “Waves” “Revolution” by John Joseph Hunn, oil,
The creative destruction evident in gold and palladium leaf.
these exhibited works is nowhere so |photo courtesy Nancy Rice
apparent as with the disappearance of
the entry wall sculpture, “Waves,” by
Jill Downen (current chair of sculpture
at the Kansas City Art Institute). This
full wall, combining architectural and
bodily forms, was reduced to powder
just this past week, as it was crushed by
compactors. Expressing the continual
flux that Downen’s works inevitably
contain, this sculpture yielded itself
to make way for COCA’s $28 million
building expansion.
The “Figures, Fables & Fiction”
exhibition also anticipates this
expansion, as well as the creative future
of arts programs at COCA. These artists
understand the transitory nature of all
art and life, embrace its mystery and
offer the viewer expansive insights into
the ever-changing universe of past,
present and future.
Also in this exhibition are strong
pieces by Andrew Brandmeyer, Jed
Jackson, Metra Mitchell, David Ottinger
and Lonnie Powell. “ShapeShifter” by Nicole Cooper
See Jill Downen’s work at jilldownen. |photo courtesy Nancy Rice
com/public-art/.
Jill Downen’s
“Waves,” a full-
wall sculpture, was
reduced to powder
last week to make
way for COCA’s $28
million building
expansion.
|photo by
Dickson Beall