At a ceremony on September 27th, Decidedly Jazz Danceworks' General Manager, Kathi Sundstrom, was named as the recipient of the 2005 Rozsa Award for Excellence in Arts Management.

Kathi was honoured and overwhelmed when she accepted her award: "I would like to thank the Rozsa family for their astounding commitment to the arts in this city and for their leadership and vision in the creation of this award. We all know that the arts contribute so much to our lives - they nurture our spirit, give voice to our creativity, celebrate our life and foster delight. I am honoured to do my small part in making them vital."

Kathi went on to thank her colleagues at DJD, in particular Artistic Director Vicki Adams Willis, as well as the dancers, administrative staff, board of directors and volunteers.

Created in 2002 in honour of the philanthropic efforts of Drs. Ted and Lola Rozsa, this significant award is the only one of its kind in Canada. The Rozsa Award celebrates the outstanding achievement of an individual working in the complex profession of arts management and, at the same time, offers assistance to strengthen the recipients' organization, and thereby, the community as a whole. For further information about the award, please visit http://www.rozsafoundation.org/pages/therozsaaward.html

Earlier this year, DJD Artistic Director Vicki Adams Willis was presented with the City of Calgary Community Achievement Award in the area of Arts, which is given to an individual Calgarian whose artistic accomplishments have brought recognition to Calgary or whose volunteer or professional involvement has contributed to developing a stronger arts community. Most recently, Vicki was honoured to be one of the people after whom a scholarship will be named through a generous philanthropic gift by John Lefebvre to the University of Calgary, where Vicki founded the jazz division in the program of dance.

These awards distinguish the two women at the helm of DJD as leaders, honouring their dedication, commitment, and skills. Bravo to both Kathi and Vicki on this public recognition of their achievements!

For the past two decades, Decidedly Jazz Danceworks has created at least two new works each year for your enjoyment. From international collaborations such as last season's blockbuster performances of ¡BULLA!, which had people cheering and jumping to their feet in standing ovations across Canada, to the innovative dancer-choreographed shows that offer the company members themselves a chance to try their hand at dance-making, new work creation is the cornerstone of this company.

Eager to find out more about the process the company goes through to create a new show, I was given an opportunity to sit in on an early rehearsal of PULSE, the current DJD show in the making. At the time of said rehearsal (third week of September), the company had approximately 20 minutes of choreography ready for a show that will probably have a running time of closer to 100 minutes when all is said and done. During the rehearsal, Vicki Adams Willis, DJD Artistic Director and main choreographer for PULSE, changed CDs as quickly as drivers on the Deerfoot change lanes, and with almost as little advance notice.

Of course once the real show is done, there will be no CDs. There will be original live music composed by Kristian Alexandrov and played by an amazing trio of jazz musicians: Kristian Alexandrov (Music Director, Composer, Keyboards. & Percussion), George Koller (Bass), and Davide DiRenzo (Drums & Percussion). And the "canned" music the dancers were working with in the rehearsal studio wasn't necessarily the real music from the show... "then something sort of like this might happen, with this sort of groove, but it won't be this music..," Vicki would say as she shuffled through various CDs to find the piece of music she was looking for and count the dancers in for their next piece.

On her lap, I noticed that Vicki had a notebook with the show "mapped" out on two pages. This map consisted of about 20 sticky notes, in three neon colours, each colour representing a particular type of piece (instrumental, new work, or previous work), and each sticky note representing a dance in the show. I could tell by the rumpled demeanor of these notes that they had been previously shuffled about to different places on the page many times already as Vicki played with the order of the show. I also noticed that there was only one green one - the colour representing a piece from a past show - all of the rest were new works, even though an earlier description of the show said it would be a mix of old and new. This made more and more sense to me as I watched how in-tune Vicki is with each dancer's personality, character, style, and imagination, all of which are brought out and featured in any DJD show. Unlike what one might see while watching a chorus line or corps de ballet, where the beauty lies in the sameness of the bodies and the movement, a typical DJD piece proclaims and celebrates each dancer's individuality. So, some of the dances from DJD's past, such as In The Cracks, which was first performed in Perched on the Edge of a Quarter Note three years ago and will re-appear in PULSE, work well with new dancers, and others not as well. What was clearly evident to me was Vicki's skill at creating dance with the dancers, not setting choreography on them.

I felt honoured to be invited to see the work before it was, so to speak, "ready" to be seen. Half way through a given dance, for example, everyone might stop abruptly and Vicki might say, "Well, that's as much as we have for that one right now, but it'll be longer when we're done... and then there will be some sort of segue as we switch to ...this." And the company, fleet on their feet, would instantly adopt a completely different groove and mood as Vicki slipped another CD into the player. If Thomas Edison was right when he said: "Great ideas originate in the muscles," then these dancers are masters of brainstorming!

What I detected as I watched the rehearsal of PULSE was a depth of heart. The title of the show has been chosen carefully to reflect a deep connection to the heartbeat, to the body's physical and emotional response to life, and to the quickening and slowing of the pulse depending on what is music is being heard and what emotion is being felt. While the show shifts moods from agitation to anguish, humour to humanity, resilience to rhythm, blues to body percussion, the audience will likewise shift gears, experiencing something that is deeply personal, engaging, captivating, and extraordinarily entertaining in the fullest sense of that word. Martha Graham said that "dance is the hidden language of the soul," and John Updike echoed this idea when he stated that "what art offers is space - a certain breathing room for the spirit." What better words to describe a DJD experience. As with all of their shows, PULSE will offer us a chance to be transported to another place, somewhere deep within ourselves.

Pulse is a word of the heart, which is the origin of so much - bloodflow, courage, connection, and emotions. The heart is mysterious and miraculous as it contracts and relaxes, pounds when we're excited, slows down when we're at rest, pumps nourishment to all parts of our bodies, and can be filled with love, tenderness, pain, or bliss. And that's what this show feels like to me, even in its early stages - it is pulsing with energy, rhythm, anguish and delight. Bring your heart to the Max Bell Theatre and enjoy PULSE!

PULSE
Max Bell Theatre, EPCOR CENTRE for the Performing Arts
January 6 - 14, 2006
SPECIAL PRE-SALE OFFER ON NOW TO NOVEMBER 14!
Buy tickets to PULSE and The Spring Show (title TBA) and save 20%!

The PULSE tour

possessed 2006 is fast approaching! Mark your calendar for another raucous evening with fresh Cuban flair - March 4, 2006. It's never too early to buy tickets, or to become a sponsor. Early Bird tickets $75. Tax receipt of $50 per ticket will be issued.

After 19 years of making the Black & White Ball legendary, DJD launched a new party in 2004 called possessed. Quickly building reputation as a raucous and glamorous one-of-a-kind evening, possessed is DJD's annual major fundraising benefit event.

The School of Decidedly Jazz is proud to be Calgary's largest recreational dance studio, offering over 70 classes each week to over 1,000 students, ages 2-82.

Winter Session begins in February 4. Register for winter session before January 21 and save 10%!

More about the Winter Session

The 2006 Winter Workshop Weekend is scheduled for January 28 & 29. Warm up your winter at this annual intensive training opportunity for all levels.

More about the Workshop

This year's Dance Class Marathon welcomed 165 dancers from Calgary and beyond. Dancers enjoyed a day packed with many dance forms including Jazz, Tap, West African, Funk, DJD Repertoire, Salsa, Caribbean, Belly Dance, Capoeira, South African Boot Dance & more. These energy filled dancers raised over $12,000 in pledges for the School of Decidedly Jazz!

Have DJD perform at your child's school this year!

Specifically created with young people in mind, Live and in Sync! is a fun-filled romp which takes the audience on a journey through the history of jazz dance. Utilizing a T.V. game show format, 5-8 performers trace the development of jazz from its African roots, through the 1920s, to the popular social dances of today. Join Herman (assisted by the ever-ready "jazz crew") as he attempts to win various game shows. With an audience participation element, the program features everything from classic era Jazz to Hip Hop.

DJD was delighted to welcome 33 children ages 5-16 from low-income families to participate in one of our weeklong dance camps this past July - August. We were pleased to collaborate with several organizations to select these children, including Calgary Family Services, Boys & Girls Club, Connaught Community School and the YWCA. We have funding to award bursaries for up to 10 children during the fall and winter session.

Heartfelt thanks to Chip and Barb Burgess, RBC Financial Group through RBC Foundation, the Harry and Martha Cohen Foundation, CIBC Children's Miracle Network Foundation and other individual donors who made this opportunity into a reality.

In 2004, DJD conducted a residency for the students at Cecil Swanson Elementary that focused on jazz history and also integrated math curriculum. A grade 5/6 class was assigned to explore dances from the 1930s and '40s swing era. The dance they learned was the Jitterbug Stroll, a relatively simple pattern dance but a good challenge as most of the students had little dance experience. DJD Company member Sarisa Figueroa helped the students learn the dance by having them sing the specific rhythms of each pattern. As the class practiced their dance on the final day, a teacher who was watching came up to the DJD instructors and pointed out a student who was dancing quite well. She explained that the young boy was mentally challenged and couldn't spell his name, yet remarkably he could do the Jitterbug Stroll. Dance clearly touched his soul and spoke volumes!

Bulla! cast updates, new company dancers, summer studies...read all about what's been happening with the DJD family and behind the scenes!

Better Education

Past Performers and staff of DJD are making Calgary's schools better. Jason Stroh (School of Decidedly Jazz instructor and past DJD performer), Lori Maxwell-Keen (past Dance School Manager and instructor) and Christie Preston (School of Decidedly Jazz instructor) have completed their Masters of Education and are teaching in Calgary schools.

Old BULLA! Buddies and New Company Faces

The adventures of the cast continue. This summer, both Hannah and Sarisa reunited with the Cuban cast in Cuba. Sarisa went back there for more study of Cuban dance, and Hannah continues hosting her Dance and Drum trips to the magical isle.

The full band from BULLA! was invited to Korea to participate in an International Drum Festival. A scout for the festival caught our show in Ottawa last spring and worked doggedly (along with Mario from Bomba) to bring the Cuban and Canadian musicians to Seoul for 5 days in October. The Cubans still insist that Canada is the best country in the world to live in.

 Ivan Nunez Segui certainly agrees - he is back with DJD for the entire season! We welcome Ivan into the company and know that you will all delight in seeing him again in the upcoming show, PULSE. The masterful Cuban Folklorist offers palpable masculine energy with his sensitive interpretation of music and movement.

 You will also discover newcomer Malika Srivastava on stage with the company in her role as Apprentice. Malika has been part of our Pre-Professional Program at the School of Decidedly Jazz , and a student of Dance at the University of Calgary, for the past years. You are about to see why she caught our eyes when she first walked into our studios as a teenager some years ago. Malika brings an exquisite suppleness and arresting focus to her work.

Professional Development Continues

DJD is an innovative and progressive dance company for more reasons than you see on stage. Thanks to the generous support of Petro-Canada, our senior dancers are offered the opportunity to continue their research and training during the summer months. This year, besides Sarisa's return to Cuba, Deanne upgraded her already stellar West African Dance repertoire and style at the Lisangua Ya Bato workshop in upstate New York. Ahmed honed another instrument to express his killer rhythmic skills with his tap dance studies in Vancouver.

Michele's Masters Studies

DJD co-founder Michele Moss is completing the requirements for her Masters degree from the University of Calgary. This fall, she directed a surprising cast of creators who offered an inspiring evening of work based on the theme, "Why Dance?" The question was answered tenfold and the School of Decidedly Jazz probably saw a spike in registrations after that night! DJD performed Michele's "In the Cracks" as an exhilarating finale.

Another Reunion

DJD co-founder Hannah Stilwell has reunited with some past collaborators in her new job at Critical Mass. The success of this internationally renowned interactive agency is largely attributable to founding designer, Michel Clario, who created the poster image for DJD's No Small Feets back in 1992. In those days, our General Manager was Dan Evans, who is currently President and Managing Director of Critical Mass. Dan did much to bring DJD up from an emerging company into what is now a jazz institution, and has clearly shone in his role as Manager since then.

Remember Rhythm Addiction? An enormous amount of the original music for that show was created and performed by Dewi Wood, whose outstanding audio work has helped Critical Mass achieve such enormous success and win every web award out there.

Well, Hannah has the pleasure of interacting (in real time) with each of these guys on a daily basis in her new role as Content Analyst for Critical Mass. She is thoroughly enjoying the challenge of employing her creativity and analytical skills in a new arena.

Stepping In

Our new School of Decidedly Jazz Manager Jennica Willis didn't get much of a warm-up before she had to go full out in her job managing the School. Our extensive programming and enormous registration give Jennica lots of ways to shine in her new position. We welcome Jennica, and encourage you to stop by and greet her the next time you are in the studios.