Tucson Weekly: Listings: Dance (October 15

DANCE
Events This Week
Listings WHIRLING DERVISHES. UA Centennial Hall. 1020 E. University Blvd. The UApresents World Stage series opens with legendary mystic dancers from Turkey, the Whirling Dervishes. This program of music, movement and spiritual renewal begins at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, October 21. The musicians, singers and dancers of the Mevlevi Ensemble of the Mevlana Culture and Art Foundation of Turkey, one of the artistic and cultural wings of the Mevlevi Order of Sufism, have dedicated their lives to preserving the ancient Islamic traditions of 13th-century Sufi mystic and poet Jalaluddin Rumi. The company's musicians perform sacred Islamic music, accompanied by readings by company members. The dancers then join the musicians in the movements of the Dervish dances, to perform the Mevlevi Sema, the Sufi ceremony of remembrance, featuring sacred verses sung by renowned blind singer Hafiz Kani Karaca. The dance of the Mevlevis belongs to the realm Islamic sacred art. Special guest Ahmet T. Karamustafa, Associate Professor of Islamic Thought and Turkish Literature at Washington University, offers a free, pre-performance discussion of troupe and the Sufi tradition from 6:45 to 7:15 p.m., in Room 102 of the Center for English as a Second Language (CESL), 1100 E. North Campus Drive. Tickets range from $16 to $28, half-price for children 18 and under and students with ID. Call 621-8825 for group ticket information. Call the box office between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, or noon to 5 p.m. Saturday, at 621-3341 for tickets and information.
INSIDE DANCE. PCC Center for the Arts. West Campus. 2202 W. Anklam Road. A series of five new multimedia presentations, led by Gray Montague, Executive Director of Ballet Arizona, is designed to stimulate, inspire, educate, challenge and entertain. At 7 p.m. Monday, October 19, African Odyssey explores masterpieces in the African-American tradition by Katherine Dunham, Alvin Ailey, Donald McKayle, Ulysses Dove, and Bill T. Jones, among others. This free, insider look at dance continues at 7 p.m. Mondays, through October 26, in the PCC Recital Hall. Call 206-6986 for information.
Announcements
AFRICAN DANCE. Learn the movements of dance from Guinea, Senegal, Nigeria and Afro-Brazilian and Cuban regions with teacher Denise Hawthorne Bey. You'll also learn the intricacies of the music, and the traditional songs and their meanings. Classes meet at 7 p.m. Wednesdays. Cost is $10 general, $8 for students, and $5 for kids 18 and under. Call 623-8231 for information and class location.
ARGENTINE TANGO. Mara Carlson teaches Argentine tango, Milonga and Vals, for beginning to advanced students. Beginning classes meet 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. Thursdays at the On Broadway Dance Studio, 7036 E. Broadway, and 3 to 4:30 p.m. Sundays in Room 4 of the Ina Gittings Building on the UA Mall, West of Campbell. Intermediate/Advanced classes meet Sundays 5 to 6:30 p.m. in Room 4 of the Gittings building. The cost is $10 for the Thursday evening Beginning class, $15 for the Sunday Beginners' class and the Intermediate/Advanced class. Private lessons are also available. Call 791-3073 for information.
ARGENTINE TANGO. John Dahlstrand and Kathe Miller teach Argentine tango from 3:30 to 5 p.m. every Saturday. Classes meet on the UA campus in the Ina Gittings Building, Room 130. All experience levels are welcome and private classes are available. Call 622-5095 for cost and information.
BALLET/PILATES LESSONS. 61 E. Congress St., upstairs. Ballet classes for all levels meet at 7 p.m. Wednesdays and cost $7. Pilates classes meet at 6 p.m. Thursdays and cost $8. Call 408-1172 for information.
BALLROOM DANCING. Dance to live music from 8 to 11 p.m. Wednesdays at Let's Dance Club, 6245 E. Bellevue. Singles and couples of all skill levels are welcome. Experience a touch of sophistication and romance with theme-dress occasions and a large, decorated ballroom. Cost is $7, $5 for members, which includes a free, professional dance lesson from 7 to 8 p.m. Annual membership is $25. Call 885-4599 for information.
DANCE AND DRUMS. The Barbea Williams Performing Company offers classes in Pre-African and Pre-Ballet for children; African Brazilian/West African, African Cuban/West African, and West African drum lessons for teens and adults. Registration is on-going. Call 628-7785 for information.
DANCE TRAINING. Zenith Center. 330 E. Seventh St. The new Zuzi, Move It Dance Lab, founded by Nanette Robinson and Nancy Mellan, provides dance training for children and adults. Classes are offered in Modern Dance, Creative Movement, Skinner Releasing, Dance Midrash, and Aerial Dance. Call 743-9353 for information.
INTERMEDIATE MODERN DANCE. 61 E. Congress St. On-going classes in Intermediate/Advanced Modern Dance are offered from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Mondays, and 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturdays. Cost is $8.50 for a single class, $7 per class, monthly. Intermediate Modern Dance sessions are offered at 7 p.m. Thursdays. Call 408-1172 for cost and information.
JITTERBUG AND LINDY HOP SWING. Armory Park Senior Center. 220 S. Fifth Ave. L. Perez and Spider teach Jitterbug and Lindy Hop for all levels on Saturday, October 17. Classes are from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. for beginners and from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. for intermediate/advanced dancers. Cost is $7 per person,
$10 per guy/girl couple, per class. All ages welcome and no partner is required.
MODERN DANCE. The Movement Arts Warehouse. 121 E. Seventh St. Jeri McAndrews, who danced and choreographed professionally for dance companies in New York, San Francisco, and Denver, teaches dancers of all ages and stages the Fundamentals of Modern Dance from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays, through October 28. Session II, a six-week session, meets from
5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays, November 24 through December 9. Fees are $70 for 12 classes; or $8 for a single class. Call Orts Theatre of Dance at 624-3799, or e-mail jmcand6661@aol.com, for information.
REHEARSAL SPACE. Rehearsal space is available for $5 per hour at 61 E. Congress St., upstairs. Call 320-7844 or 408-1172 for information.
RELEASING DANCE CLASSES. The Little Temple. 721 N. Second Ave. Join anytime for this fun and powerful form of play. Classes are from 7 to 8:45 p.m. Monday evenings. Call 887-1603 for information.
LINDY HOP, JIVE AND CHARLESTON. On Broadway Dance Studio. 7036 E. Broadway. Kris Shaw and Mara Carlson offer these swing classes from 8 to 9 p.m. Wednesdays for $10 per person. Call 791-3073 for information.
SWING NIGHTS. The following venues offer swing nights, including lessons: The Boondocks Lounge, 3306 N. First Ave. Dance lessons are offered at 8 p.m. Monday evenings with Kings of Pleasure and Hurricane Carla performing. Cost is $3. Call 690-0991 for information. The Keys, 5900 N. Oracle Road (888-8361). Swing lessons are offered from 8 to 9 p.m. Wednesdays, with the King Swing Orchestra taking the stage from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Gentle Ben's, 865 E. University Blvd. (624-4177). Lessons are offered from 9 to 10 p.m. Mondays, with dancing continuing until 1 a.m. The World Famous Rock, 136 N. Park Ave. (629-9211). Ska/Swing lessons are offered at
9 p.m. Thursdays.
TAP/BALLROOM CLASSES. The Dancer's Studio, home of the Sophisticated Seniors Tap Dance Team, offers tap and ballroom classes. The studio is located at Wrightstown and Pantano roads. Call 546-0675 for information.
WEST AFRICAN DANCE. Zenith Center. 330 E. Seventh St. Learn songs and dances of West Africa and the West African Diaspora from master dancer Donald Eno Washington. Mixed-level classes meet from 7:15 to
8:45 p.m. Tuesdays, and from 8 to 9:30 p.m. Thursdays.
WEST COAST SWING. Tucson Swing Dance Club. 6245 E. Bellevue St. 573-3732. Get in the swing of things at the Tucson Swing Dance Club every Thursday evening. Lessons are from 7 to 7:45 p.m. for beginners, and 7:45 to 8:30 p.m. for intermediate dancers. General dancing continues until 10:30 p.m. No partner necessary. Cost is $3, $2 for members. Call 573-3732 for information.