SC Wisconsin News

The University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (UWSP) is preparing to conclude its spring Department of Theatre and Dance season with its annual "Danstage 2025" performance. The event will feature new dance works from both faculty and guest artists from April 11-13.

Performances are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, April 11-12, and at 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, April 12-13, to be held at the Jenkins Theatre in the Noel Fine Arts Center. “Danstage 2025” will present new choreography from faculty members Sarah Olson and Michael Estanich, alongside guest artists Pamela Luedtke and Jeffrey Peterson.

Tickets for the event are priced at $27 for adults, $24 for seniors and UWSP faculty and staff, and $16 for youth. Ticket purchases are available online at tickets.uwsp.edu, via phone at 715-346-4100, or in person at the Information and Tickets Office in the Dreyfus University Center in Stevens Point.

Pamela Luedtke’s "Echoes of Self", co-choreographed with Katelyn Altman, will feature a collaborative modern dance set to Johann Sebastian Bach's Goldberg Variations. The performance will include a live musical rendition by classical pianist Nell Buchman. The piece originally debuted as a duet during the Waupaca Bach Festival in 2024 and has been restaged for "Danstage 2025" to include six dancers from the UWSP Dance Program. The work is based on a poem by Stana Luedtke, capturing the inner echoes of time and self.

Luedtke, an Associate-Lecturer of Dance at UWSP, collaborated with professional dancer Katelyn Altman, her former student from the Milwaukee area. Nell Buchman, who accompanies the performance on piano, teaches at Lawrence University.

Jeffrey Peterson will present "Side By Side," a dynamic group routine performed by 16 dancers to the jazz score “First Circle” by Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays. The choreography focuses on rhythm, pattern, and community. Peterson spent time in residence with the UW-Stevens Point Dance Program in February to restage this work.

Sarah Olson will showcase two new works: "Looking for a Sliver of Light" and "Spring Blossoms." The first piece, set to a score by CoH and Travis Lake, features eleven dancers exploring themes of hope in dark times. "Spring Blossoms" is inspired by Tchaikovsky's Waltz of the Flowers and involves eight dancers performing contemporary ballet.

Michael Estanich will debut "Our House Upended," a dance theatre work combining movement, text, and sculpture. The piece is set in a creative environment designed by UWSP BFA Design and Technology student Mattie Ruona, featuring floating tables and chairs against an abstract minimalist house frame.