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Since relocating to Memphis in 2007 and starting at the grass roots level, Collage Dance Collective has endeavored to build new audiences for ballet and bring a vision of ballet to established dance lovers.  

Performing nationally and internationally, Collage has matured into an amazing ensemble of 18 dance artists and gifted performers who are also dance educators.  Its repertoire includes a diverse range of classical and contemporary choreography—ballets by Frederick Ashton, Camille A. Brown, Nicolo Fonte, Gemma Bond as well as original works by Artistic Director Kevin Thomas, Dwight Rhoden, Darrell Grand Moultrie, Christopher Huggins, Arturo Fernandez, Joshua Manculich, Amy Hall Garner, and Endalyn Taylor. 

Collage Dance Collective believes that participation in the arts enriches communities and is critical to economic and social development. The company works to increase access to outstanding ballet training, increase diversity on professional ballet stages, and increase participation by people of color at ballet and other fine arts events.

“Collage Dance Collective thrives in spite of pandemic and opens new facility for dance instruction in Greater Memphis, TN.”

- “Dancing around the pandemic: Collage Dance Collective moves into new Binghampton facility,” Memphis Business Journal, 11/17/2020 

“With scores from Tchaikovsky to Aretha Franklin and dancers from French Guiana to Brazil, Collage Dance Collective is as rich in variety and culture as its local community.“

- “Collage Dance Collective Presents Diverse Works for New Audiences in Memphis,” Pointe Magazine, Shaté L. Hayes, 7/16/2020

“Word to the wise: Keep Collage Dance Collective on your radar; they're cooking up some great stuff in Memphis.“

- “Editor Faves: What We Loved This January,” Dance Magazine, Editor-in-Chief, Jennifer Stahl, 1/31/2020

“You knew that if you were black, you weren't the right color for ballet, you had to try to be something else. When I went to Dance Theater of Harlem, it was like 'I am the right color. I am beautiful.' That's when I quickly knew we needed more Dance Theater of Harlems.”

- “Collage Dance Collective Poised to Become Largest Black-Owned Dance School in the South,“ Memphis Commercial Appeal, Desiree Stennett, 10/24/2019

“Harper and Thomas, a former DTH principal, have helped carry on Mitchell's mission through Collage Dance Collective, a company that showcases black dancers and choreographers.“

“What to Watch: Collage Dance Collective's Moving Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,” Pointe Magazine, Amy Brandt, 4/4/2019

“Ballet made utterly, gorgeously human.“

“Collage Dance Collective Brings Ballet Down to Earth,” Albany Times-Union, Tresca Weinstein, 10/22/2017

“…classically-trained dancers with beautiful lines who are lyrical, powerful movers and who are all of color.”

“Collage Dance Collective Returns to Jacob’s Pillow,” Pointe Magazine, Caroline Hamilton, 8/9/2017

“The predominantly black company aims to make ballet accessible to everyone…”

“Dance St. Louis Raises the Bar for the 10th Annual Spring to Dance Festival,” St. Louis Riverfront Times, Elizabeth Semko, 5/26/2017

“The image of the dancers, wearing ‘nude’ leotards each dyed to match their own skin tones, the need for which makes its own point, has been shared tens of thousands of times on social media and written up by sites such as Taji Magazine, Yahoo Beauty, Huffington Post and Vibe.“

“The 9:01 Collage Dance Goes Viral,” Memphis Commercial Appeal, Chris Herrington, 1/19/2017

Adagietto #5

Choreography: Boyston Maldoom
Music: Gustav Mahler
Company Premiere: 2010
Number of dancers:  3
Running time:  9:45 minutes

Amazing Grace

Choreography: Dwight Rhoden
Music: “Amazing Grace,” Traditional
Company Première: 2016
Lighting: Michael Korsch
Costumes:  Jae Man Joo
Number of dancers:  2
Running time:  4:22 minutes

Amazing Grace is an excerpt from the full-length ballet Testament, which uses an array of traditional Negro spirituals to explore the human spirit in relation to faith and devotion.  The work explores the tension of spiritualism within the context of faith and devotion.  Testament was commissioned through the generous support of TITAS/Dallas, TX.  World Premiere (2010) Dallas/ Winspear Opera House.

Beyond the Veil

Choreography: Darrell Grand Moultrie
Music: Sammie Davis Jr.
World Première: 2017
Lighting: Mac Smith
Number of dancers:  1
Running time:  4:35 minutes 

Beyond The Veil was inspired by the countless young men and women who feel stifled and hopeless due to the challenges and obstacles they face growing up in urban environments.  The work was created to inspire them to extend their vision beyond hardship and see the many doors of possibility for them. Moultrie wants them to always ask, “if happy little bluebirds fly beyond the rainbow, why oh why can't I?”

Come Rain or Shine

Choreography: Joshua Manculich
Music: Ezio Bosso and Nina Simone
World Première: April 2019
Lighting: Wilburn Bonnell
Costumes: Gabriela Moros
Number of dancers:  4
Running time: 10 mins

Challenging himself to create a piece that is different from his previous two works with the company, Joshua Manculich crafts a quartet with two distinct pairs of dancers—one group is dressed in purple and the other in dark yellow, representing rain and shine respectively. Choreographed on Collage Dance Collective, Come Rain or Shine premiered at the Orpheum Theatre’s Halloran Centre of Performing Arts in Memphis, TN on April 20, 2019. Throughout the entire piece, each pair is in constant conversation with the other, signifying that life’s journey is full of ups and downs, but despite the fluctuations, we must keep the faith and trudge forward. 

Femiel

Choreography: John Alleyne
Music: Daniel Roumain
World Première: 2016
Lighting: Mac Smith
Costumes: Gabriela Moros
Number of dancers:  8
Running time:  18:37 minutes 

Femiel is an ode to three dances for and about immigrant Caribbean women during the 1950s and 1960s in Canada. Looking at the structure, physical language and arch of the ballet, the dance is created like the music: three individual sections that are complete, contained and can stand alone, but when brought together side by side they produce a fourth, new and distinct experience: the choreographic language of the ballet continually goes back and forth holding a balance between cohesiveness and contention: and within each of the three individual sections there is a slow and steady elevation of tension that pulls one in and along with the work.

The 1st and 2nd sections are broader physical studies with the 3rd section, divided into two parts, more intimate and intrinsic expressive studies.

The 1st piece “Hip Hop Study” for a septet of dancers is created as a finale in the dance style of the Lindy Hop. This section expresses the unending reserve of courage and resilience. The 2nd piece Blimp/Sky is for the full cast of dancers in the style of a waltz. The aim of this section is to depict and express the idea of verve.  The third Piece “Femiel (with a Caribbean reserve and dignity)” begins with a solo for a woman depicting the ideas dignity and solitude and ends with a quartet for one woman and three men expressing hope.

In the Mirror of Her Mind

Choreography: Christopher Huggins
Music: Henryk Gorecki
Company Premiere: 2019
Lighting: Wilburn Bonnell
Costumes: Gabriela Moros
Number of dancers:  4
Running time:  9:30 minutes

Left Unsaid

Choreography: Nicolo Fonte
Music: J.S. Bach 
Company Premiere: 2016; Originally commissioned by Aspen Sante Fe Ballet, 2003
Lighting: Todd Elmer
Costumes: Kathy Scoggins
Number of dancers:  6
Running time:  22 minutes 

“Left Unsaid is Nicolo Fonte at his best, featuring three couples and three chairs interacting in shifting moods and dynamics.  The choreography is inventive, creative expressive original shapes built on an undercurrent of implicit human relationships.  The astute placing of dancers to background the main action, and add their own social comment.  Notable is Fonte’s skillful rounding off of each section.”  —Maggie Foyer / Dance Europe

Lineage

Choreography: Darrell Grand Moultrie
Music: Kenji Bunch
World Première: 2016
Lighting: Mac Smith
Costumes:  Kilby Yarbrough
Number of dancers:  8
Running time:  13:46 minutes 

Lineage is a pure dance work honoring those who have come before us.  Moultrie has created a space for the dancers to present themselves and move from a genuine place of gratitude-- always remembering that we are standing on the shoulders of many.

Meditation from Thäis

Choreography: Sir Frederick Ashton
Music: Jules Massenet (from the opera Thäis)
Company Première: 2013
Lighting: Wilburn Bonnell
Costumes: Anthony Dowell
Number of dancers:  2
Running time:  6 mins

New Second Line

Choreography: Camille A. Brown
Music: Rebirth Brass Band
Company Première: 2015
Lighting: Mac Smith
Number of dancers: 8+
Running time:  7:30 minutes

Inspired by the events of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, this work is a celebration of the spirit and culture of the people of New Orleans where traditional brass band parades are given for weddings, social events, and most notably, funerals.  The people who follow the parade dance with high energy and spirit are known as the “second line.”

Rise

Choreography: Kevin Thomas
Music:  Jonathan Kirkscey and Kirk Smith (original score)
Text:  Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., spoken by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
World Première: 2012
Lighting: Wilburn Bonnell
Costumes:  Marcellus Harper and Gabriela Moros
Number of dancers:  10 plus 20 – 80 local student dancers (optional)
Running time:  27:31 minutes 

Dr. King’s “Mountaintop Speech” is the backdrop for this full-length neo-classical ballet.  Artistic Director Kevin Thomas was inspired by his many visits to the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, the site of Dr. King’s assassination.  As we celebrate 60 years since his passing, the work is both a reflection of what we have overcome and envisions where we go from here.

Saint Glory

Choreography: Amy Hall Garner
Music: Madison’s Lively Stones, Mahalia Jackson, Aretha Franklin, and Wynton Marsalis
World Première: 2020
Lighting: Wilburn Bonnell
Costumes:  Gabriela Moros
Number of dancers: 8
Running time: 16 minutes

Saint Glory was inspired by the Catholic and Baptist roots of Amy Hall Garner’s grandparents.

Sweet

Choreography: Shawn Hounsell
Music: Njo Kong Kie
World Première: 2016
Lighting: Mac Smith
Costumes: Gabriela Moros
Number of dancers:  4
Running time:  15:02 minutes 

Sweet explores the cerebral activity involved in any decision-making process and the cause and effect involved in kinesthetic activity.  The piece is a study in the relationship between impulse/movement and the exchange of information.  The dancers illustrate and create a system of communication, which measures the value of space around physical actions and the sharing of energetic initiations.  It is through this system that experience and memory serve as a derivative of and catalyst for shared action.

Two Pigeons

Choreography: Sir Frederick Ashton
Music: André Messager, arranged by John Lanchbery
Staged by Antony Dowson
Company Première: 2017
Lighting: Mac Smith
Costumes: Gabriela Moros
Number of dancers:  2
Running time: 7 mins

Act II, scene 2. The sorrowful Young Girl is alone in the Young Man’s Studio. Her lover returns, having left her for a seductive Gypsy Girl to ask for forgiveness. The couple are reconciled.  Two Pigeons symbolise “Two Pigeons in a Tree who loved each other tenderly.”

Trilogy

Choreography: Kevin Iega Jeff
Music: Bobby McFerrin, Cantus and Roberta Flack
World Première: 2020
Lighting: Wilburn Bonnell
Costumes:  Gabriela Moros
Number of dancers:  8
Running time:  20:40 minutes 

Trilogy is an emotionally charged work in 3 movements, reflecting on the painful struggle for civil and human rights from 1863 to the present. Movements I & II were originally commissioned by Collage Dance Collective for the National Civil Rights Museum’s Freedom Awards. Movement III had its world premiere in February 2020.

Wash

Choreography: Joshua Manculich
Music: Mark Ishham and Ezio Bosso
World Première: April 8, 2017
Lighting: Mac Smith
Costumes: Kilby Yarbrough
Number of dancers:  5
Running time:  9:44 minutes

Memphis’ rich history is tied to its pivotal location on the Mississippi River.  This works brings many physical and emotional elements of the river to the stage. 

Utilizing water-filled containers and the dancers’ exceptional lines as sources of inspiration, Manculich sculpts a remarkable piece that symbolizes the process of being reborn. Originally choreographed on Collage Dance Collective, Wash premiered on April 8, 2017 in Memphis, TN. The poignant interplay between the dancers themselves and with the water produces gripping imagery, showcasing Manculich’s ability to investigate his inspirations, communicate with the dancers, and vivify his muses onstage. Through Manculich’s willingness to delve into the topic, Wash exudes technical brilliance and refreshing vitality, enlivening both dancer and viewer alike.

Wasteland

Choreography: Christopher Huggins
Music: Jónsi & Alex and Savanj Rooms (source material needed)
World Première: 2017
Lighting: Mac Smith
Costumes: Haley Franklin
Number of dancers:  9
Running time:  13:20 minutes

Inspired by the Dakota Access Pipeline protests, this work celebrates the enduring strength of the human spirit and honors those who have resisted injustice.  

Choreographer’s note: “Like a dry stone with no sound of running water; like a dead tree that gives no shelter…the idea of existence is being questioned as if life itself is an illusion.”

When We Move

Choreography: Endalyn Taylor
Music: Emptyset and Sonny Krosochetz
World Premiere: October 2018 in Memphis
Lighting: Mac Smith
Costumes: Gabriela Moros
Number of dancers:  8
Running time:  14 minutes 

When We Move explores the intersection of the classical ballet aesthetic with contemporary African and African-American influences.

The Rate in Which I Am

Choreography: Joshua Manculich
Music: Mike Wall, Dustin O’Halloran
Company Première: 2016
Lighting:
Number of dancers:  6
Running time:  9:35 minutes

Drawing from the untimely loss of a loved one, Manculich contemplates how he lives his life, postulating that the rate in which we live determines the quality of our lives. Premiering on April 27, 2013, The Rate in Which I Am was created for DanceWorks Chicago and performed for the inaugural DanceMoves Choreography Competition at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie, IL. The dancers move with well-articulated tension and crisp lines, appearing as corporeal metaphors for a hectic lifestyle, but through the progression of the work, the artists find softness, illuminating Manculich’s revelation of slowing life down and taking time to revel in its small joys.

6:01

Choreography: Amy Hall Garner
Music: Oliver Davis & Johann Sebastian Bach
World Première: October 2018 in Memphis
Lighting: Mac Smith
Costumes:  Gabriela Moros
Number of dancers:  6
Running time:  15 minutes 

6:01 is dedicated to the late Arthur Mitchell, who was affected by the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis.  The unfortunate moment on April 4, 1968 at 6:01 PM, impelled Mr. Mitchell to create an opportunity for young black children to learn and experience classical ballet, which eventually became known as the Dance Theatre of Harlem.  It is because of Mr. Mitchell’s vision and accomplishments that Black dancers today have a place in the world of classical ballet.  6:01 is an homage to this legacy.

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