Original Music and Video: Jeffrey Hass
Dancer: Kelly McCormick Bangs
Violin: Liana Gourdjia
Choreography: Elizabeth Shea
Costumes: Amy Burrell
Lighting Design: David Krueger
Unstrung, an abstract work for dance and live processed violin, traces the path of the dancer from confinement to freedom. The work is the fourth collaboration between choreographer Elizabeth Shea and composer Jeffrey Hass.
Performer and Choreographer Biographies:
Kelly McCormick Bangs is a senior majoring in Dance at Indiana University. Before attending IU, she studied for eleven years under Becky Seamster, and trained during two summers at Joffrey Midwest Workshop in Flint, Michigan. Kelly was the recipient of the National Society of Arts and Letters contemporary dance award for 2007. She has collaborated with Jeffrey Hass and Elizabeth Shea for three works: "Coming to Light" premiered in 2006, "Grow Move Change" in 2007 and "The Nature of Human" in 2008. Kelly is from Kokomo, Indiana.
Violinist Liana Gourdjia has been acclaimed for her "astonishingly pure tone, artistry and bewitching lyricism." At the age of six, Liana appeared on Moscow television as a rising star and has since performed recitals in many prestigious venues throughout Russia including the Great Hall and the Tchaikovsky Hall in Moscow, and the Philharmonic Hall in Saint-Petersburg. When she was thirteen, Liana Gourdjia was invited to perform in the concert series presented at the Olympic Games in Atlanta, and - as a laureate of the "New Names" and Vladimir Spivakov foundations - toured throughout Russia and Europe. Some of her performance highlights included concerts in the Vatican for Pope Jean Paul II, and for Unesco in Paris. Liana Gourdjia became a laureate of the Tchaikovsky International Competition for Young Artists in Sendai (Japan) at the age of fourteen and subsequently appeared numerous times on television and radio programs dedicated to presenting young stars in Russia and Europe. She is currently an Artist Diploma candidate in the Jacob's School of Music at Indiana University, Bloomington, where she studies with Jaime Laredo.
Elizabeth Limons Shea, Coordinator, IU Contemporary Dance program, has worked extensively in the field of dance education and as a modern dance choreographer. Her choreography has been adjudicated and accepted for performance by nationally known groups such as the National Dance Association and the American College Dance Festival Association. Liz has also received numerous grants and commissions to create dance works, most recently from The Indiana Arts Council and the New Frontiers in the Arts and Humanities Program at Indiana University. Ms. Shea holds both a B.S. and M.S. from Penn State University, where she also served on the dance faculty. She has additionally taught/performed/ and presented choreography at Florida State University, Florida A&M University, The Tallahassee Ballet, and Apalachee Tapestry Magnet School for the Arts. Liz was also an Artist-in-Residence for the State of Florida. Most recently, Liz traveled to China, teaching master classes and presenting choreography in Hong Kong, Chengdu, Shanghai, and Beijing.
This project was supported by a fellowship from the newly-created Indiana University Institute for Digital Arts and Humanities, Ruth Stone, Director, and the Office of the Vice Provost for Research; the choreography was commissioned by the School of HPER Associate Dean's Research Fund.