Kanopy Dance Company
Winter Fantasia: Reimagined
Thursday, December 8 - Sunday, December 11
Reception Following Friday Night
Promenade Hall
Age Recommendation
All Ages
Running Time
75 minutes (with intermission)
The Winter Solstice, a time of transition when the dwindling light and the sun are finally poised return, has been celebrated thousands of years and marks a season of festivities and storytelling on every continent and in many cultures. For several seasons, Kanopy’s Winter Fantasia has presented two cherished winter stories rooted in Scandinavian folklore and brought to life through dance: “Once Upon a Winter’s Eve” and “The Norse Tree of Life” and they will continue to be a treasured part of the concert’s program.
Starting this season, Kanopy presents Winter Fantasia Reimagined - designed to enrich the spirit of the holiday celebration by showcasing important contributions of other cultures-- with the debut of a world premiere, “Chalo Ramiye “, commissioned by Kanopy from South Asian dancer and choreographer Udbhav Desai. “Chalo Ramiye” (or “let’s play in Gujarati”), is a “garba” folk dance, and it is performed in ritualistic reverence of the Hindu goddess “Durga”, a protector of all that is good and harmonious in the world. Performing the festive garba dance form is a major highlight of the nine-day Hindu festival, Sharad Navratri, that honors “Durga” and has been observed for centuries.
As part of the reimagined Winter Fantasia, noted costume designer David Quinn has created a wardrobe of new costumes for Lisa Thurrell’s “Once Upon a Winter’s Eve” an imaginary journey into the lives of the mythological creatures including fairies and elves. Quinn, who designed many of the fabrics himself, was inspired by images of folk wear and medieval clothing as well as by the designers Alexander McQueen, Rei Kawakubo, and Guo Pei in ornately weaving and detailing his creative collection of gender-fluid costumes for Kanopy’s dancers.
Bring a Group! Purchase 4 or more standard price tickets and get a discount. Discount automatically applied when you check out.
Meet the Guest Artists
Choreographer
Udbhav Desai
Udbhav Desai, a senior business intelligence and analytics manager for Alight Solutions, was born in the heart of Gujarat in Western India. From a young age, Desai was immersed in a world of dance, specifically Garba and Raas, routinely participating in community events and festivals. This tradition carried on at Northwestern University, where Desai performed with the South Asian Students Association in predominantly Bollywood fusion pieces. After graduating from Northwestern with a degree in chemical engineering, Desai joined Madison Contemporary Dance, 2017-2018, and appeared as a guest artist in Kanopy’s iconic production of “Love is Love” in the 2019-20 season.
Photo by Darren Lee
Performer
Kiro Kopulos
Kiro Kopulos is a choreographer and performer who has been teaching and dancing for 35 years. Kopulos co-directed Intersect Theatre Dance Company in Ann Arbor, Michigan, also performing with Nonce Dance Ensemble in Detroit.”. For the past 30 years Kopulos has been a frequent guest artist with Kanopy Dance Company. As a freelance choreographer and teacher, he has presented his work at the Edmonton, San Francisco, and Minnesota Fringe Festivals, and most recently at the White Church Theatre Project in Spring Green. Through his work, Kopulos has created a singular style of physical theater and vinyasa flow yoga.
Photo by Phuong Lu
Costume Designer
David Quinn
David Quinn is a noted fashion and costume designer working in mediums from theater and dance to red-carpet gowns. Born and raised in Northern Wisconsin, Quinn attended the Interlochen Arts Academy and later the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC. He has designed dance costumes in collaboration with countless choreographers and soloists including The Martha Graham Company and Merce Cunningham. Dance View Times declared: “Quinn is cutting and draping and coloring the most beautiful dance costumes to be found in New York.” His work has appeared in The New York Times and Art Forum, et.al. Fan Page on Instagram @quinndustry.
Thank you to our sponsors
Upcoming Kanopy Dance Events
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December 4 - December 7
Dance, Family Friendly, Kanopy Dance Winter Fantasia: Reimagined
Promenade Hall
Kanopy lights up the stage for the holidays with “Winter Fantasia: Reimagined,” a dazzling dance celebration showcasing a mosaic of cultural traditions.
Multiple Showtimes -
February 27
Friday
Classical Music, Kanopy Dance, Music, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra Masterworks III - Regeneration with Kanopy Dance Company
Capitol Theater
Universal rhythms explored through music and movement—weaving together themes of transformation and the endless cycle of renewal.
7:30 PM -
April 16 - April 19
Dance, Family Friendly, Kanopy Dance Divine Mythologies
Promenade Hall
Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble and Kanopy Dance collaborate on a rare remarkable performance of Anna Sokolow’s epic “Odes," a luminous, searing vision of humanity, unsparing in its demands for intense physical concentration and dramatic depth.
Multiple Showtimes -
May 16
Saturday
Dance, Family Friendly, Kanopy Dance The Next Generation of Dance
Promenade Hall
Watch the next generation of dancers and choreographers in Kanopy’s pre-professional training program, Kanopy 2 and the Kanopy Academy, ignite the stage with new ideas, new expressions and even original choreography and costuming developed and built by the dancers themselves.
Multiple Showtimes