MotionArt presents Ripple Effect, a dance concert exploring actions and reactions in both the natural and “unnatural” world. Choreographer/Director Pam Gleason and a multigenerational group of dynamic dancers have teamed with talented local art makers Edward Bock, Mike Milkovich, Patricia Norton, Guy Wagner, Bruce Wintervold, and the wonderful folks at Cooper’s Foods in St Paul. Together they bring you various takes on how humans both shape and are shaped by our environment in a captivating concert filled with energy, humor and food for thought.

Gleason will premiere a suite of pieces inspired by Edward Bock’s “Darkfield Biome” paintings that depict the mysterious beauty of the macro and micro plant and animal world as imagined through the lens of darkfield photography. Music composed by Bruce Wintervold and special lighting effects by Mike Milkovich add extra magic to the exquisite movement of the six dancers in this treat for the senses. Another premiere, Peas and Queues, is a dance film created, produced and choreographed by Gleason on 16 dancers and filmed on site by cinematographer Guy Wagner. It’s a comical look into people’s idiosyncrasies and how they affect others in the context of an ordinary trip to the grocery store. Additional premiers are a solo work based on ominous forces and a rhythmical trio that plays on our ability to connect via our quirks. Rounding out the program is Fray (2018), an energetic piece set on 11 dancers and reflective of the erosion that occurs in mistrustful, combative and compete-at-all-costs environments; and Chez Poulet (2009), a parody informed by years working as a server at thirteen different restaurants, with live musical accompaniment led by cellist Patricia Norton.