Oksana Horban
Contemporary Dance Performance: IKIGAI
Friday, August 12 2022
7:30pm
Madison Community Arts Center
Tickets: $15 (online or at the door)
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Ikigai is a Japanese concept referring to something that gives a person a sense of purpose, a reason for living. ‘Iki’ means ‘life,’ and ‘gai’ describes value or worth.
A trio of versatile dancers along with a virtuoso musician came together to fulfill their ikigai by creating physically challenging, expressive and innovative choreographic patterns to a variety of extraordinary live electronic sounds filled with emotion, attachment and a feeling of purpose.
The Performers
Oksana Horban, originally from Ukraine, graduated Kyiv Academy of Circus and Variety Arts with honors, where she majored in pantomime (artist of mimicry and gesture) and worked with Bingo Circus-Theatre, directors Nikolaj Baranov, Iryna Herman, and Natalya Uzhvenko. In 2017 she was part of the NCA cheerleading team at Palomar College. She graduated Montclair State University in May 2022 with Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance, where she performed works by Alexander Anderson, Ohad Naharin, Paul Taylor, Bradley Shelver, Larry Keigwin, Maxine Steinman, Fredrick Earl Mosley, Romeo Castellucci and others. Her work premiered at the United Solo Theater Festival in New York, where she won Best Choreography award.
Dolce Crespo started her formation with “The Royal Ballet School” in Mexico at the age of 3 followed by other dance techniques like jazz, contemporary, dance heels, hip hop, etc.
She has been invited to perform with prestigious academies from all over the world like England, Spain, United States, Argentina, Russia and Canada, she as well has performed with the Russian National Ballet.
After graduating at the age of 18 from The Joffrey Ballet School she chose to continue her career in New York as a freelance dancer.
Isobel Seabrook is a mover, creator, and producer based out of the Hudson Valley in upstate New York. She first began dancing at five years old, studying traditional Irish dance with Joel Hanna of Riverdance. She has since explored myriad other styles, including tap, Appalachian flatfooting, modern, contemporary, Lindy Hop, and vernacular jazz. Isobel is a recent graduate of the dance program at Macaulay Honors College at CUNY Queens, where she performed works by Edisa Weeks, Richard Move, and Marshall Davis, Jr., among others. She is delighted to be a part of IKIGAI and bring Oksana’s movements to life.
Jakub Wala is a musician and educator located in the Greater New York City Area, specializing in modern dance accompaniment. He earned his B.M, with a concentration in music education and percussion, from Montclair State University. Wala currently works as an accompanist for the Taylor School, and is an adjunct at Montclair, accompanying various modern and contemporary style classes. He has specialized training in World Percussion including Handpan, Rav Vast and West African Drumming. He is privileged to be the musician for notable choreographers and educators such as: Frederick Earl Mosley, Christian Von Howard, David Grenke, Annmaria Mazzini, Sabatino Verlezza, and João Carvalho. Wala was also a distinguished artist for ACDA 2018 conference, hosted by the Montclair State University Dance Department.