The Oberlin Dance Company presents “The Only Way,” an evening length dance-theater piece choreographed and directed by Holly Handman-Lopez, whose work has been described as “luscious and edgy.” The piece, created in collaboration with the performers and designers, explores the struggle against social injustice by looking at the stories of suffragists in the early 20th century before the 19th amendment was ratified. The piece will feature performers from the Oberlin Percussion Group with new music by composer and TIMARA professor, Joo Won Park

Holly: Joo Won has been amazing to work with. His music is so exciting and beautiful, and he has woven together numerous pieces; some new, some existing from his previous work, some from other contemporary composers, as well as music from the early 1900s, in addition to the pieces the Oberlin Percussion Group has brought into the process. Joo Won’s work is so essential to the success of the piece, not only in terms of his creative contribution, but in terms of his ability to finesse the recorded and live sounds from numerous sources into the same world so that the audience is drawn into the action of the piece and not jarred as we move from one section to the next. I’m really grateful to have him as a collaborator and am tremendously in his debt! 

Joo Won: The keyword for the music is contrast. We set beautiful and serene music over visually violent and painful scenes, and energetic, happy music during a disturbing scene. Making music for a dance piece is challenging and fun because I need to be ready to change, edit, or throw away musical ideas whenever there is a change or improvement in the visual element. The resulting piece we have at this point is quite amazing. I look forward to sharing the ODC collaboration with the Oberlin community and beyond. Listen to a sample of the music used in the show here

Performances are May 1 & 2 at 8 pm in Hall Auditorium, Oberlin, OH.
Tickets are $8 and are available at Central Ticket Service in Hall Auditorium.