The Artists
What you’ll want to know…
The Artists
Mysterious. Athletic. Graceful. Evocative.
Great movement. Grassroots camaraderie and big city technique…a group of working dancers going for broke. A complexion slight and strong and deep. Mysterious, athletic, graceful, evocative.
That’s not our writing and instead actual reviewers’ words depicting the genius of Newport, Rhode Island’s acclaimed Island Moving Company and the mastery of its creative leadership, now headed by newly named Executive Director Edward McPherson and Artistic Director Miki Ohlsen. McPherson succeeds outgoing Executive Director Dominique Alfandre who successfully led the non-profit organization for 35 years.
One need only skim a few of the blog entries on Island Moving Company’s website to understand how broad and deep a reach this remarkable contemporary ballet company has. Here’s one sample; here’s another.
Originating new works to the never-ending excitement of adults and children, committing major time and hands-on effort to mentor those kids, creating remarkable educational programs like its Math into Movement program for second graders, and staging captivating newly choreographed dance performances year after year seen by thousands, Island Moving Company’s creative leadership, choreography, and captivating dancers meet the highest standards – according to reviewers, exceeding those standards all the time – in everything they do.
Which is why the data shows that Island Dance Company’s audiences are growing all the time, and always coming back to see more!
Edward McPherson
Miki Ohlsen
The Artistry
Island Moving Company was founded in the belief that collaboration and a supportive environment enhance the creative process, producing great works of art representing profound expressions of the human spirit and experience.
The Company develops dance as a valuable art form for audience and community, presenting original works of choreography which connect audiences to their own emotions. Each presentation provides a shared experience transcending cultural boundaries. Through its educational initiatives and outreach, the Company assures that dance enriches the life of its community and positively impacts the individual’s sense of self.
History
Island Moving Company is a classically trained contemporary ballet company based in Newport, RI, which produces new dance works through a collaborative creative process. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Miki Ohlsen, the Company has, for over 30 years, produced and presented dances by a diverse group of choreographers, working with musicians, poets, and visual artists.
Island Moving Company has become known for its creative use of unusual venues, creating site-specific work for Rosecliff mansion (The Newport Nutcracker), Belcourt Castle (Dracula) and other Newport sites. Its site-specific dance and art festival, Open for Dancing, has engaged over 500 participants in the Newport community as well as choreographers such as Monica Bill Barnes, Joanna Haigood, Noemie Lafrance and Third Rail Projects’ Zach Morris and Tom Pearson.
The Great Friends Touring Project uses a 10-day summer dance festival as the basis for a network of partnerships with other dance companies around the country and world. It has brought Island Moving Company to audiences in Missouri, California, Texas, Colorado, Florida, New York and even Kazakhstan. Island Moving Company also works extensively in K-12 schools, creating curriculum-based movement residencies throughout Rhode Island and Massachusetts that imaginatively links movement and curriculum. The Company’s dancers work with over 5,000 children annually.
Island Moving Company received the Arts & Business Council’s Jabez Gorham Award for artistic and organizational excellence.
La Tierra Giro – Island Moving Company
Photo Credits: Thomas Palmer Photography, Elena Petrova
Click the image below to see a beautiful Island Moving Company image gallery!
