Dancers given chance to shine at showcase

Kimberley McGee

Friday, Feb. 22, 2002 | 8:52 a.m.

It's a decades-old tradition that spotlights originality in a city famed for its leggy showgirls and elaborate production shows.

Local dancers and choreographers will exhibit their own works at the 23rd annual "Choreographers Showcase" Saturday and Sunday at the Charleston Heights Arts Center.

Both performances usually sell out the center's nearly 400 available seats each year, Joanne Lentino, center coordinator for the arts center, said.

"It's really popular among local dancers," Lentino said. "This is where they can present their own work and also learn from the experience of the other talented dancers."

Featured this year will be Gilles Reichert, principal dancer in Bally's "Jubilee," who will perform a duet with fellow Bally's dancer Roberta Lorincz; a local dance instructor who goes by the name Howard PHeelgooD, who will perform a hip-hop routine; and the students of Alison Kravenko-Johnson ballet school in Las Vegas.

In 1978 the Allied Arts Council created the showcase to benefit the large pool of dancers living and performing in Las Vegas.

"We have lots of dance people in Las Vegas and this is an opportunity for them to present choreography and see what it looks like," Lentino said. "Where else do they have a chance to show their work unless they rent out a theater and go to some great expense?"

Because the showcase proved to be a valuable outlet in a town teeming with performers, the city of Las Vegas continued the showcase when the Allied Arts Council dissolved in 1994, Lentino said.

"We want to give everybody a chance to show off their work," Lentino said. "They really can learn a lot about what they can do."

To participate, dancers must be Southern Nevada residents, at least 16 years old and have new work to show that has not been publicly presented.

"This is a family show featuring all dance styles -- modern, ballet, ethnic," Lentino said.

Following the the showcase on Sunday, dancers from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas dance department will perform a choreographed routine by Kevin Iega Jeff, a guest artist from Deeply Rooted Productions of Chicago.

"(Jeff's) company has a very strong Afro-American tradition of dance and music," Lentino said. "His work is inspiring, innovative and shows great expression of contemporary dance."

The showcase has featured a guest artist each year to benefit the performers.

"For us, as a guest artist, he or she comes to be the end of the showcase so that non-professional dancers will gain from his or her working experience as a choreographer," Lentino said.

"They (dancers) don't get that level of choreography, style and technique available to them on a regular basis, so we make it available."com