Susan Hope Hoffman

Stage Experience in Dance, Music, and Theater

Performance, Direction and Choreography

www.hopehoffman.org

 

 

THEATER DIRECTION AND PRODUCTION

(For a complete résumé of theater work, please click here.)

· Founder, choreographer, writer, producer, musician, performer, Town Hall Theater Group
Author of 14 original scripts, produced as 34 performances in Maine 2002-2004

· Author, instructor, director, choreographer and musician, for "A Story Dance of the History of Bowdoinham," an original script with interpretive movement and live fiddle and guitar music. Classes were held at Bowdoinham Community School, Bowdoinham, Maine. The show was performed twice in Bowdoinham and at the Children's Museum of Maine, 2002 and 2003

· Instructor/director/choreographer for creating a performance of a selection from Carl Sandburg's "Rootabaga Stories," an experimental theater show featuring creative movement, voice and live music on fiddle and upright bass. Performers included students from a theater class session at Bowdoinham Community School, Bowdoinham, ME, 2003

· Creative movement instructor, at the Bath Recreation Department Artworks camp. Worked with musicians and students ages 5-12 to explore sound and movement, and creative process, and present an interpretation of the children's book "The Big Orange Splot." Bath, Maine, 2005

· Director and instructor, 3-week children's summer dance camp. Taught technique and improvisation, choreographed, produced performance for children ages 8-16. Bloomington, IN, 1999

 

DANCE CHOREOGRAPHY AND PERFORMANCE

(For a complete résumé of dance, please click here.)

· "Water Dances," choreographed by Corinne Cappelletti and Hope Hoffman, features photographs of swimming and floating dancers by Nanci Kahn, presented at:
New Dance Studio in Portland, Maine, December 2004
University of Southern Maine, April 2005
Portland Performing Arts Center in Portland, Maine, May 2005

· Dancer and violinist, new work choreographed by Marianela Boán and performed by students of the Bates Dance Festival, summer 2004

· Choreography for "The King and I;" 15-minute story of "Uncle Tom's Cabin" told in traditional Siamese and modern dance, performed by 9 student dancers, Yarmouth High School, winter 2003/2004

· Choreographer and performer, suite of duet dances to traditional New England country dance tunes, inspired by ancient custom of Morris dancing. Performed with live music by fiddler Maggie Robinson, presented at:
Bowdoinham Town Hall, 2003
Bowdoinham Town Hall, 2004
First annual Mid-Coast Dancers Studio Showcase, Brunswick, Maine, 2004

· Choreographer and performer, duet "Diplomatic Emergencies," a dance theater piece with narration written by Hope Hoffman and live vocals by improvisation group Improvox, presented at:
New Dance Studio in Portland, Maine, 2001
Johnson Hall, Gardiner, Maine, 2004
First annual Mid-Coast Dancers Studio Showcase, Brunswick, Maine, 2004

· Performer, choreography by Lisa Hicks, presented at:
New Dance Studio, November 2002
New Dance Studio, March and April 2003
New Dance Studio, December 2003
New Dance Studio, February 2004
Portland Performing Arts Center, June 2004

· Collaborative performance and improvisations with percussionist/composer Michael Zerang, Chicago, IL, 1999 and 2002

· Performed in new choreography by Larry Keigwin, presented at:
New Dance Studio, 2001
Maine Festival of the Arts, 2001

· Artistic Director and publicist, community modern dance company Windfall Dancers, including assisting with planning of dance classes for children, hiring teachers, community outreach, events programming, Bloomington, IN, 1999-2000

· Produced and directed modern dance/multimedia concert for community modern dance group, Bloomington, IN, 2000

· Founder/director of multimedia performance/improvisation series with "open mike" format for poets, dancers, theater, music, Bloomington, IN, 1999-2000

· Choreographed "Alchemy" for 7 dancers with live commissioned vocal/percussion score and original spoken word, presented at:
Windfall Dance Co. concert, Bloomington, IN 1999
Stonesong Arts Festival, Bloomington, IN, 1999

· Choreographed and directed movement for Dylan Thomas' "Under Milk Wood" (click here for press coverage), Bloomington, IN, 1999

· Choreographed "Space Invasions" for 7 dancers with commissioned sound score, performed by university Theater Arts students, Illinois Wesleyan University, Bloomington, IL 1997

· Performed in biannual university dance concerts, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1995-1997

• Choreographed, designed costumes, led rehearsals, 1993-present

· Performed lead dancing roles in musical theater, Livermore, CA, 1993, 1994

· Performed several times a year with modern dance company, Livermore, CA, 1992-1994

 

MUSIC IN STAGE PERFORMANCES (some highlights)

(For a complete résumé of music performances, please click here.)

Bowdoinham contra dance, 2009

Participatory folk dance and creative movement with live fiddle music at the St. Lawrence Arts & Community Center, 2008

Concerts with Kittlish trio (www.kittlish.com) at the Punkinfiddle festival (www.punkinfiddle.org) in Wells, Maine, 2008

Lakeside concert at Bates College of original fiddle music and traditional songs, 2008

• Concert and storytelling featuring Hope's original fiddle tunes and traditional Maine music, at Johnny D's club in Somerville, MA, 2006

• Concert of old-time fiddle with Ken Waldman; at the Long Island Children's Museum, at the Puffin Cultural Forum, and at The Living Room in Manhattan, 2006

• Violin/fiddle duets with Robert Earle on piano were the sound score for a production of the musical "Quilters" at The Opera House at Boothbay Harbor, Maine, 2005

• Fiddle and cello for Winter Solstice mummer's play at Portland Friends' Meeting, 2003

 

TEACHING

(For a complete résumé of teaching, please click here.)

· Workshop leader, creative movement and folk dance with live music, Family Resource Center Museum and Community Education Expo, Boxborough, MA, July 2005

· Private dance instructor, Bowdoinham, Maine, 2004-2005

· Visiting Artist, Bowdoinham Community School, first grade class; workshop and performance with creative movement and live music.
Three sessions: 2003, 2004 and 2005

· Creative movement instructor, Children's Theater of Maine summer camp in Portland, summer 2004

· Visiting Artist, Children's Museum of Maine, creative movement and simple traditional dances, all with live fiddle and guitar music.
Three sessions: April 2003, December 2004, and February 2006

· Teacher's assistant, music and movement class for ages 2-4, winter 2003

· Artist-in-residence for Bowdoinham Community Food Project/Bowdoinham Community School; 8-week session of creative movement and music, fall 2003

· Dance instructor, after-school community dance classes, April/May 2003 at Freeport High School

· Dance instructor, 15-class session for beginning dance students with live music, Freeport High School, Maine.
Two sessions: winter term 2002/2003 and again in winter 2003/2004

· Workshop leader for dance and theater, Freeport High School, fall 2002

· Created and led dance activities for literacy program in elementary schools, Bloomington, IN, 1999-2000

· Dance instructor, Windfall Dance Studio. Taught ballet, modern and creative movement classes to children ages 4-18. Bloomington, IN, 1998-1999

• Created and led dance activities, in addition to everyday preschool classroom teaching, as Assistant Teacher at Bloomington Montessori School, Bloomington, IN, 1998-1999

 

DANCE STUDY

• Dance training and study (modern and ballet), continuous since 1980, including Boston Ballet, The Dance Center of Columbia College Chicago, and Elizabeth Drucker (formerly of NYC Ballet)

• Week-long workshop in site-specific choreography with Sara Pearson and Patrik Widrig at Bearnstow, 2005

Bates Dance Festival's Three-week Professional Training Program, with a Maine Scholarship; included courses in creative process and choreography, 2004

Bates Dance Festival's Three-week Professional Training Program, with a Maine Dance Educator's Fellowship, 2003

• Earned Bachelor of Arts degree in Creative Writing and a minor in Dance from Illinois Wesleyan University, 1998

 

 

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