Cape Fear Arts in Motion: Shimmer, Steps, Strings

September 18 & 19, 2025, 7:30 pm

Thalian Hall Center for the Performing Arts, Main Stage

310 Chestnut Street, Wilmington, NC 28401

Tickets are $37.45 general admission and includes all taxes & fees. Please contact the Thalian Hall Box Office online or call 910.632.2285 for ticket reservations.

Forward Motion Dance Company presents a stunning and innovative dance event with their annual performance, Cape Fear Arts in Motion: Shimmer, Steps, Strings. Dancers and musical artists bring the art form of modern, contemporary, classical and jazz dance to the stage at the beautiful and historic Thalian Hall Center for the Performing Arts for a varied and collaborative event that showcases the talents of Choreographer Tracey Varga. Presented are new dance performances along with re-creations of works from the past, a piece danced to live music performed by guitarist Edward Stephenson and violinist Bella Garcia, film by Patrick Ogelvie, and a jazz piece from guest choreographer Alison Dutka Jones.

Forward Motion Dance Company is thrilled to feature onstage Entrance to the Enchanted Castle (1993) from the extraordinary American painter and sculptor Dorothy Gillespie (1920-2012). From the Thalian Hall archives, this majestic sculpture will be displayed for the first time with the return of the dance piece “Mystical Journey”, choreographed for seven dancers to music by Swiss harpist Andreas Vollenweider.

The program also brings new modern/contemporary works by choreographer Tracey Varga and includes a piece set to classical guitar and violin by composers Isaac Albéniz, Francisco Tárrega and Luigi Boccherini in three sections with eight dancers, a duet danced by FMD dancers Nicole Dalier and Savannah Brooks with music by Peter Gabriel, as well as new dance with teen dancers from local studios set to the KREAM remix of Kate Bush’s “Running up that Hill” and a striking film by Patrick Ogelvie. Presented also is “Come Join”, a piece that premiered at the 2025 Wilmington Dance Festival, with music by David Byrne. “Night Out at Birdland” highlights the music of jazz greats Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan and Amy Winehouse and features eight dancers. From our guest choreographer, Alison Dutka Jones, “Terminal to Tulsa” is a delightful jazz dance set on four company dancers with music from Herbie Hancock. Alison is a Wilmington native and has called GAFA Studios home for two decades, currently as Director, as well as dance instructor and leader of the GAFA performance companies.

Forward Motion Dance Company dancers are Kara Abbott, Savannah Brooks, Katie Crosby, Nicole Dalier, Trilby Shier Newkirk, Becky Spivey and Susan Turner. Guest dancers are Kimberly Brumsey, Star Coltrin, Rachael Crawford, Lorena Holliday, Wells Jackson, McCall Milliken, Stephanie Nadeau, Stephanie Stone, Linda Ann Webb and Vanessa Welch.

In a show not to be missed, come be astounded by an inspired evening of music and modern, contemporary, classical and jazz dance that Cape Fear Arts in Motion brings to the main stage of the beautiful and historic Thalian Hall Center for the Performing Arts.

Forward Motion Dance Company with founder, director and choreographer Tracey Varga, is a Wilmington, NC, based non-profit 501(c)(3) dance organization whose mission is to provide local and regional communities with quality modern contemporary dance and education in the art of dance, as well as enhance the local arts community by providing performance opportunities for area dancers and performance artists. FMD is an all-volunteer organization proudly supported by local, state and national grants, and community sponsors. For more information, please visit our Facebook page or www.forwardmotiondance.org.