Company member Tara Charvat's kicks off her third season with Eisenhower Dance Detroit. Photo by: Allison Armfield
Eisenhower Dance Detroit company member Tara Charvat loves that the company brings in different choreographers to challenge their artistry and always mixes it up. She describes the choreography repertoire as a wide array of works that span from feeling heavy and intense to fun and light hearted.
The Eisenhower Dance Detroit company will perform "F-E-E-L" and “Motown in Motion” this weekend at the Kravis Center. The performance includes works by Artistic Director, Stephanie Pizzo and international choreographer, Edgar Zendejas along with music of Motown classics.
Charvat outlines that the performance of "F-E-E-L" is different from past shows because it takes the audience on a wide emotional journey.
“Overall, we would love for the audience to FEEL something, whether it be connecting with a piece emotionally or challenging their thoughts about art and dance. We want them to experience something unique to them as individuals,” she said.
The company returned to the studio immediately following the new year. While they performed a few of these works together before, many are also new to this group, Charvat said. They rehearse Monday to Friday to focus on their technique but also to connect emotionally with each work to enhance the choreographer’s vision.
For Charvat, the most challenging part of being in a company is pushing the body past its limits and finding the strength to push through the hard days, both physically and mentally.
“The most rewarding part is the gratification of the audience connecting with our work and seeing the raw moments of our artistic form,” she said.
Charvat started dancing at the age of 5 with ballet and tap.
In 2018, she graduated from Western Michigan University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance. While attending university, she performed works by choreographers Paul Taylor, Anthony Tudor, Lew Christensen, Frank Chavez and Brian Enos as stated in the dance company website.
Charvat also participated in a variety of summer programs. She trained with New Dialect, chuthis., BODYTRAFFIC LA, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, The Big Muddy Dance Company and DanceWorks Chicago.
The same year, she was awarded a scholarship to the Lou Conte Dance Studio where she took classes with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago artists and presented her choreography. In 2019, she joined NewDances, a collaboration between Thodos Dance Chicago and DanceWorks Chicago.
She apprenticed with Eisenhower Dance Detroit performing pieces choreographed by Stephanie Pizzo, Laurie Eisenhower and BAIRA. Charvat was promoted to company member in Fall 2020.
Her most memorable moment in her career was performing at Jacob’s Pillow.
“It has always been a dream of mine to perform at the Inside/Out stage, and it meant even more to be able to experience it with people who are like family to me!” she said.
Her advice for dancers who would like to join a company like Eisenhower Dance Detroit is to
“believe in yourself and never stop striving for what you want. It won’t be easy, but it will be worth it.”
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