IN TORONTO FESTIVAL 17 - Friday, June 5, 1987 ~ North Shore News Tips for growing - bamboo V dancer/choreographer dances to own heartbeat WITH A deep, rhythmic beating, the rich thumping filters through the theatre. By STEPHEN BARRINGTON News Reporter With fiery intensity, the beat quickens as West Vancouver dancer ‘choreographer Susan McKenzie slides gracefully through her solo dance piece titled Beating. At one with the beating, McKenzie stretches the bounds of conventional dance; heart poun- ding, she becomes a statue looking skyward with arms outstretched. “T dance to the sound: of my own heart,’’ she explains. ‘‘It’s quite radical to use your heart as a drum; I love the idea of having a rhythm, a drum, inside us.”’ In an interview from Winnipeg, where she was dancing in the Third Festival of Canadian Dance, the 29-year-old choreographer says Beating is not meant to shock. Rather, the piece is a deep fu- sion of human rhythm and dance as a half-naked McKenzie drives the music and is in turn driven by it in a peculiar circle. A former apprentice with Anna Wyman, the dancer has recently turned to solo works, including the universally delightful ethereal piece titled The Silke. At the Danceworks 50 Celebra- tion of New Dance in Toronto June 16 to 21, the work’s 40 yards of white silk will flow across the stage on opening night. A vintage-1978 piece, The Silke is modelled on a pioneer dancer from the late 19th century. ‘She was really interested in light; she made dances using lots of silk. That was when they were just discovering light and lighting.”’ Floating gently, the 40 yards of silk costume is transformed into the endless shapes one critic called .‘a jolt to the senses...intense spirituality.”’ Bringing together some top in- dependent choreographers from across Canada, the Danceworks festival celebrates the creative tal- ents of McKenzie and others. One of the founders of the Toronto Independent Dance Enterprise — condensed to TIDE — McKenzie’s dance has earned her accolades from critics across Canada. Breasting the pinnacle of unusual dance, McKenzie spends long hours in the studio shaping and reshaping her ideas into the cohesive form seen on stage. ‘When you’re working alone you have to do the whole process yourself. You need to find some sort of concept and (then find) some way to express it.’” Leaving York University in 1977, the young dancer immediate- ly blended into the local dance cir- cuit. Collecting the acclaim of eastern critics, the West Vancouver native returns to the West Coast for guest spots in EDAM and Tamahnous Theatre productions. photo submitted WEST VANCOUVER dancer/choreographer Susan McKenzie poses for a shot in her work high beams. McKenzie, who was recently in Winnipeg participating in the Third Festival of Canadian Dance, is soon be to performing at a Toronto festival. NV jazz musicians play gig NORTH VANCOUVER jazz musicians Tom Colclough and Norm Fisher will be playing at the Landmark Jazz Bar June 5 and 6 when Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride per- forms there. Saxophone player Colclough, 26, leads the two-year-old band through original jazz fusion and ballad pieces in these last two shows of the four-night run. A musician since he and classmate Fisher played during their Handsworth Secondary School days, Colclough’s credits now include sessions with Valdy, Doug and the Slugs, and the Van- couver group Rock and Hyde, formerly known as The PayolaS. Mr. Toad's playing ranges from hard-driving fusion pieces to gentle jazz ballads — all of which are written by Colclough or members of the group. The group is now eyeing a place in the upcoming Vancouver Jazz Festival. EARLY BIRD SPECIAL he early bird catches the deal at O'Doul's! From 4:30 to 6:30 pm Monday to Friday, O‘Doul’s is serving an Early Bird Special that gets your evening off to a great start. Enjoy soup or salad, your choice of entree featuring the season's best and dessert for only $195 oot’ RESTAURANT 1300 Robson Street, Vancouver 684-8461 in Edgemont village “WE ARE NOW OPEN SUNDAY VISIT WITH US SOON?” THY OUL Patel cise most pict ash of Spain) + PLUS + A BIG VARIETY OF SEAFOOD & TAPAS (spanish appetizers) “Enjoy our live Spanish guitar nightly” 988-3376 3108 Edgemont Blvd,, North Vancouver, B.C.