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Dance Nation by Clare Barron, directed by Daniel Ponickly 

Auditions: Saturday, September 9, 2023.  

PERFORMANCES: November 10 - November 19, 2023

Play description:
Somewhere in America, an army of pre-teen competitive dancers plots to take over the world.
And if their new routine is good enough, they’ll claw their way to the top at Nationals in Tampa Bay. A play about ambition, growing up, and how to find our souls in the heat of it all.

Daniel PonicklyGuest Director Daniel Ponickly was born and raised in New York City, graduated from New York University with a Bachelor's degree in Political Science and Government, then moved to Los Angeles in 2006 to create several arts-in-education organizations.
Through his Dance Education Project, Daniel brought dance to hundreds of schools and dozens-of-thousands of students across the US, while also serving as a Dance and Performing Arts Specialist with the Los Angeles County Office of Education.
As a performer, Daniel has appeared on stages across the country, from MidSummer Night's Swing at Lincoln Center to the Kodak Theater's 80th Annual Academy Awards in LA.
Film and Television work includes: Mona Lisa Smile (2003) and the award-winning documentary Mad Hot Ballroom (2006), as well as having produced, written, and starred in the feature films Raw Cut (2012), and Mining for Ruby (2013), in partnership with UAF.
Daniel also serves as the Executive Director of the Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra.

Playwright Clare Barron is a playwright and performer from Wenatchee, Washington. Her play Dance Nation recently received its world premiere at Playwrights Horizons in May 2018 and subsequently its UK premiere at the Almeida Theatre in London. It was a 2019 finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Drama and is the recipient of the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize and The Relentless Award established in honor of Philip Seymour Hoffman.
Other plays include: You Got Older (Page 73; Steppenwolf) which received two Obie Awards for Playwriting and Performance, a Drama Desk nomination for Outstanding Play, and was a Susan Smith Blackburn finalist and the #1 most-recommended play on the Kilroys' List; I’ll Never Love Again (The Bushwick Starr); and Baby Screams Miracle (Clubbed Thumb; Woolly Mammoth).
She is the recipient of a Whiting Award for Drama, the Paula Vogel Playwriting Award at The Vineyard, and the Page 73 Fellowship; and is a member of New Dramatists.

  • Policy for Theatre UAF productions only:
  • Please note: tickets held at “will call”, even if paid for, will be released for resale 10 minutes prior to curtain/showtime.
  • Unclaimed seats (if you have your tickets, but aren’t at the theatre) 5 minutes prior to curtain may also be resold. Please arrive at least 15 minutes prior to performances so that we may start on time.