A big deal, new dance company on Vashon Island with some familiar faces

Pacific Northwest Ballet ended its performance season in early June, but two days later, a half dozen company members were back in the rehearsal studio.

Dancers Elle Macy and Miles Pertl, dressed in sweat pants and T-shirts, were teaching a new duet to fellow PNB company members Elizabeth Murphy and Dylan Wald. Choreographer Penny Saunders crouched in the corner of the studio, keeping a watchful eye on the action.

Pertl lifted Macy into the air, turned her body 90 degrees, then set her gently onto the floor. “Just make sure her shoulder doesn’t pop out!” he cautioned Wald, who was trying the same lift with his partner, Murphy. Everyone burst out laughing.

These dancers are accustomed to contemporary choreography, but this rehearsal was not part of their full-time PNB gig. They’re part of a brand new troupe, Seattle Dance Collective, formed by fellow company members James Yoichi Moore and Noelani Pantastico.

We stand next to each other at the barre, during class,” Moore said. “We always talk, and that’s where this company grew from.”

Both Moore and Pantastico are in their late 30s, not far from retirement from ballet. Both have been contemplating their futures, and individually they’d imagined forming their own companies. The friends and frequent dance partners decided to join forces. After a PNB board member suggested they look at the new performing arts center on Vashon Island, the two paid a visit last October.

“As soon as we saw it,” Pantastico said, “we looked at each other and said we have to do this.”

They approached fellow dancers and choreographers with the idea of a summer performance, and Seattle Dance Collective was born.

In addition to the eight PNB company members, the duo invited two dancers from another Seattle troupe, Whim W’Him, to take part in the inaugural July performance. Although the program is comprised of six contemporary works, Moore and Pantastico don’t want to characterize Seattle Dance Collective as a contemporary company.

“We started going down that path,” Moore explained, “but we realized we didn’t want to box ourselves in, because we have access to phenomenal classical dancers.”

All the Seattle Dance Collective members rehearse and perform during the period when they’re laid off from their regular positions, which makes scheduling tricky. The PNB and Whim W’Him artistic seasons don’t necessarily overlap, so it’s been difficult to get all 10 dancers in the studio at the same time.

This also complicates future plans for the fledgling organization.

Moore and Pantastico can't schedule anything until they know PNB's season schedule and whether they plan to tour next summer. Unfortunately, any organization — especially a fledgling arts troupe — needs visibility to attract both audiences and donors.

Although the local arts community is fairly collegial, nonprofits compete for the same pool of public and private donations. Even larger, more established arts organizations have struggled in an era when digital entertainment provides easy, less expensive options for younger potential patrons.

Olivier Wevers, artistic director of dance company Whim W'Him, calls starting a dance company "a near impossible task. There will be lots of sweat, bruising and disappointment along the way."

That said, Wevers, a former principal dancer at PNB, says leading his own dance company is the best job in the world; he welcomes more artists to step up to similar roles.

Despite the challenges, both Moore and Pantastico are excited about their new venture, especially as they anticipate the end of their ballet careers.

“I love that I can give back in another way, and still dance,” Pantastico said.

Beyond their personal satisfaction, though, the new artistic directors want to promote dance to a new generation.

“If we don’t do it, who will?” Moore asked. “You want to make sure this art form continues to be relevant in the 21st century.”

Seattle Dance Collective performs Program One, its inaugural production, Friday July 12 through Sunday July 14 at the Vashon Performing Arts Center on Vashon Island.