Dance for Screen's final film premiere, retrospective exhibit is May 16

For the past 10 years, Dance For Screen has provided local dancers with a unique alternative to traditional stage performances. Now, co-founders Brenton Wildman and Angela Zarnke are ready to close this chapter and celebrate a decade of work with a grand send-off on Saturday, May 16 with the premiere of their final dance film, “The Principles of Color.”

To mark the special occasion, the Saturday event will be more than just a screening. Dance for Screen will transform Tebo & Tilly event space into a walk-through film gallery, allowing attendees to experience past cinematic projects alongside a live performance and the premiere of “Principles of Color,” all while enjoying hors d’oeuvres and drinks.

“Every film we’ve done through the 10 years is going to have its own space where you can watch that one as you’re going through and having this gallery experience,” Wildman said. “We’ve had an amazing 10 years working on this and we’ve had so many amazing dancers come through this workshop and this program.”

After growing up dancing together in Wausau, Wildman and Zarnke reconnected to merge their passions for film and dance. Dance for Screen offered local dancers the opportunity to join a summer dance workshop, culminating in a short dance film every year. In this partnership, Zarnke works as the main choreographer while Wildman serves as film director. For the past decade, that initiative has taught students the intricacies of performing for a camera as opposed to a stage audience.

“Being in front of a camera is really good for young dancers because as dancers you still have to perform as an actor as well as with your body, so your facial expressions make a big difference when you’re performing as well,” Zarnke said.

As a part of this film-driven approach, Dance for Screen has pushed movement into unexpected locations including abandoned buildings, rooftop parking structures, rural landscapes and more. The series has explored a wide range of themes, from nature and future technology to stylized genre storytelling, all captured through changing seasons and conditions unique to the Midwest.

Over the years, this unique program expanded the creative horizons and self-confidence of young dancers.

“I’ve definitely seen it bring about a lot more self-confidence in some of the dancers and a lot more creativity on their own,” Zarnke said. “One dancer in particular who did pretty much all of the Dance for Screens projects that she possibly could, has become just an extraordinary choreographer. And I think that being in front of a camera and learning in that way has helped open her horizons in choreography because we’re usually used to choreographing just for a stage.”

As Wildman and Zarnke end this creative chapter of their lives, the wheels are already in motion for new, exciting projects on the horizon. But for right now, they’re focusing on the past and going out with a bang at the upcoming premiere of “The Principles of Color.”

Inspired by vintage educational science videos, “The Principles of Color,” explores how different color wavelengths translate into physical dance movements. It is a fittingly inventive finale for a program that has pushed Wausau dancers out of their comfort zones and into new unconventional settings for a decade.

“We’ve turned it into an old video that you would see in high school maybe in like the 1970s,” Wildman explained. “It talks about this science where they were able to translate the frequencies of colors through the brain into dance moves. It’s designed around an old style educational film, which I thought was really fun. It’s a pretty cool one because it explores the way that dance works through five different colors.”

The screening will take place at Tebo & Tilly (745 Scott St. in Wausau) on May 16 from 6-9 p.m. Tickets are $10 with free admission for children age 10 and under. Tickets can be purchased at danceforscreen.com.