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Choreographer Cat Manturuk in residence

Sept. 7, 2004

KALAMAZOO--Choreographer and WMU alumna Cathy "Cat" Manturuk will teach and create a new work during a weeklong residency, Sept. 10-19, in the Department of Dance at Western Michigan University.

While at WMU, Manturuk will teach dance technique classes, speak to classes about the dance profession, and create a new work, which will be performed by WMU dance students in the department's Winter Concert of Dance in February. Manturuk's lectures at WMU are for enrolled dance students only and are not open to the public.

Manturuk earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in dance and a bachelor of science degree in exercise science from WMU. She worked extensively as a dancer, choreographer and teacher in Los Angeles for four years before moving recently to New York City. In Los Angeles, Manturuk choreographed the BET music video for Won G. While at WMU, one of Manturuk's dances earned a Certificate of Merit for Excellence in Performance at the Great Lakes Regional American College Dance Festival Association annual conference.

As a dancer with the all-female hip-hop Decadeancetheater, Manturuk recently performed in the premiere of well-received hip-hop version of "Firebird" at the New York Fringe Festival. She also works with Dance2XS, another New York based hip-hop dance company. In California, she performed with Regina Kenjosky Dance Company and co-founded the Underdog Dance Project.

Manturuk has taught dance at UCLA, the Torrance (Calif.) Cultural Arts Center, Redondo Beach (Calif.) North High School and in the Portage (Mich.) Public Schools. She has also taught Pilates at a number of different sites.

Media contact: Sara Johnson , 269 387-5830

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