ADF: Dance at a Discount for Employees
Employee discounts give staff more opportunities to watch performances
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Durham, NC -- As a child, Sarah Woodard spent a lot of time dancing. “I took tap and ballet,” she said. “It was great exercise, and I adored it.”
Now, Woodard enjoys dance each summer through the American Dance Festival at Duke. A perennial fan, she is thrilled that Duke offers reduced-price tickets through PERQS, the faculty and staff discount program.
“We usually get a season ticket, where we can save 30 percent, but for people who only want to go to a few performances, the discount is great,” said Woodard, an administrative coordinator for Duke Medicine’s chief human resources officer.
Duke employees can save 20 percent off the regular price of individual tickets, which go on sale online May 11. The 2009 season begins June 11 and runs through July 26 with performances at the Reynolds Industries Theater on Duke’s West Campus and at the Durham Performing Arts Center.
The 2009 program offers Woodard and others a diverse menu of dances and dancers to experience. “This will be an exciting season that will explore the boundaries that do – or do not – exist between ballet and modern dance,” said David B. Byrd, director of marketing and communications for ADF.
The 2009 festival, Where Ballet & Modern Meet, will bring back festival favorites such as Pilobolus and Emanuel Gat Dance. Shen Wei, whose work was featured in the Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremonies, will also present a World Premiere.
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Festival activities also include free events, including site-specific performances at the Durham Performing Arts Center and the Golden Belt, a historic textile mill in Durham that has been renovated into arts-friendly studios, restaurants and offices. The ADF will also offer a Community Day at the Nasher Museum of Art, backstage tours of rehearsals and ADF School classes, panel discussions and pre-performance talks at evening shows.
Margaret Brill, who works in the International and Area Studies department of Perkins Library, purchases a season ticket for herself but often uses the PERQS discount to buy tickets for family and friends. She loves ADF not only for the exhilarating performances, but because the festival livens up Durham.
“You have all these incredible dancers from around the world performing, and they are also part of the community,” she said. “You see them at Whole Foods. You get to interact with them during the question and answer sessions after the performances. They work with the community. It’s like having the world come to Durham.”
