Zephyr Dance Ensemble
Many of Zephyr’s members have their roots in Barat College, a small school in Lake Forest formerly for women only. I taught several computer classes there a number of years ago and was fascinated with its social and political tone. Decades ago Barat was essentially a finishing school for girls from wealthy Catholic families and quite conservative. Within the last 20 years, it’s become coeducational and has begun to focus on adult education for North Shore residents; its tone has become more liberal and more working-class. It’s had an excellent dance program for years, focusing on the triad of jazz, ballet, and modern dance. You couldn’t find a more mainstream institution these days, untouched by the political atmosphere of larger schools and universities.
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The most coherent of Zephyr’s angry-woman dances are the ones that focus on their emotional connections to men. Feminist anger is certainly an enduring topic and one that draws an audience, but feminist ideas don’t seem to have penetrated very deeply. The strongest influence on Zephyr seems to be the pleasure and pain of the heterosexual bond.
