The Sacramento/Black Art of Dance Company is celebrating its 20th anniversary with “20th Anniversary Concert: Past, Present and Future,” which opened on Thursday at Sacramento State.

Linda Goodrich, Sac State’s dance and theatre department chair, is the director of the Sacramento/Black Art of Dance Company. The company commemorates the music and dance styles of African culture and exhibits black concert dance forms including Cuban, West African and modern jazz.

The group follows the dance traditions started by Katherine Dunham, an American modern dancer who had one of the most successful dance careers of the 20th century. Dunham was the first to develop a dance technique where she combined the dynamic dance movements of Caribbean and African dances with elegant European-style ballet.

Goodrich founded the Sacramento/Black Art of Dance Company in 1992. She decided to start the Sacramento/Black Art Dance Company when she had a dance company in the Bay Area.

“When I moved here (to Sacramento), I really wanted to carry that (dance company) on,” Goodrich said. “I knew that I had to create another company here but it was having a company in the Bay Area that really inspired me to create a company here in Sacramento.”

Goodrich said she has been a dancer from the age of 3. She has a master of fine arts degree in choreography and performance from Mills College, and earned her master’s and doctorate from Ohio State University.

Goodrich has directed and choreographed numerous shows including “The Colored Museum,” “The Old Settler” and “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Was Enuf.” She also has performed in “Stompin’ at the Savoy” and played the lead role in “Carmen Jones.”

When Goodrich started her dance company in Sacramento, she said most of her dancers came from dance companies and universities.

“I got a lot of my initial dancers from the UC Davis and the Black Repertory (Group),” Goodrich said. “Then I developed a course called African Caribbean dance, a beginning Dunham (dance) technique, and this is also where I got a lot of dancers from.”

Goodrich said many of her dancers started out at Sacramento/Black Art of Dance Company and have gone to do many great things in their careers.

“It has been like a training ground for many dancers who have gone on to (becoming teachers) and form their own (dance) companies,” Goodrich said.

Goodrich is not only the director for the 20th anniversary dance show, but she also choreographed many of the show’s dance pieces and has guest artists choreograph a couple of the other dance pieces.

Goodrich said she hand picks most of the dancers and holds auditions. Nicole Manker – a Sac State alumna, dancer and choreographer – started at the Sacramento/Black Art Dance Company in 1997 after being invited.

After finding out about the anniversary concert, she came back to the company to dance with the group again. Manker said she does not have a favorite part of the show, but she is just enthusiastic about the overall show and how the dancers worked hard putting the show together.

“I can’t really say I have a particular (favorite) piece in general, but the training and the process leading up to the show was probably my favorite part of the production,” Manker said. “All of the dancers worked really hard and I think it is a great show that has a really nice representation of the last 20 years of what Sacramento/Black Art of Dance has been doing.”

Kamiko McWilliams has been a dancer for the Sacramento/Black Art of Dance Company since 2005 and is excited about the 20th anniversary show.

“I am really excited to do the anniversary show because it is our way of giving tribute to all Dr. Goodrich’s hard work, time and dedication she has put into this company,” McWilliams said. “This our way of giving back.”

Goodrich said the opening night of the show was hugely successful and everyone is happy with how the show went.

“It was a full house on opening night and the audience seemed to really like it, so we are really pleased,” said Goodrich.

Sacramento/Black Art of Dance’s show runs until Sunday.

Brittany can be reached at [email protected]