Professional dancers do double duty as comics in a performance that draws from classic pulp novels and comic books, blending dance, theater, and visual design. Dance-theatre company Lucky Plush performs "Trip the Light Fantastic: The Making of SuperStrip" at the Moss Arts Center on Oct. 13 at 7:30 p.m.

The performance will be held in the center’s Anne and Ellen Fife Theatre, located within the Street and Davis Performance Hall at 190 Alumni Mall.

Follow a group of washed up superheroes as they try to reinvent themselves in a nonprofit think tank for do-gooders. Lucky Plush brings its signature blend of nuanced dialogue, complex choreography, and off-the-cuff improvisation in a work that moves between live performance and projected video.

Recognized for complex choreography, surprising humor, and incisive commentary on contemporary culture, Lucky Plush founder Julia Rhoads leads her dancers in expression that honors vaudevillian humor and physical skills.

Though Rhoads finds inspiration from classic pulp superheroes and has fun weaving in riffs on the exhausting trend of hyper-personal branding through social media, the themes of "Trip the Light Fantastic: The Making of SuperStrip" are particularly relevant to her experience leading a nonprofit organization.

“So often organized efforts to effect change – to improve workplace, community, or more broadly to make the world a better place – can be incredibly circular, stunted by non-consensus, or limited by the politics that frame the efforts,” explains Rhoads. “While the characters of ‘SuperStrip’ are invested in deeply held values, they are challenged to uphold their importance within contemporary platforms that support empty self-promotion and flavor-of-the-day innovation, like so many people today from all walks of life.”

Prior to the performance, the Moss Arts Center will present “Nonprofit Superheroes of the New River Valley” in collaboration with the Community Foundation of the New River Valley. Beginning at 6 p.m. in the center’s Grand Lobby, the event provides an opportunity to engage with some of the New River Valley’s very own nonprofit superheroes and learn about their work.

Tickets

Tickets for the performance are $20-45 for general public and $10 for students and youth 18 and under. Tickets can be purchased online; at the Moss Arts Center's box office, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday; or by calling 540-231-5300 during box office hours.

Parking is available in the North End Parking Garage on Turner Street. Virginia Tech faculty and staff possessing a valid Virginia Tech parking permit can enter and exit the garage free of charge. Limited street parking is also available. Parking on Alumni Mall is free on weekdays after 5 p.m. and on weekends.

If you are an individual with a disability and desire an accommodation, please contact Kacy McAllister at 540-231-5300 or email kacy@vt.edu during regular business hours at least 10 business days prior to an event.

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