"It has always been my dream to produce other people's work," she said.
It's much more than just creating a show or making money, Nichols said, it's seeing other people's work come to fruition. She wants to give dance companies the chance to perform premieres of their work in a world-class venue that will entertain a diverse audience at an affordable price so that all ages can attend.
"They all have created Los Angeles premieres for this event and two of the companies are from San Francisco. That means, I'm not only supporting companies from the Los Angeles area, but companies from outside Los Angeles," said Nichols, who now lives in Pasadena.
The Alex performance will feature such genres as ballet, jazz, modern and contemporary dance exhibited by companies with varied ethnic backgrounds, she said.
Spicing up the event with a Latin flavor is Backhausdance, a company that won three Lester Horton Dance Awards in 2004. The Horton Awards are the premier awards recognizing excellence in professional concert dance in Southern California, Nichols said.
JazzAntiqua Dance & Music Ensemble, directed by Pat Taylor, celebrates the African-American roots of the jazz tradition with visceral jazz dance and the Djanbazian Dance Company, led by artistic director Anna Djanbazian of Glendale, brings an Armenian touch to the event, while blending ballet and modern skills with traditional dance, she said.
The Djanbazian Dance Company is based out of the Djanbazian Dance Academy in La Crescenta, which draws students from Glendale, Burbank and the foothills, Djanbazian said.
It won four Horton Awards in 2004, Nichols said.
"I adore Anna's work," she said. "Her work has a beauty and lightness that's stunning."
For the Alex performance, Djanbazian has choreographed the dance "Ser," which means love. It is based a work of contemporary Armenian poet Grish Davadian, Djanbazian said.
"This dance is about the love of an innocent boy and girl," she said.
