Starr Foster Dance has been a part of Richmond's artistic scene for years, and is now entering its third year as a resident at the Firehouse Theater, where the group will present its newest performance, "[Your Name Here]," this weekend.

Starrene Foster Starr is the group's artistic director, and has been directing contemporary dance for 25 years.

The dances themselves have changed over the years, and Starr Foster Dance is now more established as a company of artists.

“When the pandemic came, I realized that small was best,” she said.

When Starr needs more bodies for specific compositions, she brings in guest dancers.

“When we are creating a large work like 'Mercy' (in the current show), I can bring in dancers who cannot make full-year commitments like the company dancers do,” she said.

Cassidy Kinney, one of the guest dancers for the upcoming show, said the key is getting prepared outside of rehearsals.

“For me, it is more of a mental preparation, as I am not consistently in rehearsals as the company is," she said. "I work on making sure I feel strong, confident and capable before performance week.”

Starr has brought in guest dancers for most of her past performances, including “Spitting Image,” where dances were inspired by photographs, and “Page to Stage,” whose inspirations included poems and short stories. Guests are part of the company for about eight weeks.

Three works will define the upcoming show: “[Your Name Here],” “Soft Neglect,” and “Mercy.”

“All contemporary dance has a specific choreographic voice shaped to the dancer’s style," Starr said. "I switched from a ballet career to a modern or contemporary one because contemporary dances are more grounded, more fluid, and not gender specific, where ballet is gender specific.”

Starr’s company dancers, however, are what make the performances special because of their investments in time and creativity throughout the year.

Molly Huey, a dance artist, videographer, and media artist, is drawn to contemporary dance for this reason.

“I love all forms of dance,” she said, “but I find myself drawn to contemporary due to its open-endedness. It still feels like we are in a spot where contemporary is not well defined, existing without a technical guide. It's a vague catch all term to me, and it often includes the blending of many other styles. I like the freedom of that.”

Starr tries to keep the cost to the audience down, and is offering a pay-what-you-can option for Saturday's performances thanks to donations.

Starr’s contemporary dance can also be defined as interpretive dance in that she is interpreting the source material — a photo, a poem, or even a word or phrase (such as “mercy” and “your name here”).

“The dances are open to audience interpretation, all with a dialogue in their heads," she said. "‘[Your Name Here],’ for example, is really about you.”

Another company dancer, Madison Ernstes, who has been with Starr Foster since 2023, said: “I appreciate and love all forms of dance, but I feel that contemporary can really tell a story and portray emotions. I also love how connected I feel to my fellow dancers on stage when dancing this style.”

STARR FOSTER DANCE presents [YOUR NAME HERE]

December 4th -7th 2025

FIREHOUSE THEATRE, 1609 W Broad St, Richmond, VA 23220

Thursday, December 4th 7:30PM (Post-Performance Q&A with the artists)

Friday, December 5th 7:30PM (Champagne Night with the artists Post-Performance)

Saturday, December 6th 3PM (Pay-What-You-Can Option available)

Saturday, December 6th 6PM (Pay-What-You-Can Option available/Post-Performance Q&A with the artists)

Sunday, December 7th 3PM

Tickets:

https://www.tixtree.com/e/starr-foster-dance-your-name-here-be0d63e678cd