Dance majors will take the stage this weekend for their annual Winter Dance Concert. The event is the only student dance concert to be performed in Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium, as Fall and Spring Quarter’s shows are performed in Putnam Hall.
Dancers are most excited to be performing in the large venue.
“It’s fulfilling for me to perform for a large group of people,” said Justin Middlebrooks, a senior studying dance. “It’s a great space to perform in, and to know that I’m sharing that stage with all these other great artists is amazing.”
Senior dance major Patricia Peoples said the larger venue is better because it provides a dressing room, compared to the usual studio changing room, and the dancers have the benefit of a costume designer.
Concert-goers can expect the show to feature a wide variety of upbeat and energetic movement styles and ideas, said School of Dance professor Mickie Geller.
The concert features pieces choreographed by School of Dance faculty and staff, as well as a work by guest artist Stephanie Batten-Bland, a New York and Paris-based choreographer. Middlebrooks described working with Batten-Bland as “intense” and “rewarding.”
“She was amazing and fierce and very direct about what she wanted,” said Stephanie Johnson, a senior studying dance.
Middlebrooks said that the Winter Dance Concert touches on current aspects of society. Batten-Bland’s piece, A Place of Sun, for instance, is a response to mutations to wild animals that have been caused by recent oil spills
“It’s important for art and dance to reflect contemporary social problems,” Middlebrooks said.
The show is also designed to entertain a wide variety of people.
“I think (the show) is something for everyone. The piece I’m in is based off of skateboarding, so that’s something anyone could enjoy,” said Peoples.
Fish and other sea creatures were the inspiration for Geller’s piece, Seawash, according to a news release. The piece emulates how they travel together and apart, changing speed and direction.
The audience will not be the only ones taking pleasure in the show.
“My favorite part of the performance is being on stage with the lights and the makeup and the costumes. That’s the thrill that I’m looking for,” explained Peoples.
The dance concert is Friday and Saturday evening in Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium. Tickets are $12.00 for adults, $9.00 for children under 18 and free for OU students with a valid OU ID.
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