The senior dance class will be performing a number of choreographed pieces to showcase what they’ve learned since the beginning of their tenure in the School of Dance.
The eight pieces being performed for the Senior Dance Concert were choreographed by six students from this year’s senior dance class and are part of the dance senior capstone project. Six of the pieces were choreographed this semester while two others were choreographed in May. The two revisited pieces are “Disturbances Within a Medium” by Earlyn Whitehead, a senior studying dance, and duet “Self-Restraint” by Steven Evans, a senior studying dance.
Whitehead said that this particular concert will be a “strong one” because there is “a lot of variety.”
“We were looking at the program, and at the titles, and how the titles even can describe us as a choreographer,” said Michael O’Neill, a senior studying dance. “We each just have our own aesthetics, but what is funny is that we do know that, and they all mesh really well.”
Some of the pieces focus on a central theme, or “spine,” O’Neill said, while others are more focused on a specific memory or mood.
The central themes vary from piece to piece. One such piece, a solo performed by Evans, expands its theme of attachment to “things that make us who we are,” which was inspired by Evans’ Buddhist studies.
Other themes include “light and soft” feelings and “gritty, dirty” styling, which are found in group pieces, “It Just Goes Lalala” and “Dwellings,” respectively.
Kelsey Maiolo’s piece, “Who Knew Lakes Had Waves,” is a solo performance that focuses on a specific scene, in this case her experiences on a mission trip.
Maiolo said that even though her solo emphasized her own experiences, she didn’t want the audience to focus solely on her individual story when watching the piece.
“I kind of want them to just look at the piece as a whole and look back and think about how they personally connect to it,” Maiolo said.
Ultimately, the concert is a measure of the growth of each of the six dance students, which is what Whitehead said she hopes is conveyed through the students’ choreography.
“I would want the audiences to see collectively how we came together as a class,” Whitehead said. “You can tell that everyone is honing in on who they are, not only as an individual, but who they are as a choreographer.”
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