Life > May 1, 2008

By Ae'Jay Mitchell | Modern dance instructor and performer Martha Graham once described dance to be the hidden language of the soul.

Well, between April 24-27 the souls of 12 student choreographers brilliantly permeated Scales Fine Arts Center’s Mainstage during the 2008 Spring Dance Concert.

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With a theme of “Going Green,” the concert was publicized on 100 percent recycled postcards and posters, was costumed with pieces from existing stock or from personal closets and was layered with “choreographic motifs” following going green ideas.

Although the dance company was full of passion for its theme of sustainability, many dancers lacked the fervor necessary to fully convey their choreographer’s message.

Many pieces became a static reproduction of movement, failing to break the stage’s proscenium.

Sophomore Janelle Summerville’s piece “Transform” effectively used the entire theatre, giving an exciting beginning to the concert.

Full of repetition and dancer connectivity, the piece moved with extreme fluidity. Sophomore soloist Jennifer Hayden danced beautifully.

However, Summerville’s choreography left the piece difficult to follow.

“Lost/Found in Translation,” choreographed by senior Anna Banerjea, was bland. Even though her exploration of dance linguistics was terrific, the piece fell short of its potential.

Many points of the dance appeared to be unrehearsed improvisation performed by uncertain dancers.

Senior Morgan Partin’s “Some Things Never Change,” affectionately called the “Couch Dance,” was an exquisite journey through time’s effect on friendship and love.

The intimacy and emotion of the dancers invited the audience into their quintet. The transitions were unpleasantly jerky, but the piece, as a whole, worked extremely well.

Senior Sarah Klyap’s piece was new and different. The modern dancers moved with breath taking agility.

The mix of implicit and explicit footprints captured the show’s theme perfectly.

Senior Caitlin Patrick’s “SeafoamLimeOliveGrassForest” featured superb movement dressed in green garbs. The transitions were seamless.

However, again, the dancers failed to show passion; they appeared to be merely going through the motions.

Hip-hop on a concert stage is a rare commodity, but senior India Diaz brought it, and brought it well.

With 16 dancers, Diaz brought modern, jazz and ballet dancers into the world of banging bass lines and syncopated dance movements. It was a nice splash of energy to the concert.

And then, there is ballet. Senior Adriana Dew’s “Fiddles, Flowers, and Floating” was an impressively choreographed ballet. The dancers’ technique was great, but most faces were dead.

Not only are they dancers – they are performers, and I did not see the performance quality. Congratulations to sophomores Sarah Brown and Jennifer Hayden, senior Elizabeth Cain and freshman Laura Underwood for consistently performing.

“Finding the Sacred in the Ordinary” was a wonderful exploration of movement. Senior Brooke Vogel, choreographer, tested the rote definition of dance and created an innovative piece.

However, like Banerjea, the piece did not reach its full potential, causing points of faulty technique and incoherent transitions.

Senior Dorian Cowan’ choreography grooved through the “Century.”

Dedicated to her parents, Cowan paired decades according to parent/ child relationships (‘20s –‘40s, ‘30s ‘50s, etc.). Although the piece was enjoyable, it had a slightly rudimentary air. This piece seemed a mere patchwork of dance movements of the various decades. The addition of soft shoe tap dance moves was very distracting and did not work.

Senior Kelly Mullen’s translation of visual art in terms of dance was phenomenal.

The dancers movements showed individual reactions to visual art, but remained cohesive.

This piece, “The Lost Art of the Idle Movement,” was a necessary and pleasing addition to the concert.

Sophomore Allison Fuster’s piece, “Solstice,” exhibited extremely mature work and was a delightful surprise.

The dancers’ moved as one force, with one message.

However, some of Fuster’s message was lost due to a lack of connectivity with the audience. All in all, a beautiful piece from a growing dancer.

Senior Jamie Patterson’s “Welcome to the Sixties” was an explosion of passion, musicality and energy.

With 16 dancers, Patterson’s choreography presented a great understanding of fifties’ dance moves. Throughout their excitement and grandiose performance, the dancers did not lose their technique and training.

The piece was a perfect ending to the concert.

Under costumer Lisa Weller’s supervision, the costumes were appropriate and lively. Rob Eastman-Mullins’ light design was sometimes over-the-top and distracting, adding a high school talent show feeling to the concert.

The stage management and board crews were terrific in keeping the show at a reasonable pace and technically sound.

All in all, the Spring Dance Concert was a beautiful exploration of movement for an amazing Pro Humanitate cause that would have been a joy for any audience member.