Christian Lautenschleger/The LanternRobyn Young performs during “Inherited Movement: Traditions Redefined,” a dance project by Young and Erika Harris.
Seniors in dance, Erika Harris and Robyn Young sought to do something different for their required senior dance project. They wanted to put on a huge production focusing on the dance styles of various cultures and make it a highly interactive and energized show.
“Why come to a dance show and not enjoy it?” Young said.
Their goal to put on an eye-catching and eclectic performance was achieved with the “Inherited Movement: Traditions Redefined” dance recital on Friday and Saturday in Sullivant Hall Theater. The recital was comprised of West African, Afro-Caribbean, spiritual, modern and hip-hop inspired moves, which some students said was unique.
“I really liked how there were so many different art forms and styles presented because I’m just used to seeing one type of dance from African-American shows,” said Branden Mack, a junior in communication.
“I’ve never seen anything like it in a dance performance. I felt like getting up and dancing right with them,” said Kristin Edwards, a sophomore in engineering.
The show evoked crowd participation as the opening drum soloist got the audience to clap to the beat as the dancers moved along. Each dance piece had dancers donned in flowy and colorful costumes made by friends of Young and Harris or purchased from a thrift store. The dancers made use of the entire stage and had a range of movement from sustained to fast-paced.
The piece titled “Finally,” featured DeAngelo Blanchard as a pastor figure in a rhythmic church scene with worshippers flipping and dancing well after the music stopped. Harris and Young had a couple duets where their delicate and graceful moves and distinct facial expressions stood out. The piece, “Out of One Many” incorporated Jamaican folklore and European moves. The group also did a “quadrille” and arm-pumping dance to signify how the African slaves took European moves and personalized them.
The show’s intermission featured short video clips, which identified the choreographers and types of dances in each piece. Young said the video was crucial to set up the full experience and historical background for the dance recital. Harris and Young had three local and national choreographers assist them with the show, and the magnitude of the production was unusual of for undergraduate performers, Harris said.
“Senior projects normally consist of one choreographed piece, while we thought in order for people to understand our vision, we would have to step it up and offer more dances and depth,” Young said.
Harris and Young have been preparing for their dance show since June. They received $12,000 from the Arts and Sciences Undergraduate Research Scholarship to fund all the production expenses. In addition to learning the moves, they had to do research, a thesis paper and an hour-long defense before a dance committee about their project. Harris said all the requirements felt a bit overwhelming for her final year in school.
“It’s been a mental and physical marathon for us since we had to be producer, creator, dancer and advertiser on top of being a student and friend,” she said.
Young said she hoped the dance concert would inspire other senior dance majors to do something big, creative and different for their senior project.
“We just took all of our passions and put them on the stage and raised the bar so that future projects can be just as big if not better,” she said.
Heather Hope can be reached at [email protected].
