Category: Dance

It is my favorite time of the year: Dance BFA Show Season! The pinnacle of the dance degree and the one thing every undergraduate student looks forward to is their Senior Thesis. This is made up of a solo and group piece (mostly made up of other undergraduate dance students, dance team members, or even theater students) choreographed and directed by each graduating senior. It is the one time students get the freedom and opportunity to create their own works with the mentorship of any of the dance professors. Needless to say, it is a very exciting three nights of shows that will make you want to come all three nights if you can get the tickets…they sell out usually an hour before the show. 

This was the first show of the year, with the four culminating seniors, Anabelle Chalmers, Katherine Kiessling, Lauren Roebuck, and Mia Rubenstein, presenting a wildly diverse show. Chalmers’ works were heavily focused on the interpersonal relationships between the dancers on stage. A highlight of her group work, I Hope We Can Resurface, was the duet with Rachel Dunklee and Kate Mitchell (both third years). Up until their duet, the piece utilized large groups of people on stage, both existing in parallel with each other and in congruence; it isn’t until this duet that we (the audience) catch a breath while strictly paying attention to the two communicate corporally–not to mention the brilliant lighting switch when the two come to focus. The dynamics both of the girls bring were drastically different but worked so well in congruence with one another. Kate was fluid and focused on her upper body, while Rachel found moments of sharpness and dedicated much focus to her lower body. 

Kiessling’s works flowed into one another, unlike any of the other dances. It started with her group work, which was reminiscent of a nightclub, with moments before, during, and after; there was even a section that focused on the time one spends in the bathroom at the club. Lighting was essential for this piece, big shoutout to Robert Farr-Jones for lighting this piece and making it come to life. Kiessling also used a projector with engaging geometric visuals that faded in and out during the piece, working exceptionally well with the lighting on the screen and stage. At one point, Katherine joins the dancers on stage and grabs all of the attention, so much so that at one point, she dances in the center of the stage as the rest of her large cast surrounds the edges of the stage, staring at her. It was extraordinarily voyeuristic and meta. The audience watched the dancers as the dancers watched Katherine. 

Roebuck’s works were some of the most entertaining of the night and definitely used more theater skills than the other pieces. Her group work, She Cooks as Good as She Looks, was based on the film The Stepford Wives and comprised of four “couples” representing the stereotypical 50s working man and the corresponding stay-at-home housewife. The dancing was heavily influenced by Roebuck’s training and love for Hip Hop (she is in the on-campus Hip Hop club 2XS along with many of the dancers in the piece). Throughout the piece, the “women” slowly started to revolt against their counterparts, until the morbid ending of them killing the men…Whether this is the solution to sexism or not (I kid), it made for a dramatic and polarizing ending. 

Lastly, Rubenstein’s works were very ethereal and really played with the juxtaposition of the beauty and ugliness of human nature. Her solo and group work costumes were all white, and two large white sheets were accompanying her group. I thought the sheets were exciting ways of concealing bodies as well as giving bodies a new shape that molded to the sheet. My favorite part of the group work was when the lights went from yellow/white to a drastic switch to red. During this section, the dancers moved together synchronously through intensive and athletic movement, a motif of all of Rubenstein’s work. Mia may be smaller in stature, but she knows how to take up space on a large, empty stage. I thought her solo was beautifully crafted and utilized the stage in its entirety, which is not only exhausting but very challenging to do. Overall a very captivating dancer. 

I will be back to write again about the next BFA show, Tales From Our Roots, which I am also very excited about. I recommend coming to one of the nights: November 30 through December 2 at 8:00 PM at the dance building. I will never stop advocating for dance, so trust me when I tell you: You do not want to miss these shows!

“Father Who Art in Heaven” was Jason Cianciulli’s culminating senior MFA thesis. As both a student at the University and a grad student professor, I’ve watched Jason grow and worked with them over the past two years. They work with many physical theater practices as well as floor work and partnering–needless to say; their movement is extremely experimental and paves the way for the upcoming generation of dancers. I find his work especially interesting because of the merging of styles and genres, highlighting theater work, dance, music, and the visual arts. 

What distinguishes Jason’s work from other dance works, is its innovation and commitment to fusing styles and genres. With a dark and mysterious undertone, the piece began with dancer Ruby Clay, sitting at a table alone, moving extremely slowly. An otherworldly lighting bathed her body from a strategically placed television and showcased the depth of the space. The curtains were set up in a way I had never seen before; it looked like the stage was cut into a “U” shape. Although showcased only at the beginning and the end, her character stayed on stage the entire time, sitting emotionless. As subtle as it was, her addition became one of my favorite parts of the piece. 

Two senior acting majors, Jack Weaver and Molly Felsher, had a couple-like relationship on stage with a sort of disdain toward one another. Their relationship added complexity to the narrative and paved the way for the overall tone. Although their acting was extremely interesting to the work, the moving of the curtains and the changing of the lighting really captivated me. Smaller curtains were seamlessly pulled on and off stage to take away, change, or add characters on the stage that set entirely new environments in the same stage space. Rather than blacking out the space, the curtains served as a continuation of the dance but altered it simultaneously. I have never seen this before in a dance performance! Jason created new shapes on the stage instead of the “normal” stage set-up that utilized the theater’s physical capabilities, unlike previous dance works I’ve seen at the University. Needless to say, I am inspired! 

There were two figures with large black cloaks with a ring at the bottom and large old people masks. Because of the circular bottom, it appeared as if the figures were floating, which, again, was an interesting way to play with fabric and movement in space, that I have yet to see at the University. The two figures kiss at one point, which seemed quite absurd in the moment but in the best polarizing way possible. They remove their masks and dance with the other cast members toward the end. There was an incredible stage fighting scene with red lighting covering half the space and a strobe light section from the television with dancers moving throughout it, looking like they were traveling through space and time in real-life stop-motion animation. Again, it is extremely inspiring and innovative. 

Jason presented themself as a really intriguing figure with long fingers and an extremely pale appearance. At one point, they hid in a small box under the television (which I didn’t see happen) and crawled out like it was magic!! Clearly, playing with the audience’s focus/attention and keeping the audience on their toes. Jason uses the word “decay” when describing this piece, which is the perfect illustration of the work. I watched people decay over time, in relation to one another and alone. It was a beautiful performance art, and I hope Jason continues to show this work–as I don’t feel it is the end of it! Or I hope not, at least…