The second annual Emerging Choreographers’ Showcase will be held in the English Building theater from Wednesday to Saturday.
The show was created as an opportunity for students in the Theatre and Dance department to choreograph original pieces. Sarah Barry, director of the MFA dance program and associate chair of dance, and Hassan Syed, an assistant professor of dance, are acting as co-directors for the showcase and have provided each student with guidance.
“We really want for students to be able to dive into that choreographic inquiry and have faculty be able to mentor them and question them and help them really clarify their ideas and dig a little deeper,” Barry said.
This year, 12 choreographers started to prepare dances — styles ranging from jazz to hip-hop to contemporary — in the fall semester and were able to get feedback from Barry, Syed and a third faculty member of the choreographers’ choosing.
Each choreographer started working with their dancers after an open audition process in the fall where any student could try out, no matter their major.
A new addition this year is the lighting for the showcase. The choreographers were partnered with one or two light designers, who are also students who have been under the guidance of Teresa Gawrych, an instructor in the Department of Journalism and Creative Media.
Along with advice from faculty members, Barry said the department emphasizes and encourages students to observe and give comments to their classmates.
“So that’s also part of it, helping the students watch dance and be able to talk about it and really listen to their peers and hear what their ideas are,” she said.
Tickets for the showcase can be found on the department’s website and will also be sold at the door.
“For us, it’s really all about just nurturing choreographers and giving them the mentorship and support that can really help them to realize the idea that they have in movement,” Barry said.
