Grace Kurosaka arrived at the University as a biology major with a dream of attending medical school, but she quickly realized that she wanted to take a different path.
While she began dancing at the age of three, she did not begin contemplating the sport as a career path until she got to the University. Now, as a senior majoring in dance and biology, Kurosaka will be presenting an original dance show, “Carousel” to her colleagues, peers and family.
Kurosaka’s “Carousel” is the first at the University to be directed by a singular undergraduate student. The show, featuring a cast of undergraduate dancers, will show for the last time Thursday, April 26, at 5:30 p.m. in Morgan Auditorium.
Originally, Kurosaka created “Carousel” last semester as a three-minute piece for Dance Alabama!. However, she made it longer to be entered in a Crimson Stage contest.
Now, “Carousel” is a continuous 47-minute show where each song leads into the next. The show consists of seven sections with the opening section resembling the prologue of a play. In each section of the show, the audience will be introduced to a different character. “Carousel” is comprised of chamber rock instrumental music with a contemporary feel to it.
Kurosaka came up with the title of her show while working in the lab.
“Last spring, I was listening to this album and I was listening to it as I was feeding fish in the biology building,” Kurosaka said. “Between doing that menial task and the political environment at the time is where the idea formed.”
The purpose of “Carousel” is to make the audience think about the way they view the world after leaving the performance, Kurosaka said. She also liked the idea of the activity of riding a carousel because it doesn’t require much mental or physical gymnastics.
“I really feel like ‘Carousel’ is supposed to jar the audience into awareness because I do feel that sometimes we get stagnant and complacent in our personal selves, as a community and as a country,” Kurosaka said.
The cast of “Carousel” has been rehearsing since January to prepare for the show. The nine dancers who are being featured are eager to take the stage and show what they’ve been working on.
“I’m honored to be able to help make Grace’s vision come to life,” said Taylor Garcia, a sophomore majoring in dance and business. “It’s been amazing to see the way that she works and I’m excited to see how everything comes together in the end.”
Elysia Cardenas, a junior majoring in dance, is one of the performers in the show.
“The show reflects issues in today’s society over social conformity, so our hope is that the audience is moved in an emotional way,” Cardenas said.
“Carousel” kicked off on Tuesday and tickets are $5 at the door.
“I’m excited to hear people’s reactions,” Kurosaka said. “I think that it really does cause a lot introspections.”
After finishing “Carousel” and graduating, Kurosaka will be working with The Yard in Martha’s Vineyard doing a technical production internship where she’ll be creating lighting design and choreographing.
