Spectrum: Dance for Camera Showings

The Department of Dance’s Fall 2020 Spectrum: Dance for Camera Showings provides a window into the artmaking process of choreographers in a time of social distancing. Trying times calls for creative measures and the dance faculty, with the students by their side, have chosen to present their creative work in the medium of Dance Film for this semester’s presentation. Leaning into technology as opposed to live theater, six dance films presented by eight dance faculty (Rasika Borse and Colette Kerwick, Joshua Manculich and Evelyn Toh Paoli, Adele Nickel, Donald C. Shorter, Jr., Andrew Noble, and Dionne Sparkman Noble) and featuring over 70 dancers, will stream one after another 8 PM on November 19, 20, and 21, 2020. “The dancers want to dance and they want to connect to their audience. We have found a safe way to ensure that this still happens, even in strange times,” says Associate Professor Dionne Noble, one of the choreographers on the bill.

A little about each dance film:

“Social Experiment” choreographed by Donald C. Shorter Jr. in collaboration with the dancers. Director of photography and editing by Donald C. Shorter Jr. with videography by the dancers. This film provides us with a deeper understanding of how younger generations are experiencing this age of unrest. The investigation of movement as it relates to location allows us to see and feel the contrast between expansion and restriction.  

“It’s been great working with my cast on this piece. I was able to rehearse and get all of their footage in a matter of 2 weeks. I wanted to ensure the piece would happen so I was thinking about ways to covid-proof it!” states Shorter.

"Fieldwork,"by choreographer Adele Nickel in collaboration with her cast of 12 dancers and videographer Heather Hardy, explores the physicality of teams of humans coming together in common purpose, as in an ecosystem, a sports team, or a medical unit. Task-driven movement is cracked open to reveal the humanity and individuality beneath conformity.

Inspiration for the dance film “Make way for the dandelion,”by Associate Professor Dionne Sparkman Noble and graduate student Sarah Vickery, is rooted in the observation that “our blue and green world is becoming greyer by the second,” (Jonathan Watts, The Guardian, 2019). The reason why? Concrete. Lots and lots of nature-resisting, high endurance, reliable concrete. With a pending global cement production of 5 billion tons a year, the dancers pose the following: Can we future plan to ensure that built environmentsdon’t over replace living landscapes? How can the growing needs of civilization merge with nature to guarantee a green tomorrow?  

Princess Grace Award Winner Joshua Manculich (Assistant Professor) and former MOMIX dancer Evelyn Toh-Paoli (Adjunct Professor) merge their creative voices in the choreographers’ first-ever collaboration: “Unearth.”This ensemble work for the camera was heavily inspired by the natural phenomena of magnetism, and it leans into the shared experience of individuals being grounded together. ​

“Round 2,”choreographed by Adjunct Professors Rasika Borse and Colette Kerwick, is thematically centered on a Rock n’ Roll concert. Originally set to premiere on stage in Spring 2020, the movement was re-worked and reimagined this semester for the camera. Coupled with high-energy music and movement alike, Round 2’scast of nine embodies fierce athleticism and grit. Hold onto your seats, folks, it’s going to be a wild ride. 

Turn on the cameras and get ready for a close up. “5G-Tango Interrupted” is a dance film by Andy Noble with graduate student Travis Lake that examines how technology and social media have become embedded in our personal narratives. Dancers perform with smart phones taped to their hands on a mirrored floor wearing sequined dresses while framing the body in stirring ways. Original music by Lake will accompany the film.   

DETAILS

Spectrum: Dance for Camera Showings
Department of Dance Faculty works for Fall 2020
Online Streaming via YouTube Live
November 19, 20, 21 @ 8pm
Performance link can be purchased through
www.shsutickets.comor by calling 936-294-2339

Images from Donald C. Shorter's new film Social Experiment

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Senior Studio presents
"Virtual but Live" event

A show without a title? Dance through a screen? The senior BFA class of 2020/2021 is delivering dance to a smart device near you on November 6th and 7th. Amidst unprecedented times, this class has created their own rules for how dance can be experienced through the first live online performance for the Sam Houston State University Department of Dance. After four years of creating and performing dance on a traditional stage, the senior class has welcomed the challenge of an online interface to create, innovate, and captivate. This show is made from a wide range of movement including gestural, pedestrian, contemporary, and ballet--featuring dancers from Texas to Canada. These works delve into relationships with time, society, and self. It truly promises something for everyone, and now, from anywhere in the world. Reveling in the spirit of their unique circumstances, the senior class has left their show untitled, inviting the audience to come without bias.

This show will feature choreographic premieres from the following eight BFA choreographers:

Coffee meets pastry, biscuit meets jam, stranger meets stranger. How do we perceive familiarity? At what point do we feel close to someone and why? Breakfast by choreographer Anna Bauer explores these questions with its portrayal of an odd relationship formed between two strangers.

Choreographed by Madeline Aldana, If You’re Reading This, You’re In a Simulation invites the audience along on a journey through an ethereal, mystical dreamscape removed from normality. When was the last time you escaped the monotony and conventionality of daily life, allowing yourself to indulge in the unbound freedom of a dream?

In Zahna Johnson's One Another, the audience is invited to explore their relationship with sonder: the realization that others’ lives are as vivid and complex as their own. Five dancers depict what it's like to walk through life seemingly by ourselves, only to discover just how much our lives are intertwined and dependent on each person we pass by.

How do we experience time passing? Is that dancer moving too fast or are the others moving too slow? Haley Funk’s new dance work is centered around humanoid creatures exploring the complexities of time and what it means to manipulate it. Into Oblivion is intricate, entangled, and full of unanticipated movement choices in regards to time and dancer relationships to one another in space.

Jason Dang’s first choreographic work, Soul Small, is a breaking / modern inspired choreographic journey through the mind and how it connects human experiences and emotions to stay awake and grounded.

What does it mean to live your life as a satisfied audience member? In Occupational Hazard, created by Tori Nunn, six dancers break down the fourth wall and blur the lines between artist and viewer until they become one.

Underscore, choreographed by Dalia Trejo, investigates the ideas of rules, expectations, and anticipation through the use of simple to complex walking patterns performed by the dancers. By starting with the basic concept of mapping in space, and finding ways to alter those maps to create moments of surprise, Trejo manages to discover what kinds of choices might be made on pure chance.

the System by Evan Warner explores the reality we as Americans have been living in for the last year. Watch along as a quartet of powerful women make art by reflecting on life. How are we supposed to navigate the everyday life of living in the System? What happens when curiosity gets the better of you? What will it take to finally see real change occur?

Presented by Senior Studio, this show is jam packed with eager curiosity and passion which can be experienced through their diverse array of styles. The same show can be attended each night via a performance link purchased at www.shsutickets.com

Don’t miss this opportunity to be a part of the first virtually live SHSU Dance concert November 6th and 7th at 8pm!

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