Southern Utah University’s Theatre, Dance, and Arts Administration Department will be holding their annual Fall Dance Concert. This year’s concert is titled “Trichromatic,” on Nov. 4, 5 and 7 at 7:30 p.m., with a matinee performance Saturday, Nov. 5, at 2 p.m. The concert will take place in the Eileen and Allen Anes Studio Theatre and is free to SUU faculty, staff and students.
The concert will feature pieces choreographed by SUU dance faculty as well as guest choreographer Michael Cusumano. The concert was artistic directed by Nick Blaylock, the current department associate chair who will be leaving SUU after the opening of the concert.
The theme for the concert was decided partway into the process when choreographers realized there was a common theme of color in their pieces.
“There’s a theory that we all see in groups of three colors,” said dance professor Danielle Lydia Sheather. “We don’t see the same thing.”
Rehearsals started at the beginning of the semester after an open casting call was released to not only dance students but the whole student body.
“Helping to build students’ confidence in the work is always the piece that sticks out to me. That you know you can do this,” said Sheather. “Rely on your training; rely on each other, supporting each other.”
As opposed to a stage musical, which often includes dance numbers, “Trichromatic” is entirely dance-driven and is an original work.
“It’s not like we’re in a theatre show or looking at a script and remounting it. We’re making new stuff,” said dance professor Alexandra Bradshaw-Yerby.
Sheather, who will be choreographing SUU’s production of “Cabaret” in the spring, feels that there is both more freedom and more risk in creating a work like “Trichromatic.”
“An audience member might go to a musical anticipating seeing something they’ve already seen from that musical,” said Sheather.
“Trichromatic” is designed to appeal to a wide audience, including those who aren’t especially knowledgeable about dance.
“What I love about this concert is it’s a wide breadth of things. It’s not all ballet dances or all one genre,” said Bradshaw-Yerby. “There’s live classical guitar, there’s jazz and tap, there’s a musical theatre medley, there’s modern. There’s sort of something for everybody to dig into.”
Article by: Tessa Cheshire
accent@suunews.net
Photos courtesy of Asher Swan
