The Miami University Dance Theatre held its spring concert in Hall Auditorium over the weekend. The company featured 24 dancers putting on a 10-piece show.
"You audition to be a part of the company, and then audition again for each piece," sophomore Kristen Bell said, publicity chair for Dance Theatre. "The company is made up of a mix of students, people who work for the university and even alumni."
According to Bell, the repertoire for each concert is decided as a group. Individuals bring their ideas to the group fleshed out enough for everyone to get a feel for what they are thinking. The group then collectively decides what they want to pursue.
The 10 pieces performed represented several different styles of dance. While most pieces were modern, there also was a tap jazz number as well as a ballet number. Keeping a very reflective and serious tone with the modern dances, one rather sentimental piece featured an adult woman dancing with her toddler-aged daughter.
Another favorite of the concert was a horror-themed modern dance to In the Hall of the Mountain King, a piece by Edvard Grieg. The dancers were truly effective in making the piece terrifying in its nature.
According to Bell, their choreography comes from a variety of sources
"We start with student choreographers once ideas have been presented," Bell said. "Then we fill in the pieces with guest choreographers. Sometimes we have alumni or professionals from New York, Chicago or California fly in for a long weekend."
Although the Dance Theatre tries to extend their venues, having performed at Valentunes and Diwali in the past, their staple performances are their spring and winter concerts. Individuals interested in auditioning for Dance Theatre can contact Lana Kay Rosenberg at rosenblk@muohio.edu.
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