dance
GOUCHER COLLEGE
a student publication of the goucher college dance department
vol. 26, no. 1 | Fall 2010
The Impact of Archibald
Shawnia T. White ‘11
doorway to observe our improvisation class
without the slightest emotion on her face.
Everyone in improvisation began to whisper
about her presence until, finally, Juliet
Forrest, the faculty director of the residency,
introduced her to the class. Immediately,
she proved to be a woman of confidence
and great insight. She lit up every room into
which she walked and commanded attention
with the smallest movements.
Archibald is a woman of very few words, but
she is a poet through dance. She pushed
everyone to new heights, and not just the
dancers in her cast, but also those in the
classes she taught throughout her week at
Goucher. She emphasized that we cannot
separate our emotional life and our dance
life because they are interconnected through
the mind, which ultimately controls the body.
One thing she strongly believes is that, as
dancers, we need to be able to place our
emotions inside our bodies where we can be
driven by them, but not disturbed or
distracted from doing other activities.
Kate Clarke, John Hoobyar, and Tara Kearney perform Chasing Shadows
Photo courtesy of Mariah Halkett
Before Jennifer Archibald arrived at Goucher
in September, she was a primary topic of
discussion in the Dance Department. Many
hopeful dancers attempted to research her
company by looking her up on YouTube and
Google, trying to decipher and prepare for
her style; however, no video or website could
prepare us for the experience we were going
to have.
I remember the moment Archibald came into
the Eisner Dance Studio. She stood in the
Over 40 hopeful students auditioned to be
part of her piece. Although only 13 people
were selected for the cast, Archibald never
denied anyone the right to watch her and her
dancers at work. Archibald’s unique dance
style and her ability to choreograph on the
spot left the inspiration behind the piece
open for interpretation. It wasn’t until almost
the end of the residency that she revealed
the meaning of the piece to the dancers.
Archibald shared that following the death of
her father, she could have sworn she saw him
numerous times walking down the streets of
New York. Any person who dressed
“The Impact of Archibald,” continued on page 2
1
To Dance in Brazil
The Impact of
Archibald
Kitty Dean ‘11
continued from page 1
similarly or had a slight resemblance
to him caught her off-guard and
made her think of him. Thus, the
piece was titled Chasing Shadows.
Each dancer was encouraged to
focus on a story or moment in
their own lives in which they were
fighting for or against a specific
force, wishing for something
unattainable, or running from or
toward someone or something. The
intimate moments in rehearsal, in
addition to Archibald’s ability to
relate her motivations for the piece
into the dancers’ personal lives,
allowed the dancers to take the
piece to a new commitment level
within them.
Goucher dancers with Capoeira instructors
Photo courtesy of Rachel Noonan
In May, 13 Goucher dancers, under the
direction of Glenna Blessing and Sara
Thomson, arrived in Brazil. For three weeks,
the students studied traditional Brazilian
dance and Capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian
martial art. They were able to sightsee, but
mostly gleaned cultural knowledge and the
experience of dancing in a different setting.
Shawnia White ’11 recalls, “The classes were
different [from Goucher] because they didn’t
focus as much on technique. It was really
nice to just get out and dance. We warmed up
and went into a combination. We were given
feedback on how we moved through the space,
our dynamics, and our connection with the
music. One thing I loved is that the majority
of the time, we started and ended class in a
circle. Beginning in a circle allowed everyone
to pass their energy around the room.”
Lydia Muhrer ‘11 enjoyed the tradition
incorporated in the dance styles. She also
spoke of the warm and inviting manner of
the Brazilian people and the integration of
art into society. “There was singing and an
abundance of symbolism for each of the
movements. There was also a lot of mixture
because of the variety of cultural influences;
there was Afro-Brazilian, Capoeira, and
Indian native dance influences. There is
also a huge connection between Brazilian
music and dance; the two are almost
interchangeable.”
“One of the nights I will always remember is
when we attended a classical music concert
on the Copacabana beach,” Megan Lynn ’11
says. “I loved sitting on the beach, watching
the waves crash almost in perfect time with
the live music. I will never forget thinking
that music, dance, and art are universal. No
matter where you are, what language you
speak, music, dance, and art connect us all as
people and make us feel at home.”
Merril Doty ’12, England, dance
Allie Rodis ’11, Costa Rica, education
WHERE ARE OUR
DANCERS THIS
SEMESTER?
2 | goucherdance
At “Meet the Artist” at the end of
the week, Archibald only disclosed
the meaning of her work to the
audience after they had seen the
entirety of the piece, allowing time
for them to contemplate what they
had witnessed. Not only did she
reveal that her work was about
something personal, emotional,
and very dear to her heart, but she
also emphasized the fact that her
movement all came from classical
training that she morphed into a
style undeniably her own.
Chasing Shadows, one of Archibald’s
many masterpieces, is an example
of how she uses a very stressful
and emotional moment in her life
as motivation for creativity and art.
Her movement has a clear fusion
of hip-hop and ballet foundations;
a perfect example of why it is
important for dancers to study
various, even opposing, styles.
Not only did Archibald push our
technical boundaries, but she also
gave us wisdom on performance,
motivation, and creativity.
Dance Outside of Goucher
Kitty Dean ‘11
(From left) John Hoobyar (fourth from left) with fellow Bates interns; Emily Riddle and Natalia Maldari in Paris; Emeri Fetzer (second from right) with Jacob’s Pillow interns
Photos courtesy of each intern
Many Goucher dancers find themselves
worrying about what they will do and persue
after graduation. A great way to make
connections, to test the waters of an area
in which you’re interested, and to get your
name out into the dance world is to apply for
a dance-related internship. Six Goucher dancers were awarded dance-related internships in
the past year.
Emily Riddle ’11 and Natalia Maldari ’11
studied in Paris, France, during the last
academic year. As part of their study-abroad
program, they were required to have an internship for part of the year; both requested a
dance company or studio. Riddle worked with
a jazz dance studio, Le Centre International
de Danse Jazz, as an office worker and aid. In
the fall semester, she worked for a few hours
each day and was allowed to take a jazz class.
In the spring, she took ballet, modern, and
jazz and worked in the office after classes.
Maldari was placed with a contemporary
company, Atelier de Paris Carolyn Carlson.
She worked in the public relations office and,
in addition to her usual office aid tasks, she
printed the calendar of events for the company and distributed them to all the theatres
in the city. She was unable to take company
classes, but found seeing the process of publicizing a company very beneficial.
Erin Quarles ’12 worked with the New York
International Ballet Competition as a summer
intern. Because 2010 is an off-year for the
competition, much of Quarles’ work involved
making press material for the 2011 competition. She served as a marketing intern and
designed an e-newsletter for which she had
to decide on the appropriate content and
format.
John Hoobyar ’11 served as the “festival
guy” for the Bates Dance Festival. He was a
proverbial “gopher” and was expected to pick
up people from the airport, move large fans
across campus, tech a few informal concerts,
usher for performances, and perform other
such tasks for the administrators of the festival. He was able to take three classes a day,
enjoyed the many performances, and had the
opportunity to meet faculty members of other
universities, administrators for dance companies, students, counselors, and participants.
Internships are a great way to network, as
well as a way to expand upon knowledge of
the dance world. Each student worked in a
different dance setting, but all gained beneficial experience for careers they hope to pursue. They witnessed the administrative paths
necessary to make a company or a school
successful, and enjoyed the perks of being an
intern by watching professional performances
and taking great classes.
Emily Rorty ’11 worked for two dance
organizations in Washington, DC, over the
summer: as intern and resident advisor for
the Kirov Ballet School and as a marketing
and public relations intern for Joy of Motion
Dance. There are three Joy of Motion studios
in the DC area, and Rorty tried to create cohesion among the three. She designed bulletin
boards and themes for each studio. She was
not paid, but was able to take classes, and
commented that the differences between the
two jobs allowed her to test the waters as
both an implementer and a creator, and that
both organizations have propelled her into
the field of dance education and outreach.
Emeri Fetzer ’10 worked at Jacob’s Pillow
Dance for the 2010 Festival season as one of
three artist-services interns. Fetzer acted as
the direct liaison for all visiting choreographers, companies, guests, scholars, students
of The School at Jacob’s Pillow, researchers,
and groups. She conducted company manager
meetings, processed contracts, and booked
travel plans for the artists, and also did innumerable miscellaneous tasks associated
with the festival—emergency costume runs,
rebuilding sets, throwing cast parties, filtering
fans of companies, tracking cargo, checking
mail, and even running to the grocery store
for lozenges when dancers had sore throats.
Chrystelle Trump Bond’s first-year
Frontiers class, War and Dancing:
Strange Bedfellows, was ranked
number three on the “Oddest College Courses in the D.C. Region”
list by The Washington Post. The
class requires students to learn
how music and dance became both
cultural metaphors for and critical
responses to the effects of war on
American soldiers and civilians
during wartime.
3
Profile: Rick Southerland
Muriel Mills ’11
Muriel Mills ’11 had the opportunity to sit
down with Rick Southerland, the newest assistant professor in the Dance Department.
Southerland has extensive experience in
dance education and teaching dance and
serves on the board of directors for the
National Dance Education Organization. At
Goucher, he teaches intermediate and
advanced modern technique, dance education,
and dance composition.
piece was conceptually based in the styles of
Gerri Houlihan, Betty Jones, and Mark Taylor,
all of whom I trained with at the American
Dance Festival.
MM: Can you tell us a little bit about your
philosophy on dance education?
RS: The classroom is not inside four walls.
The reason I teach is not only for me to give
to my students, but also for me to learn from
them. My role as an educator is to facilitate
the learning experience and the process of
thinking. As educators, we have to be okay
with tangents and moments of self-discovery.
You have to be in the day, in the moment.
MM: How did you first become involved in
dance/dance education?
RS: I went to my cousin’s first dance recital at
the end of my second-grade year, and loved
it. The next year, my mom and dad signed me
up for classes. All through middle and high
school I stayed active in the arts, like choir
and theater, but originally went to Eastern
Carolina University to study clothing design.
When taking an elective tap class, I was
persuaded by my instructor to study dance.
After I received my B.F.A. in dance, I fell into
teaching.
MM: What has been your most interesting
experience at Goucher so far?
RS: All of it! I really appreciate all the support from the faculty, the Dance Department,
and the administrators here at Goucher.
MM: What do you expect from your
students? Do you have any advice for
Goucher dancers?
MM: Do you have a favorite performance
or piece of choreography that you have
danced?
RS: My favorite is probably the piece of
choreography I created for my senior thesis
called “Indoctrination: A Design for Living.”
The music was by Dead Can Dance and the
RS: Be in the moment and embody the moment. Whether you get what is going on or
not, be present, put forth effort, and challenge yourself!
Photo courtesy of Rick Southerland
The Right Junk Shot
Georgia Speier ’11
This semester, faculty member Juliet Forrest
is choreographing a modern piece titled Junk
Shot on 14 dancers. Inspired by the massive
oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the piece is
about “the industrial attempt to make good
out of a mistake,” Forrest says. The term
“junk shot” comes from the theory that by
shooting junk (golf balls, shredded tires, etc.)
into the hole 5,000 feet deep in the ocean,
the oil leak will be plugged. Forrest says she
enjoys the irony of using garbage to stop
pollution.
“For over 20 years, I have been creating political protests through my choreography, and
I wanted to go back to that,” Forrest says,
but she does not see her piece as an angry
form of protest. In Forrest’s choreography,
the audience will see a group of industrialists
4 | goucherdance
trying different ideas to solve a problem. This
is meant to be similar to those hard at work
attempting to plug the oil valves and clean
up the spill.
Ironically, the process of creating Forrest’s
piece is similar to the idea of a “junk shot.”
Her first attempt was not working, so she
scrapped what she had and began again, and
since starting over, she feels everything is
running more smoothly. The oil spill in the
Gulf was too deep for a “junk shot” to be
effective, so an alternative plan does need to
be created. As Thomas Edison once said, “I
have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways
that won’t work.” We are representing the
ways that don’t work in Junk Shot.
Courtney Colarik in rehearsal
Photo courtesy of Fiona Cansino
Ballet on the BQE
John Hoobyar ‘11
Walking toward the Todd Dance Studio to
observe a ballet residency rehearsal, I was
surprised to hear electronic, pop-music sounds
coming from the studio. I hesitated, wondering if I were walking into the correct rehearsal;
however, as I entered the room, the dancers
were quickly cutting through space, moving
fluidly on and off pointe in time to the pop
aesthetic of composer Sufjan Stevens.
Watching the movement, the musical choice
made sense to me. Groups of dancers were
performing phrases of small, nuanced,
nontraditional movements while in pointe
shoes. I never saw a fifth position, though it
was evident that the movement was drawing
on a modified classical vocabulary (with the
occasional pirouette from fourth), as well as
on pedestrian movements of a busy city street.
Sections of walking in parallel as one does
outside of the studio were juxtaposed with
the tombé pas de bourrée, and the expression
seemed to be nothing more than “I need to
get somewhere, so I’m going to walk there.”
This is the ballet of guest artist-in-residence
Brian Reeder—a postmodern approach in
which he plays with ideas of how the life pro-
cess intersects with the art process. This piece
in particular deals with the sights, sounds, and
movements of the Brooklyn Queens Expressway
(BQE) in New York City. Stevens’ score is also
inspired by the BQE, thus, the movement and
the music work well together.
Even in rehearsal, it was evident how Reeder’s
background informs his movement choices. A
student of the School of American Ballet and a
former Forsythe dancer, he has a classical base
to his vocabulary, yet he takes an innovative
approach to discovering what can be expressed with the medium of ballet.
(Counterclockwise from top) Reeder and his cast answer questions at Meet the Artist; Zoe Thomas, Courtney Colarik, and Sophie Kurek in rehearsal; the cast in rehearsal
All photos courtesy of Lily Esposito
5
Gargouillades on the Gridiron
Megan Lynn ‘11
Every weekend during football season,
Americans are glued to the television rooting
for their favorite college and professional
teams. For some, this activity is a pastime,
for others, a religion; somehow, everything
comes to a standstill when a football game
is on. For Goucher dance alumna and faculty
member Karissa Horowicz, watching football
serves not only as a pastime, but also as
a choreographic inspiration. “My oldest
son started playing football this summer,”
she says. “Sitting through endless hours of
practice, I began to notice many similarities
between ballet and football.” Her audition
phrase and original choreographic ideas
began very literally—the movements were
obviously inspired by football.
As rehearsals continued, her choreography
became much more abstracted and balletic.
You don’t see too many football players
performing arabesques and gargouillades to
Bach’s Concerto #1 in D minor, do you? If
you look closely enough, you will still see a
coin toss, referee signals, catching, blocking,
and even a huddle amongst the high jumps,
multiple turns, and beautiful lines of the 11
dancers in her work.
“Ballet and football both require a great deal
of strength, stamina, agility, and grace. Both
are carefully choreographed,” Horowicz
told her dancers, “I don’t want this piece to
be just about football. I want to show off
the athleticism and physicality of the ballet
dancer.” Her choreography will be presented
at the Goucher Repertory Dance Ensemble
Concert in November.
(Clockwise from left) Lizzy Purcell in rehearsal; Horowicz demonstrating for her cast; Megan Lynn, Courtney Colarik, and Emily Riddle in rehearsal
All photos courtesy of Victoria Simons
6 | goucherdance
An Unkindness of Ravens
Courtney Colarik ‘11
Poe is consumed by alcoholism
Photo courtesy of Lily Esposito
On a Saturday evening in early October, an
unkindness settled on Goucher’s campus.
No, it was not the arrival of parents and
siblings for Family Weekend, but, rather,
the performance of a group of ravens (also
known as an unkindness) in Faculty Member
Christopher Fleming’s ballet, The Myth and
the Madness of Edgar Allan Poe.
It was an experiment of sorts, with professionals from Fleming’s new company, BalletFleming, dancing the principal roles while the
corps de ballet comprises Goucher students.
This mixing of students and professionals
is something new for the department, but it
afforded some of us a glimpse into what will
hopefully be our future. It was beneficial to
observe how professional dancers interact
with each other and with the choreographer,
and, for the Goucher dancers, it was interesting to see Fleming wear the hat of choreographer instead of teacher.
The ballet was originally commissioned for
the Dayton Ballet, and Fleming has adapted
it for both Goucher and Verb Ballets in
Cleveland, Ohio. He began his process by
studying Poe and trying to draw out underlying themes in his life in order to create an
understandable visual narrative, since “ballet
is a non-verbal art form.” Through the course
of his research, Fleming found that the raven
was an important symbol for Poe. Thus,
Fleming decided to create the role of a head
raven to command the corps de ballet of
ravens. She, with the help of her corps, antagonizes Poe throughout the ballet—“They
won’t allow him to have love,” says Fleming.
Next, Fleming drew out four significant figures from Poe’s life who became the principal
characters: his mother, his adoptive father
John Allan, his wife, and his love of literature.
An interesting feature of Poe’s work is
that he used important people in his life as
inspiration for his short stories and poems;
for example, “The Pit and the Pendulum”
(mother) and “The Telltale Heart” (John Allan)
are two short stories that have clear links
to his personal relationships. Fleming was
able to use these stories as inspiration for
the pas de deuxs that occur through the first
act between each of the characters and Poe;
during these, the ravens are the underlying
current that drives apart the two characters
in each scene.
“An Unkindness of Ravens,” continued on back
7
Once It’s Over,
You’ll Know It
Started
The New Schon Dancer Wellness Center
Megan Lynn ‘11
Marah Wilson ‘12
Guest Artist Leslie Seiters joined the
Goucher dance community during
early arrival week in August, and
brought a warm presence, but also a
demand for her dancers to explore
the release and natural impulse of
their bodies in motion and space.
Such exploration was a completely
new experience for many Goucher
dancers.
Seiters’ choreographic process was
rooted in collaboration, as the
majority of movement was
generated through the dancers’ own
engagement. Seiters was present to
experience our own approaches. As
a communal encounter, all 16
dancers not only came upon their
own movement sequencing, but the
group also experimented frequently
with trying each other’s movements.
We were asked to explore what
Seiters called “big deal” and “no big
deal” movement. This experiment
questioned movement dynamics
and the use of weight. This contrast
allowed the individual to take a
gesture and show it off or choose
simply to portray its function.
Amidst dialogue with Rehearsal
Director Michael Thomas, we shared
our ideas of Seiters’ ability to leave
room for the dancers to move
genuinely and without judgment.
Each of us was given the
opportunity to explore personal
impetus in our bodies and in the
communal space Seiters provided.
Seiters spoke of our presence on
stage, expressing that we were to
“invite people to watch us.”
My time with Seiters was more than
just a formal encounter as
“dancer”—it was a human
experience as well. Seiters used her
dancers to shape and create, and
through collaboration, we all found
our own influence within her work.
The work and the movement are
now present for the audience
members to explore and interpret
for themselves.
8 | goucherdance
Chrystelle Bond watches at Dr. Schon cuts the ribbon with his scalpel.
Photo courtesy of Todd Mion
Do you know any doctors with over
180-degree turnout and a very deep demi
plié? Dr. Lew Schon, the chief foot and ankle
orthopedic surgeon at Union Memorial
Hospital, always impresses the dancers in
the anatomy and kinesiology course with
his flexibility when he comes to Goucher. He
has played an integral role in this course for
a number of years, assisting in the anatomy
screenings of the students in the class.
Once each semester, Dr. Schon and his
colleagues spend all morning at Goucher
watching the dancers perform pliés, relevés,
soutés, developpés, and arabesques. They
assess for misalignments and weaknesses,
particularly in the foot and ankle, but also in
the hip and torso. At the end of screenings,
Dr. Schon has his colleagues attempt to do all
the steps the dancers had to perform in order
to understand how much training dancing
requires.
This semester, the Goucher Dance
Department honored Dr. Schon by naming
the new dance wellness center after him.
The Schon Dancer Wellness Center officially
opened on September 19. Dr. Schon had the
privilege of cutting the ribbon with his own
scalpel.
Thanks to Shawnia White ’11, Sara Thomson,
and Elizabeth Ahearn, the wellness center
was moved from the back of the ladies’
locker room to a better suited, and much
larger, facility for dancers. The wellness
center is now a spot for students to hang out
between classes. There is a table for meetings
and a couch for relaxing and napping. There
are physioballs, Yamuna body rolling balls,
foam rollers, resistabands, and many other
devices at the dancers’ disposal to aid in
fixing misalignments and strengthening
weaknesses.
The wellness center hours are posted in the
Dance Department, so be sure to stop by to
see the new location and use the equipment.
Inspired by Wheels
Ashley Evans ‘11
On Sunday, October 24, two dozen students
gathered in the Todd Dance Studio to learn
how to dance using a wheelchair. The workshop was led by Kitty Lunn, artistic director of
Infinity Dance Theater. Lunn, who has studied
dance her entire life, became a paraplegic after
a terrible fall that resulted in a broken back.
Unwilling to let her wheelchair inhibit her
dancing, Lunn founded Infinity Dance Theater
in 1995. The company features dancers with
and without disabilities.
Kitty Lunn performs In Time Like Air.
Photo courtesy of Ashley Evans
During the workshop, Lunn shared with
students the wheelchair dance technique that
she has developed out of her strong ballet
and modern dance background. Students
took turns sitting in the wheelchairs as they
participated in a traditional ballet barre, a
ballet center combination, a modern exercise
based in Horton technique, and a partnering
exercise. Lunn demonstrated how to transpose
each movement from standing to a wheelchair. Where a standing phrase may consist
of focusing on the movement of the feet, a
wheelchair phrase emphasizes the use of the
torso, arms, and breath in order to match the
quality of the movement. In partner work,
Lunn demonstrated how a couple consisting of
a standing dancer and a wheelchair dancer can
use pulling and turning to create floor patterns
and gestures just as beautiful to watch as if all
of the dancers had been standing and leaping
across the floor.
Lunn also gave observers a little taste of what
performing in a wheelchair is like by showing her piece, In Time Like Air, in which she
intelligently manipulated the chair. By hanging
from it, lying across it, and sliding underneath
it, the chair became more than a simple tool
for transportation. Lunn beautifully portrayed
how smoothly and gracefully dancing can be
transposed to a wheelchair. The amount of joy
on Lunn’s face showed how grateful she was
to share her dance with others. Her workshop
reminded dancers that it isn’t always about
your feet, but what’s in your heart; anyone
with the passion to dance should do so.
Senior Independent Projects: Dancing Away From the Stage
Lizbie Harbison ‘11
When audience members come to a dance
performance, they arrive with the expectation of sitting in an auditorium with a stage in
front of them and witnessing dancers perform
movement upon that stage. After they shut
off their cell phones and settle comfortably
into their seats, the audience usually only has
to sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.
This, however, will not be the case for two of
the Dance Department’s senior independent
projects—Megan Lynn, Georgia Speier, and
Shawnia White have discovered innovative
ways to portray their individual movement
concepts while not using the typical stage space.
Lynn’s piece is inspired by Crockett Johnson’s Harold and the Purple Crayon. Using
the impetus of creating your own story on a
blank canvas, she has moved from outside
of the traditional dance studio and throughout the Sports & Recreation Center (SRC)
to develop a movement installation. When
asked why she chose to steer away from the
common method of showing choreographic
work, Lynn shared how she was inspired
by the three-week intensive course abroad
she spent in Brazil last May. “I have always
loved watching dances in unusual performance spaces and Brazil was no exception,”
she says. “I realized that the SRC is perfect
for a movement installation. It never really
occurred to me how many interesting sites
there are to explore that I pass on a daily basis.”
While Lynn is choreographing stories, Georgia Speier and Shawnia White have gone to
the zoo! Inspired by zoo animals, Speier and
White are collaborating with Goucher
dancers and students from the Dallas Nicholas
Elementary School in Baltimore City. Read
a Story, Dance a Story utilizes abstracted
movement from animals. Instead of theatrically acting like a lion on stage, the choreographers have created fierce movement,
which reflects a lion’s behavior. When asked
what prompted them to work with children,
they said, “We think arts integration is important in the education of today’s youth. Dance
is not only a great outlet for creativity, but
also improves a child’s way of thinking and
problem solving in academic classes.”
Megan Lynn’s work will be shown the weekend of December 10 and Georgia Speier and
Shawnia White’s project will be showcased
at the Dallas Nicholas Elementary school
in Baltimore City in the early months of the
spring semester and again in the matinee
performance in the Spring Dance Concert in
April 2011.
Clockwise: Megan Lynn; Shawnia White; Georgia Speier
9
Dance Department
Calendar of Events
December 2010–
April 2011
Fall 2010
Friday, December 10
Megan Lynn’s Senior Independent Concert/
Installation
Todd Dance Studio, 6 and 8 p.m. Free admission.
Friday–Tuesday, December 10–14
Orchesis-Sponsored Finals Week Master
Class Series
Spring 2011
January 2011
Intensive Course Abroad in Ghana, West Africa
Friday–Sunday, February 4–13
Zippora Karz, Ballet Guest Artist in Residence
Sunday, February 6
Lecture and Book Signing by Zippora Karz
Hyman Forum, Athenaeum, 3 p.m.
Friday, February 11
Meet the Artist with Zippora Karz
Todd Dance Studio, 6 p.m.
Friday–Sunday, February 18–27
Constance Dinapoli, Modern Guest Artist in
Residence
Friday, February 25
Meet the Artist with Constance Dinapoli
Todd Dance Studio, 6 p.m.
Friday and Saturday, April 1 and 2
Ashley Evans’ Senior Thesis Presentation
Todd Dance Studio, 7 p.m.
Friday and Saturday, April 15 and 16
Goucher Repertory Dance Ensemble Concert
Kraushaar Auditorium, 7:30 p.m.
Friday, April 29, 7:30 p.m., and Saturday,
April 30, 3 and 7:30 p.m.
Todd 361 Series and Chorégraphie Antique
Todd Dance Studio
Alumnae/i News
2010
Emily Adams moved to New York City
directly after graduation to complete the
Pilates certification program at True Pilates
New York. The Pilates Center at Goucher
offers a scholarship for certification, and,
as the recipient, Adams must complete a
two-year contract as a Pilates instructor at
Goucher following her certification. Adams
is also the receptionist at True Pilates East
and loves working there. She feels so fortunate to have been given this amazing gift,
as she is able to immerse herself in Pilates
in one of the best studios in the world.
After graduation, Elyse Morris did a project
in Montreal called Springboard Danse
Montreal. She worked on two pieces while
there: one with choreographer Sylvain
Emard, the other, a dance/theater project
with Italian director Arianna Bardesono and
Canadian choreographer Alanna Kraaijeveld. The project became a three-week
residency in New York City and culminated
in five performances at the Stella Adler
Studio of acting in July. In August, Morris
joined the Seán Curran Company and is
also working with Kyle Abraham/Abraham.
In.Motion. Her professional debut was on
October 2 at Colby College in Maine with
Kyle Abraham/A.I.M. in an evening-length
work called The Radio Show, and she
embarked on her first tour with Seán Curran
in late October in Indianapolis at the
University of Notre Dame. Morris resides in
Brooklyn, NY, and works part time at the
Juilliard Store while interning twice a week
with the folk arts department, Regrant
Program, and development department at
the Brooklyn Arts Council where she assists
with administration, event planning, and
community outreach. She is honored to
work with such great people at this point in
her life and is excited for the future.
After recovering from back surgery, Sarah
Nagle recently relocated to New York City
and was offered a place in a scholarship
program with Jennifer Muller/The Works
with fellow alum Ashley Turenchalk. They
take company class every day and work
in the office as part of the program. Nagle
is also an arts administration intern with
KEIGWIN+COMPANY. She plans to audition
for more companies and dance projects in
the future.
Upon graduation, Kellene Rottenberger
moved back home to Long Island, New
York. Aside from schooling local housewives at Zumba, she is interning with
Parsons Dance in Times Square. As an arts
administration intern, Rottenberger han-
10 | goucherdance
dles the office tasks of the company, but
also has the privilege to meet the dancers,
watch rehearsals, and schmooze with the
big cheese. Apart from the amount of time
she spends at Parsons Dance, she is also
seeking employment, and is planning to
start auditioning as soon as possible.
Adriana Saldana didn’t wander far from
Goucher. She is living in downtown Baltimore, and is working for a physical therapy
group. Artistically, she is dancing with The
Collective in Baltimore and Jane Franklin
Dance in Arlington, Virginia. Saldana is also
working toward a yoga teacher certification at Lifeline Power Yoga in Towson.
Alyssa Santos has recently begun teaching at the Moving Company Dance Center
in Cockeysville, MD. She teaches tap,
and is assisting with three different ballet
classes with students ranging from ages
three to twelve. She will become their fulltime teacher in January. She loves teaching
others and sharing with them, especially at
such a young age, her passion for dance.
In June 2010, Ashley Turenchalk started
rehearsing with Roger C. Jeffrey and seven
other dancers. The first week of July, the
cast headed to Jacob’s Pillow to perform
Jeffrey’s piece, Lealtad nos Libera (Loyalty
is Freedom) on the Inside/Out stage. Then,
Turenchalk returned to Goucher as a camp
counselor for the Summer Arts Institute.
Currently, she is trying to make the big
move to New York City and has been offered a place in Jennifer Muller’s Scholarship/Apprentice program with fellow alum
Sarah Nagle. The program allows them to
take company class 4-5 days a week for
two hours. In addition, Turenchalk is assisting and dancing with Roger C. Jeffrey.
2009
Angelica Daniele is working for Morton
Street Dance Center in Baltimore, dancing
for Full Circle Dance Company and Deep
Vision Dance Company, is on the board
for the Maryland Council for Dance, is a
member of DanceUSA’s Emerging Leaders
Task Force, and is in her second year of
graduate school at Goucher completing
a Master’s of Arts in Arts Administration.
Her thesis, Performance: The Collective
and Introspective, is in the process of being
published and will be out on the market by
the end of the season.
Marilyn Mullen is living in Baltimore and
dancing with the Effervescent Collective
(which just won City Paper’s Best Dance
Company of Baltimore Award), as well as the
Collective Dance Company. She is a firstgrade teaching assistant at City Neighbors
Hamilton, a new charter school in Baltimore
City, and loves working at the school because
of the focus on arts integration and projectbased learning. During the summer, Mullen
directed a morning program for children in
New York. Allie Rodis ’11 and Mullen are also
collaborating on a Kids to Kids Choreography
project that Mullen created while studying in
West Africa and Rodis is now organizing while
she is abroad in Costa Rica. Kids to Kids Choreography is a dance cross-cultural exchange
project that asks kids “What do you learn
when you learn from movement?” Mullen is
thrilled that Rodis is continuing the project.
Kymbrely Piper recently moved into an
apartment in Pikesville, MD, with two good
friends. During the day, she serves as a
substitute teacher for Carroll County Public
Schools in mostly elementary and high school
classrooms. Piper was hired as the choreographer for one of the local high school’s fall
musical production of Footloose, performed
in mid-November. For the past six years, Piper
has been teaching ballet, modern, and jazz
dance classes at a studio in Finksburg, MD,
to students ranging from ages three to 15.
This studio fostered her love of dance, and
teaching in the environment has proved to be
a unique and rewarding experience.
After graduating from Goucher College with
a B.A. in biology, Becky Seigel was accepted
to Ohio State Medical School. She deferred
acceptance for a year in order to pursue her
interest in Bikram yoga, a means of crosstraining that she began to practice as a
sophomore at Goucher. She is currently completing a nine-week teacher training program
in San Diego, CA. After becoming a certified
instructor, Seigel will live in Baltimore and
teach full time at Bikram Yoga Baltimore. She
hopes to enroll in medical school within the
next few years.
Ariella Singer is currently living in Philadelphia, PA, and has been dancing with Vada
Dance Collective. The company performed
twice earlier in the year and in the Philly
Fringe Festival. In Philadelphia, Singer has
been volunteering as a doula, a labor coach,
and has decided to become a nurse-midwife.
In January, she will begin nursing school at
Duke University.
Last season, Annalise Woller was a principal
with Boulder Ballet but had to work several
other jobs (teaching, tutoring math, etc.) in
order to earn enough to live off. Recently,
Woller was offered a contract dancing as a
company member with Dayton Ballet. She
is very excited to focus primarily on dancing
this year.
2005
Now dancing with Robert Moses’ Kin, which
is based in San Francisco, Caitlin Kolb was
featured in two separate reviews in The San
Francisco Bay Guardian during the company’s
past season.
2002
2008
Alisa Pravdo is working as a physical therapy
technician in Baltimore and began pursuing
her doctorate degree in physical therapy in
June 2009.
Jenna Simon lives in Brooklyn, NY. She is
dancing as a soloist with DeMa Dance Company, and is also dancing for Israeli choreographer Lior Shneior and for Goucher alum Emma
Batman ’08. Simon teaches ballet at Logrea
Dance Academy in Westchester, NY, and takes
classes in the city whenever she can.
For the past two years, Whitney Rickards
has been working administratively for Janice
Garrett in San Francisco, CA. Rickards and
Garrett are currently in the midst of reshaping her former company, Janice Garrett
& Dancers, into a new performing arts entity
to include her fellow choreographer Charles
Moulton: Garrett+Moulton Productions.
Rickards performed in Garrett and Moulton’s
evening length work The Illustrated Book of
Invisible Stories in April 2009 and January
2010, and is looking forward to their next
piece, The Experience of Flight in Dreams,
slated to premiere next summer. She also has
a job in a coffeehouse, working a lot so she
can dance a little.
Asya Zlatina is in her third season with
Koresh Dance Company. She lives in Philadelphia and is traveling a lot around the U.S.
and internationally with the company. Koresh
performs two home shows a season at their
theater, The Suzanne Roberts Theatre on Phildelphia’s Avenue of the Arts. Zlatina finds the
community wonderful, and loves the work
she is doing.
2007
Currently, Kat Ritcher is a graduate student
at Roehampton University in London. Richter
wrote several reviews covering Resolution!
2009 at the Dance Place as well as several other dance performances in London
including Out of Hand, the Melanda Dance
Company, Big Beef Dance Theatre, Club Fisk,
Elsabetta d’Aloia, and Fish in a Bowl Dance
Company.
Becky Radway Dance Projects presented an
evening of original work titled And They Built
a Crooked House in December 2009 at the
Connelly Theatre in New York City. In August
2010, they returned to Goucher College for a
special performance.
2001
Hannah Kosstrin recently received the
Selma Jeanne Cohen Award for a paper she
submitted to the Society of Dance History
Scholars conference. She is also completing
her Ph.D. in dance at Ohio State University.
1996
Francesca Jandasek has been dancing with
various companies such as CityDance Ensemble, BosmaDance, Dakshina Dance Company,
and Tango Mercurio. She was commissioned
by the Kennedy Center to choreograph work
for the Millennium Stage performance in
April 2009. Francesca also performed an
evening of contemporary work titled BARE at
Baltimore’s Theatre Project in August 2008,
and performed with Dakshina Dance Company in Baltimore in November 2009.
Caroline Copeland is now a principal dancer
for the New York Baroque Dance Company
and has performed all over the United States
and Europe. She was given a rave review in
the December 2006 issue of Dance Magazine
for her work with the NYBDC.
1992
Amy Marshall Dance Company (AMDC)
performed A Klezmer Nutcracker and Other
Stories in December 2008 at Westchester
Community College, NY.
11
An Unkindness of Ravens
continued from page 7
dance
GOUCHER COLLEGE
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Faculty Advisor: Juliet Forrest
Editor in Chief:
Contributors:Courtney Colarik
Ashley Evans
Lizbie Harbison
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Muriel Mills
Georgia Speier
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The ballet is abstract enough that an audience member seeing it for the first time will
understand the emotion, though possibly
not all the literary references. In the end,
ballets exist to tell a story and to convey
an emotion, and Fleming succeeds in this
with his exploration and abstract retelling
of Poe’s life.
Photographers:
GOUCHER COLLEGE
rest of his victims. Fleming uses this story to
unfold the second act of the ballet.
dance
Photo courtesy of Victoria Simons
When restaging the ballet, Fleming decided
to add another principal dancer—the character of Death. His inspiration for this character
from another one of Poe’s stories, “The Mask
of the Red Death.” In the story, people are
frightened by the possibility of dying from
consumption (today known as tuberculosis),
and so the rich members of society shut
themselves away in their houses. When the
plague passes, they hold a ball in celebration.
However, in a macabre twist of fate, the last
guest to arrive is Death, who then claims the
Kitty Dean