BY GABY BARBER ‘23
The dance department presented the Fall Faculty Dance Concert Nov. 14-16 in the studio theater of Kendall Sports and Dance Complex. The performance featured works by Five College Lecturer in Dance Shakia Johnson, Visiting Artist in Dance Katie Martin and Assistant Professor of Dance Barbie Diewald.
Starting off the concert was Johnson’s piece, “Win in Doubt.” The piece began with the performers dancing to inspiring statements, voiced by the dancers.
The piece picked up with more upbeat songs and kept the power of the beginning throughout. Through floor-work and changing formations, Johnson made sure the dancers were able to use the entirety of the stage. Overall, the choreography was powerful, dynamic and fun to watch.
Next came Martin’s piece, a contemporary number called “Turns and Variations.” Martin utilized lifts in a way that added to her piece rather than detracted. The brightly colored costumes the dancers wore were complemented by bright lighting across the stage.
The dance featured moments in which each dancer did something different, which was slightly hard to watch. It’s excusable for this piece, but only because the dancers repeated the section where everyone did something different several times, so the audience could switch their focus each time. Martin balanced out the sections of intense movement with purposeful still moments.
After a short intermission was Diewald’s piece, titled “Eight Ways In.” It was danced to a composition by Jazer Giles and spoken text by the dancers. This piece stood out from the others, mainly because of its combination of dance, speech and singing. It presented a powerful story that provided the audience with a space to wonder, ask questions and reflect.
Alongside fluid movement, changing formations and choreography were questions such as: “Do you have anything left?”
The dance also labeled the audience as the “enemy,” told the story of traveling to a funeral and narrated the movement of the dancers. It was a powerful, if unorthodox, combination of dance and voice. The piece was set against a black curtain with gentle lighting. This provided an intimate feeling, appropriate for the vulnerable nature of the dance. I felt moved at the end of this dance and it really made me reflect. I was left wondering what would happen if I lost what is most important to me.
The performance ended with a re-staging of “One,” choreographed by Uri Sands, the artistic director of TU Dance. It began with a lone dancer on the stage, Olivia Lowe ’21, whose movements were clean, graceful and expressive. I was impressed by her musicality and the way she made each movement flow into the next. As the piece progressed, Lowe was joined by more dancers.
“‘One’ is inspired by the story of Henrietta Lacks, the unwitting source for human cells used in medical research,” Mount Holyoke Professor of Dance and Rehearsal Director Rose Flachs said. “It is a work that honors her life, her family, and her legacy.”
According to the Huffington Post, Lacks was a black woman who underwent treatment for cervical cancer at John Hopkins Hospital in 1951. Doctors collected some of her cells for research, finding later they did not die like the cells of other patients and used them to “successfully grow the first line of immortal cells.”
Lacks and her family were not aware her cells had been taken and used and have not yet been compensated.
I was reminded of Lacks’ story throughout the dance, mainly by the multiplication of dancers throughout the piece. The dancers kept growing in numbers out of Lowe’s control, much like Lacks’ cells. The choreography was powerful and truly Lack’s story brought to life. Beyond that, it showed the power of dance as a medium for reaching into other disciplines, like biology. The performers worked together to deliver a beautiful dance, supported in equal parts by their strong technique and fluid movements.
Overall, the Fall Faculty Dance Concert was successful, every piece imbued with meaning. This provided the audience a space for reflection and an appreciation of the significance of every movement. The choreography was dynamic and powerful and the dancers showcased excellent technique and musicality.