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Working from the Inside: Susan Jaffe visits GoucherEve Holmes ‘13

American ballerina Susan Jaffe, former principal dancer with American Ballet Theater (ABT), came to Goucher College in February as guest artist in residence. Throughout her stay, Jaffe taught ballet and pointe classes and set an original piece of choreography on seven Goucher dancers, performed in the Repertory Dance Ensemble Spring Concert in April.

A native of Bethesda, Maryland, Jaffe trained under the tutelage of Hortensia Fonseca, founder of the Maryland Youth Ballet school and also teacher of ABT ballerina Julie Kent. At 16 years old, Jaffe joined ABT II and two years later, the corps de ballet of ABT. She was hailed as “Baryshnikov’s prodigy,” and it was none other than he who, as ABT artistic

director, selected Jaffe to perform with Bolshoi Ballet star Alexander Godunov when she was just 18 years old. Jaffe danced with ABT for 22 years, gracing stages nationally and internationally until her retirement in 2002.

As for life beyond her remarkable performing career, Jaffe admits that she has ended up doing the three things she promised she’d never do after retirement: teaching, choreographing, and, as she puts it, “returning as the queen.” In fact, Jaffe co-founded the Princeton Dance and Theatre Studio in Princeton, New Jersey in 2003, has choreographed for the school, for universities, and for companies (including ABT) across the country, and has appeared with various companies in character

roles. Jaffe is presently a ballet master of ABT, where she teaches, coaches, and choreographs.

When asked about her approach to teaching ballet, Jaffe describes what she does in the studio as “empowering people,” and surely after her stay, the dancers of Goucher College would not disagree. A master of both the execution and the teaching of ballet technique, her emphases in classes were alignment and the concept of the dancers working “from the inside.” Undoubtedly one of the most moving moments of her stay was when she spoke of the state of deep concentration and body awareness she used to achieve as a dancer—she believes that her

Susan Jaffe continued on p. 3

(Left) Susan Jaffe at Meet the Artist. (Right) The cast of Jaffe’s work performing at Meet the Artist. Photos courtesy of Fiona Cansino.

G O U C H E R C O L L E G E

a student publication of the goucher college dance department VOL. 27, NO. 2 | SPRING 2012

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Representing Goucher at ACDFAEllen Bast ‘14

(Top) Goucher dancers and faculty at the Gala. Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Ahearn (Right) The cast of Threading the Thought in dress rehearsal. Photo courtesy of Ellen Bast

Little warrants a college student getting out of bed before the crack of dawn. But for 23 members of the Goucher Dance Department the American College Dance Festival’s Mid-Atlantic Conference—held this year at James Madison University from February 29 to March 3—was the exception to the rule. Accompanied by faculty members Elizabeth Ahearn, also vice president of regional planning for the conference, Karissa Horowicz, and Todd Mion, students on the trip had an enjoyable, if exhausting, long weekend filled with dance, performances, lectures, group bonding, and networking.

The many performances over the course of the conference were kicked off with an entertaining and quirky concert by the Monica Bill Barnes Company. Though a pesky fire alarm interrupted the second work on the program, everyone enjoyed the choreography. Barnes stayed throughout the course of the conference, teaching classes and serving as one of the three adjudicators for the formal concerts. The other two adjudicators were Douglas Nielsen, formerly of Batsheva Dance Company, and Nicole Stanton, chair of Wesleyan University’s Dance Department.

Goucher students presented three choreographic works. Senior Ellie Jones’ “With Eyes Closed I Put My Hand in Yours,” an excerpt from her independent study in choreography, opened the first adjudicated concert on March 1. A duet between Zoe Black ‘15 and Hugh Geller ‘14, was well-received by

both the audience and the adjudicators, who appreciated the clarity of the choreography, as well as its ending. At the informal, non-adjudicated concert held Saturday morning, the cast of senior Kelsey Hobbs’ “Many a Choice” performed as well. “Threading the Thought,” choreographed by guest artist Amy

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Representing Goucher at ACDFAEllen Bast ‘14

Seiwert, was also performed in the first concert. A contemporary ballet piece, the pointe work awed the adjudicators, who described the work as a whole as “flawless” and “exquisite.” Such well-deserved praise landed the cast the opportunity to perform in the final Gala Concert as well, and the work is now first alternate to perform at the National College Dance Festival at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts this May.

In addition to the numerous opportunities to perform, watch other schools perform, and listen to feedback about the choreography, students got to take a wide variety of technique classes outside the genres offered at Goucher. Flamenco, Western Chinese Folk Dance, Stage Combat, Japanese Butoh, Tap, and, possibly the most popular, Old-School Hip Hop, allowed Goucher dancers to expand their horizons and transcend some kinesthetic boundaries.

It was also interesting to meet professionals in the dance “real world” with ties to Goucher: Susan Woodward, who taught the Flamenco class, told about how she used to teach Goucher’s Labanotation class. Andrea Woods, formerly of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company and currently on faculty at Duke, was a guest artist at Goucher. Dinah Gray, a Goucher alumna, taught ballet classes at the conference. At one point, while a student was waiting in line wearing a Goucher jacket, a woman approached and introduced herself as Leah Glenn, a Goucher graduate who is now a dance professor at the College of William and Mary. Needless to say, students found Goucher’s influence and reputation in the dance world are prominent.

In addition to the performances and technique classes, conference participants had the opportunity to give academic dance lectures as well. Merril Doty, currently completing her senior thesis in dance history, gave an engaging presentation on the intersection of phenomenology and the dance works of Doris Humphrey. (Look for Doty’s article “Our Phenomenal Past: Dance History and Phenomenology” for more insight into her thesis.)

All in all, Goucher’s trip was time well spent for everyone who attended. The diversity of class offerings, combined with performances and lectures, gave numerous opportunities beyond what is offered during the school year at Goucher; everyone enjoyed him/herself and benefited greatly from the experience…even if they did have to get out of bed early.

Goucher Dance in the CommunityLaura Brown ’12

Every year in the Goucher Dance Department, Linda Garofalo teaches and acts as director to the Moving Classroom Outreach Program. The class is a two-semester endeavor: During the first semester, students write their own show and go through all the logistics of production; during the second, they perform in elementary schools throughout Baltimore.

Garofalo started the dance outreach class seven years ago. The impetus for its creation came from working as a dance teacher in inner city schools, specifically with the ARTinED program through the Maryland State Arts Council. She also wanted to serve as “an advocate for the importance of dance in the academic classroom.”

This year’s project is called My Community Library, and the whole show is based in a library that can be related to the ones seen in any of the students’ lives. The piece introduces English education themes such as poetry, nonfiction, and fiction, as well as figurative language concepts such as onomatopoeia, while the Goucher students look through the books in the

library. During the show, the Goucher students get to jump into the library books—and sometimes the characters in the book even pop out at them!

To go above and beyond what the class has done in the past, this year its students teamed up with the Dance-a-Story after-school program and Chalkboard, Goucher’s education club, for a book drive. The groups asked for donations of books from the Goucher community by placing boxes around campus and even emailing alumnae/i. While the original plan was a yearlong endeavor, the group reached and exceeded their goal of 1,000 books by the end of the fall semester.

The books will go to the elementary students who get to experience this year’s dance outreach show. Once they have seen My Community Library, all of them are rewarded with a book to call their own. After the Goucher students travel to each school to put on their show, the experience continues when the elementary school students get to take a field trip to watch Goucher’s Repertory Dance Ensemble Concert. The well-rounded show completes their dance experience.

Working from the InsideContinued from cover

freedom as a performing artist was born of the hard work she put into her classes and rehearsals and desires that her students find and utilize that same concentration. If having Susan Jaffe, one of ballet’s greatest, stand before you and tell you without shame how hard she worked as a dancer is not inspiring, then what is?

Jaffe spent the evenings of her stay setting a ballet of three movements on Goucher dancers. With a tango-like aura,

the ballet begins with angular, staccato movements that become more soft and fluid as the piece progresses. The music, sophisticated yet fun, features a driving beat that compliments Jaffe’s dynamic and challenging choreography. The steps, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, yet always requiring the utmost technical precision of the dancers, are a reflection of the very things for which the great ballerina Susan Jaffe is celebrated.

(L to R) Outreach students in costume. Courtesy of Linda Garofalo Faculty member Linda Garofalo enjoying the Outreach book drive. Courtesy of Laura Brown Outreach students, from left Ashley Slade ’12, Nadiera Young ’12, Ellie Jones ’12, Stephanie Walker ’12, Carly Callahan ’14, Elizabeth Purcell ’12. Photo courtesy

of Linda Garofalo

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Q&A with British Foreign Exchange Students

Charlie Ford and Bryony Cooper, British exchange students from Middlesex University, a small school located in London, are studying abroad at Goucher College this semester in the Dance Department. Shanley Codd ’15 recently had the opportunity to speak with them after they finished an exhausting, five-hour residency rehearsal with modern choreographer Rodger Belman.

How is the residency with Rodger Belman?

BC: It’s amazing; I love everything about his style and movement. His movement is like a released breathy movement and it is very line based. He is also very structured, but in a good way!

CF: I think it is going to turn out to be an incredible piece. He is very specific with his choreography, but gives really great feedback.

How does dance figure into your future plans?

BC: I want to be a performer for a professional modern company, but I also want to do a little of everything else, such as teaching and choreographing, at a level such as this institution.

CF: I want to be a choreographer and run my own company, but interlace it with visual arts. I would also be interested in teaching.

How do you like the academics at Goucher?

BC: I take a lot more classes here compared to Middlesex, where I only take one or two a day; here, I don’t stop dancing all day long. I absolutely love it! My favorite has to be

modern with Assistant Professor Trebien Pollard, because he is absolutely wonderful. Everything he says and does is so meaningful and wise. I learn more than dance from him… I learn about life.

CF: The classes are more independent here, and the teachers are more invested in their students. The teachers make me want to work harder. I have already learned so much valuable information.

Are you adjusting well to Goucher?

BC: It took a few weeks, but now I feel very comfortable here. I never felt out of place even when I first arrived because everyone is so welcoming and friendly, it is just very different from the atmosphere at Middlesex. Middlesex is very clique-y. Actually our dance department does not socialize with any other departments, but here all the students are very open to meeting everyone.

CF: I am always meeting new people because everyone wants to get to know you. It is just a great atmosphere. I love the fact that I can go into someone’s room on any night and just sit around and have a good time.

What do you hope to experience here in America?

BC: Seeing everything and seeing how others’ lives differ from mine. We plan to visit New York soon and I am going to L.A. over spring break.

CF: Traveling. After college that is all I really want to do. I plan to eventually eat and visit an art gallery in every state.

What is the best thing that has happened to you here since you came to Goucher?

BC: Having Trebien as a teacher! [She laughs.] He has changed and inspired my mind so much as a dancer. The way he speaks of dance is so different than anything I have ever experienced. He has already had such a huge impact on my life

CF: Probably the same thing— having the pleasure of meeting Trebien and having him as a choreography teacher has been really eye opening to me. Overall I have a good vibe here and really like it!

Todd Mion: The Great Wolf of the Dance DepartmentErin Quarles ’12

Often seen roaming the dance hallways in an all-black sweatshirt ensemble or driving a van to ACDF playing a rock music playlist, Todd Mion is an integral part of the Dance Department. Here since 2000, Todd both teaches in the department and serves as the lighting designer for all of the dance concerts at the college.

Todd teaches Light Design for Dance and Technical Applications for the Stage. While both classes were already in place when Todd began teaching at Goucher, he did alter their formats. In Light Design class, for example, Todd thought that it would be beneficial for the students to learn not only about lighting design, but also how to work with lighting designers.

When he is not teaching, Todd can be found working tech on dance concerts. Besides his work here, Todd does lighting and scenic work for other dance performances, as well as for theater performances. His career path began at the age of 17, when he got involved in technical theater and soon began to gravitate towards lighting design. While he works in many areas and genres, Todd says that he likes doing lighting for dance concerts best, since it offers the widest creative palette.

When asked about his role in the light design process, he says that it varies for each choreographer or director. The best situation is for the artist to have some idea of what s/he wants, as well as a level of trust with the lighting designer to make creative choices. Developing this trust and the knowledge to discuss ideas with lighting designers is what Todd focuses on in his light design class.

The most valuable lesson Todd has learned is to cherish your failures. Being in a production process where the light designer and the director were not on the same page—and seeing epic ideas crash and burn—made Todd realize that failure lets you know that you are doing good work—advice that everyone can apply to their own lives.

(Top) British exchange students with their modern class. (Bottom) Charlie Ford and Bryony Cooper taking professor Trebien Pollard’s modern class. Photos courtesy of Hillary Blunt

Todd Mion working backstage Photo courtesy of

Todd Mion

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An Angelic Moment for the Goucher StageAmber DiLoreto ’14

The receptionist at the hotel told Kathi Ferguson to take the trolley, but later, when she found herself standing at the stop surveying a dangerous area of the unfamiliar town, she was not so sure he was right. As she waited, two men approached, one with a large dog. She somehow found herself in conversation with the other, and he offered to help her find her destination. As they spoke, she noted to herself how much better she would feel without the dog around. As if on cue, the man with the dog left. She boarded and rode for a few stops, and just as she was beginning to panic—she had no idea where she was or where to get off—the man stood up and beckoned. They got off the trolley, exactly where she needed to be. She turned to thank the man, and he was gone.

This is just one of the experiences that convinced Ferguson, an instructor of dance at Goucher, of the guiding presence of angels, a belief that has inspired a choreographic trilogy. Ferguson’s newest work, performed at the Spring 2012 Goucher Repertory Dance Ensemble Concert, is the third and final section of her Angels Trilogy. The first work of the trilogy was a literal interpretation of angels, complete with white costumes. The second work, performed in 2001, explored the “destruction of bullying” in the wake of the Columbine tragedy. Now, she is (to her relief) finishing the trilogy. The title for the final section, “Moment,” is a clue into its meaning and purpose. This new work continues the angelic theme of the trilogy in a new light, exploring the saving power of spiritual forces. The work, she says, is about “realizing the moment… about a journey to spiritualism,” she says. “It’s about change. It’s about humanity.” It is also about the human need for a higher power.

Ferguson has been choreographing since the age of four – frequently taking an improvisational approach. “I have learned that I do my best work while watching the dancers,” she says. Although planned ahead of time, many of the movements in “Moment” have been influenced by the dancers’ interpretations and stylizations. Ferguson selected Elm by Beirbach to be the music for this piece because it fits the movement quality she wants and the theme she hopes to portray. Whether the audience completely understands her angelic and spiritual theme is not essential for Ferguson; it is not meant to be a literal work. But she thinks “it’s a message people need to hear right now,” so angels will grace the stage at Goucher College.(Top) Ashley Daigle ’14 in rehearsal. (Middle and bottom) The cast of “Moment” in rehearsal.

Photos courtesy of Ellen Bast

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A Week with Rodger BelmanStephanie Walker ’12

The audition for Rodger Belman’s residency was one of the longest the Goucher College Dance Department has ever seen. After the Friday evening audition, 18 dancers were called back to work with Belman all day Sat-urday and Sunday. Finally, on Monday, a cast of 14 dancers was selected. The piece is based around a duet originally choreographed and performed by Belman in 2006. While Belman had originally stated his intent to cast only three couples, in the end, he decided that he would like five couples to perform the piece.

After the cast was set, the choreography, timing and spacing became the focus. Day by day, as the material became more familiar, the choreography, especially the lifts, got easier. Soon, we had learned everything ex-cept the short solos at the beginning. Those we didn’t set until Saturday, shortly before the showing at the Meet the Artist event.

While at Goucher, Belman also taught classes introducing us all to release technique. The movement was a bit different from our usual classes and resulted in many sore bodies as well as floor burns and scrapes. Though classes and rehearsals were challenging, they were also fun. Whether Belman was entertaining us with stories from when he danced the duet or imitating a British accent, we had a good time and learned a great deal.

Assistant Professor Rick Southerland coordinated Belman’s residency, which took place February 17-26, and the work was performed at the Spring 2012 Goucher Repertory Dance Ensemble Concert.

Dancers in rehearsal Photos courtesy of Mariah Halkett

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Alumna Profile: Amy Ruggiero ’05

Hillary Blunt ’14 recently had the chance to speak with Amy Ruggiero ‘05, a graduate of Goucher’s Dance Department. Since her graduation, Amy has been dancing all over the country with prestigious companies, such as Ballet Austin and American Repertory Ballet in New Jersey. This past winter she moved to New York City and performed as an ensemble dancer with the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. Currently, Amy is on a national tour with Twyla Tharp’s Come Fly Away.

What do you do in a typical day? What is your daily routine or schedule like?

AR: A typical day for me on tour is actually very busy as of late. This past January, I was promoted to dance captain in addition to being a swing (which means I perform multiple roles during the week). This means I teach company class once a week and also am present to help our resident director run rehearsals, which generally occupy four hours of the day. After a quick break, it is back to the theater to warm up and get ready for the show. If I am not performing, which generally happens for two to three shows during an eight show week, I watch out in the house and take notes.

What is your favorite thing about working with Come Fly Away and Twyla Tharp?

AR: The greatest thing about being a part of Come Fly Away has been meeting Twyla. She is a legend. I feel unbelievably fortunate to be dancing her work right now, and I am also grateful to be dancing with people who have been working with her for years. I have learned so much from my more experienced col-leagues. I am also addicted to being onstage; performing is such a drug, and the frequency with which I get to indulge has been one of my favorite things about this job as well.

What has been your favorite city on tour so far?

AR: It is so hard for me to pick a favorite city because they have all been so new to me.

I had done very little traveling prior to this job. Spokane, WA, sticks out to me because of its unique little restaurants, bars, and a sweet little yoga studio that we would take class at before our work day started. I also loved going to San Diego because a couple of the ladies and myself drove out to La Jolla on our day off and it was there that I saw one of the most incredible sunsets ever. Costa Mesa, CA, had the best, most fun audiences. I feel like I will remember all the cities for one thing or another...they’ve all had their charms.

In what ways did your education at Goucher prepare you for your job now?

AR: My education at Goucher played a large role in preparing me for every job I have had post-graduation. When I entered as a fresh-man, I was really only interested in further-ing my ballet training; however, because the dance department requires you to be strong in both modern dance and ballet, I quickly real-ized the benefits of being versatile and open-minded with respect to all types of dance. There is not a ballet company today that does not perform some kind of contemporary work. Everything is valid and incestuous in the dance world; it all overlaps. Auditioning for Broad-way shows became of interest to me simply because my perspective was broadened at Goucher, through the values instilled in us by the faculty and the variety of works brought to us by resident guest artists.

What advice would you give to a current Goucher student looking for a performance career after graduation?

AR: The best advice I could give to current Goucher dancers is to take advantage of all the incredible and different opportunities available to them now. It is the experience that you acquire by working with different people and their unique rehearsal processes, and also performing as much as possible onstage, that will prepare you to work with many different people successfully in the future.

A Week with Rodger BelmanStephanie Walker ’12

WHERE ARE OUR DANCERS THIS

SEMESTER?

Jane Belkin ’13 - ScotlandKate Clarke ’12 - ItalyRachel Cooke ’13 - England Gretchen Funk ’13 - IndiaEmily Gnatt ’13 - EnglandGrace Harman ’13 - GhanaMelanie Hedal ’13 - IndonesiaMairead Jacobs ’13 - South AfricaSarah Muskat ’13 - ItalyEmily Polasik ’13 - ItalyRachel Schachter ’13 - IsraelSophia Kurek ’13 - ItalyMegan Simon ’13 - Argentina

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Chorégraphie Antique performance at the Civil War Ball Photos courtesy of Chrystelle Bond

When They Aren’t Teaching Us…

Department chair Elizabeth Ahearn recently completed her continuing education requirements for Pilates and choreographed two works, performed in April by Inertia Dance Company. She also went on a site visit to the Accademia dell’Arte in Arezzo, Italy, and met up with the three Goucher dancers who are currently studying abroad there.

Chrystelle Trump Bond has been researching the history of dance at Goucher as a manifestation of dance in higher education and as a cultural metaphor for changes in American culture from 1888 to 2012. She has been busy interviewing Goucher alums from the 1930s to the present day—and is always looking for more interviewees! Chorégraphie Antique has also kept her busy with performances and reconstructions, especially as they prepare for their May 10 Maypole lecture/performance at Edenwald Retirement Community.

Kathi Ferguson has been donating her time at the Howard County Ballet, where she teaches classes (which are open and free to Goucher students!) and heads productions of the Nutcracker and various spring shows. She is also involved with the Howard County Young Choreographers’ Showcase.

Professor Juliet Forrest is working on new choreography to accompany her original text for a work for next fall’s concert. She is once again collaborating with Jon Scoville, with whom she worked on Junkshot. Over the summer, she will attend the Bates Dance Festival to take theory and technique courses so she can continue researching her book on teaching dance composition. She has also been teaching classes at the Howard County Ballet.

Lighting designer and resident tech guru Todd Mion recently lit a one-woman comedy show in Chicago as well as Dakshina Dance Company for their performances in Philadelphia and NYC. He also worked with the local Baltimore Deep Vision Dance Company at the Baltimore Theatre Project.

When not in the studio teaching modern technique or intermediate composition, rehearsing this semester’s modern residency, or in the midst of organizing the ICA to West Africa, Rick Southerland can be found travelling to his home in Reno, NV, visiting his family in NC, shopping, or getting a massage. Sometimes, he even has to do laundry.

The Faces of Chorégraphie AntiqueLaura Brown ’12

Have you ever walked by the studios on a Monday night, peered into the Lilian Welsh Studio, and wondered who the dancers were? Well, those are the dancers of Chrystelle Trump Bond’s Chorégraphie Antique, an ensemble that makes history come alive by performing ballroom dances of the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries. The current Chorégraphie Antique is a surprisingly close group, some of whom have been dancing with her for all the company’s 24 years.

The back-stories of their involvement in the group are quite interesting. Some got involved because they have jobs in historical landmarks in Baltimore and Washington, DC; one of the members even works as a Francis Scott Key reenactor. Others are members of the Goucher community, including a Goucher graduate and a professor. More intricate stories include one of them working at the Latin Palace and recruiting new members. And two of them are even married! So the next time you sneak a peek, send in a smile as well. It will be warmly welcomed.

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Salsa, Improv, Pizzaz, Oh My!Lizzy Purcell ‘12

Have you ever wanted to try another style of dance not offered in the Dance Department? Maybe you can! The many dance clubs on campus have a lot to offer a curious dancer. The diversity of dance-related clubs ranges from social dancing and dance improvisation to musical theater and step. There is something for every dance lover at Goucher. Some of these clubs such as NOVA and Orchesis are associated with the dance department, but many others, such as Pizzazz, Salsa Club, Hip Hop Team, Bollywood Dance Club, Capoeira, and Lindy Hop Club are not.

Orchesis and NOVA are the most present clubs in the Dance Department. Orchesis aims to support dance as a medium of expression and communication on campus, support master classes for the Goucher community to participate in, support dance experiences off campus, performance opportunities, affirms the role of dance in higher education, and gives presence and value to diversity in dance. To meet these goals, Orchesis organizes regular trips to dance performances in Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, brings in master teachers during finals week every semester, and helps fund students’ choreographic endeavors.

Naturally Occurring Visceral Arts, or NOVA, is the improvisation club on campus.

The goal of NOVA is to provide an open environment for artists to creatively engage in interdisciplinary improvisation and other collaborative projects. Although dancers head up this club, they aim to include all interested artistic thinkers in collaborations, improv jams, and all other NOVA events.

Many of the other dance clubs on campus that are not associated with the department also provide opportunities to try something new. Salsa Club and Lindy Hop Club bring people together to learn new dance styles and have fun. Salsa Club pays an instructor from SalsaNow in Baltimore to teach advanced and beginning salsa classes once a week. Pizzazz is the musical theater club on campus. Each spring, Pizzazz brings together singers, actors, dancers, and musicians to present a musical theater review. The Bollywood Dance Club performs at various functions around campus and promotes Indian culture. Capoeira is an Afro-Brazilian martial art and break dance. Students learn to play musical instruments and to do intense movements like handstands and kicks as they come together for special community “rodas,” or circles in which two capoeiristas face-off and practice their skills of deceptive fighting. The dance team, hip hop team, and step team perform regularly at sports games.

These clubs focus on providing entertainment and boosting school spirit, a goal that is illustrated in the dance team’s motto: “I could’ve been any other animal, but I choose to be a gopher.”

As you can see, there are so many dance-related clubs on campus! To learn more about them, you can visit http://events.goucher.edu/search/groups—and make sure to attend the Club Rush at the beginning of each semester.

(Top) Capoeira Club practicing. Photo courtesy of

Therese Robbins (Bottom) The Dance Team at Beldon Field. Photo courtesy of Candace Chmielewski

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Is history of the past or of the present? Is history a noun or a verb? Is dance history relevant to what is happening today?

What do philosophy and dance have to do with each other? Who cares? Why am I asking so many questions?

I ask questions because I study phenomenology, which is a philosophy upon which foundational and rigorous study is directed by questions.

I fell into philosophy very much as I fell into dance history. I was in the right place, at the right time. I grew up in Doris Humphrey’s birthplace and just happened to study under teachers who loved dance history. I took one workshop and was hooked. Humphrey’s technique spoke to my body as if it were words spoken by a familiar voice.

From then on, I took advantage of performing several Humphrey works and studied under Gail Corbin, the student of one of Humphrey’s closest students.

For a time, I was content being a body through which, I hoped, Humphrey’s works would not get lost in today’s futurist obsession with contemporary dance. However, a Labanotation project in which I was to check a partial notation of Humphrey’s Valse Caprice, swept me up and became my thesis project.

What was this dance from 1919? Why did Humphrey choreograph it? Who

reconstructed it? What happened to it? How can I help save it?

I began my research and reconstruction project by questioning everything. I acknowledged any presupposition I had about Humphrey—her technique, her work, the time in which she lived—and bracketed them. I could not rid myself of them, for having historically-sedimented knowledge is our human condition. However, I was at least able to put them into question.

I acknowledged that I am a subjective being, as is all of humankind. I could not and cannot escape my past experiences, for that is how I come to know things. This facility, however, is something dancers experience every day. We learn new techniques, new choreography, and new kinesthetic experiences through physically experiencing them.

There is no mind-body duality. I experience something, and it absorbs me. I think about it, and I absorb it. Through reading the work of

1993

Jayme Host designed, developed, and implemented the dance minor at Lock Haven University, where she is a professor of dance and head of the Dance Program. She also is the owner and artistic director of the Lewisburg Dance Conservatory in central Pennsylvania.

2000

Clare Croft is currently working on a book project focusing on the U.S. State Department’s sponsorship of international dance tours as a form of cultural diplomacy. She recently received her doctorate from the Performance as Public Practice program in the University of Texas-Austin’s Department of Theater and Dance. She has also served as a dance critic for publications such as the Washington Post, The Baltimore Sun, the Austin American Statesman, the Houston Chronicle, and Dance Magazine.

2002

Kate Martel is living in New York City and dancing for Laura Peterson Choreography. She recently finished performing at HERE Arts Center. She is an adjunct professor at Western Connecticut State University, and will soon begin work on her MFA at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Becky Radway is artistic director of Becky Radway Dance Projects, based in NYC. She is currently working on an evening-length work to premiere this coming fall. Recently, she has held residencies at Lock Haven University, Oldsfield School, and Arundel High School, and was a guest choreographer with DragonFly Dance Experiment in Annapolis, MD.

2005

Amy Ruggiero is currently dancing with the first national tour of Twyla Tharp’s Come Fly Away. She previously performed with Ballet Austin, the American Repertory Ballet, in the Radio City Christmas Spectacular,was on the faculty of the Princeton Ballet School, and worked with and choreographed for students at the Cicely Tyson Community School. She is a contributor to the dance blog danceINTUIT: fresh perspectives on dance, and the e-journal, The Dance JOT.

2007

Charles Gushue works at Triskelion Arts, a dance presenting and rehearsal space in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, as an administrative assistant. He also teaches Creative Movement at various schools around Manhattan and dances for A+S Works in Hornell, NY. This

year, he has the opportunity to choreograph a one-woman show on Triskelion Arts’ Artistic Director Abby Bender. He is also in the beginning stages of forming a new dance group, the Dance Party Engineers.

2008

Asya Zlatina is living in Philadelphia, PA, and dancing with Koresh Dance Company, a classically trained modern company. She also teaches classes at the company’s school.

2009

Angelica Daniele is finishing her master of arts in arts administration at Goucher. She is currently the manager of Baltimore’s Morton Street Dance Center, where she dances with their company in residence, Full Circle Dance Company. She is also Dance/USA’s mentorship program intern and is a board member of the Maryland Council of Dance.

Rebecca Siegel is completing her first year of medical school at Ohio State University.

2010

Gabrielle Berkow is pursuing a master’s degree at Columbia College.

Ashley Turenchalk is the administrative assistant for Jennifer Muller/The Works Dance

Our Phenomenal Past: Dance History and PhenomenologyMerril Doty ‘12

Alumnae/i News

Doty performing in Humphrey’s Two Ecstatic Themes Photo courtesy of Merril Doty

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Company. She has performed at numerous dance festivals and is affiliated with Subtle Changes Inc. and Flexicure Dance Company. Recently, a photograph of her dancing at WestFest Dance Festival was featured in The New York Times.

Annalise Woller is in her second season as a company member with the Dayton Ballet. She spent one season with the Boulder Ballet as a principal and performed with Delusions of Grandeur Productions and in the Dayton Arts Project. She has been teaching as well, using her math minor to tutor math students, along with teaching dance at the Goucher Summer Arts Institute in July 2011.

2011

The University of North Carolina accepted Raina Cephas into its masters program. She will begin working towards a master’s degree in dance this fall.

John Hoobyar is an apprentice with Trisha Brown Company.

Arlynn Zachary is working for Echo Contemporary Dance Company as their lead all-around stage technician and pre-performance assistant rehearsal director. She is also dancing with the Wake Project, a modern dance company based in the Charlotte, NC, area.

Our Phenomenal Past: Dance History and PhenomenologyMerril Doty ‘12

Maxine Sheets-Johnstone, Sondra Fraleigh, and others, I came to understand that Nietzsche was right, “I am my body, body am I.”

Dance is a language. In dance, however, the written words are not separate from the spoken words, and the spoken words are not separate from the body that speaks. I am my body. I am a “languaging” body that speaks through the vocabulary of the language of dance. My vernacular is historically constituted by my experience. My accent is evidence of my subjective being. When I dance, I become appropriated by the language of the dance, and vice versa. Dance speaks through me. I speak through dance.

What does that mean? How can I use my subjective self to give voice to such an old dance, and its creator? While it would be counterproductive to provide answers rather than ask questions, I will say this: dance history is my history. Dance is language. History is now.

Senior Independent StudiesDorie Chevlen ’15

This semester at Goucher, six graduating seniors—Ani Sipos, Lizzy Purcell, Ellie Jones, Lucy Wild, Sarah Soule, and Marah Wilson—have been clocking away hours at the studio working on independent choreography projects. Each piece, set on different Goucher dancers, highlights its choreographer’s creativity and impressive dance training.

Anyone who knows Ani Sipos would immediately recognize her independent study. Inspired by her hometown of New Orleans, the piece aims “to capture the culture and feeling” of the Big Easy. In creating her study, Ani taught the dancers movements that she had worked on by herself, and also had them improvise and then incorporate their own movements into the piece as well. The choreography, of course, is set to New Orleans-style jazz and was performed at Todd Dance Studio in May.

Ellie Jones’s independent study could easily be a case for the phrase “Go big or go home.” Featuring a whopping 16 dancers, the piece is inspired by water—from its molecular structure to how people relate to it. In creating her project, Ellie collaborated both on her choreography, by incorporating her dancers’ movements and styles into it, and her music, which was composed by Goucher student Cuong Nguyen. The piece is divided into multiple sections; “River” which features eight dancers, “Trio” which features four (since, as Ellie put it, “I couldn’t decide!”), a section featuring all 16, a few solo vignettes, and a duet, which was selected to be performed at the American College Dance Festival. The duet was performed at the Spring Repertory Dance Ensemble Concert and on May 5 off campus.

When Lucy Wild and Marah Wilson told me, “Collaboration is kind of the center of what we’re going for,” they weren’t kidding. Their piece, which they have been planning since the end of their sophomore year, is collaboration on almost every possible front. There is the choreographic collaboration between Lucy and Marah as they draw from their different dance backgrounds. There is also collaboration with the dancers, whose movements, Lucy said, “…are integral to our process.” Then there is the collaboration on costumes, which are being designed by a Goucher student; music, which will hopefully be live improvisation as well; and they are even trying to incorporate creative writing from works by Goucher writers. Their independent study was performed in May, in Todd Dance studio, along with Lizzy Purcell’s work.

Lizzy Purcell’s independent study draws largely upon the theories of chance and improvisation, and rather than just walking into a rehearsal with all the movement pre-choreographed, she chooses instead to collaborate with her dancers. “I definitely like to work with my dancers in the process,” she explained, “because I feel like usually the movement that you yourself produce looks best on your body.” The music for her piece is conceived of as deliberately non-melodic, because Lizzy prefers “…not so much dancing to the music but rather to the atmosphere.” Her piece was performed in May in conjunction with Marah and Lucy’s.

Sarah Soule’s independent study is truly independent—she has set her choreography on only one dancer, fellow senior Ani Sipos. She was drawn to the idea of creating a solo because she wanted a challenge. “It’s a scary thing, though,” she acknowledges, “filling up all that time and space with one dancer.” If the short solo she choreographed for Sipos last semester for her advanced choreography class is any indication, though, both women are surely up to the task. Sarah’s piece aims to express what it feels like to be free, which she accomplishes by juxtaposing freedom with how it feels to be constrained. That aesthetic extends even to her choice of music. “I like hearing the dancer’s breath and feet and fabric swishing more than music sometimes,” she explains. “Music should be a compliment and partner, not the driving force.” Sarah’s independent study was also showcased in May.

Seniors creating independent works: (left to right) Sarah Soule, Ani Sipos, Lucy Wild, Marah Wilson, Elizabeth Purcell, and Ellie Jones. Photo

courtesy of Hillary Blunt

Alumnae/i News

Faculty Advisor: Juliet Forrest

Co-editors in Chief: Ellen Bast ’14

Hillary Blunt ’14

Contributors: Laura Brown ’12 Shanley Codd ’15 Amber DiLoreto ’14 Merril Doty ’12 Eve Holmes ’13 Elizabeth Purcell ’12 Erin Quarles ’12 Dorie Shevlin ’15 Stephanie Walker ’12

Photographers: Laura Brown ’12 Fiona Cansino ’12 Candace Chmielewski ’12 Merril Doty ’12 Mariah Halkett ’14 Therese Robbins ’14

GOUCHER COLLEGE1021 Dulaney Valley RoadBaltimore, Maryland 21204-2794

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Calendar of Events

July 8 – 21Goucher Summer Arts InstituteThis two-week, intensive day and boarding program offers training for intermediate through pre-professional dancers and musicians, ages 12 through 18. Call 410-337-6493, or email linda.garofalo@goucher.edu for information.

Monday – Saturday, August 20-25Early Arrival ProgramBrian Flynn, of the New York dance company Rioult, will be our modern guest artist. He will be setting a work from the company’s repertory.

Thursday – Sunday, August 23-26Fall Orientation

Friday, August 31 Juliet Forrest and Linda Garofalo audition, 6 p.m.

Friday, August 31DAN 361 auditions, 7 p.m.

Friday – Sunday, September 7-16 Doug Elkins Modern Residency

Friday, September 14Meet the Artist with Doug Elkins, 6 p.m.

Friday – Sunday, September 21-30 Melissa Barak Ballet Residency

Friday, September 28Meet the Artist with Melissa Barak, 6 p.m.

Friday, October 26 Open Marley, 6:30 p.m.

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