As one of the first to take advantage of the Dance Studies major that launched in Fall 2022 at 海角社区CI, Kortni Godsey has so far been thrilled with her choice.
The semester included guest lecturers such as pioneering break dancer Ken Swift, choreographers, a talent agent, and Navajo dancer Little Hawk. They also saw a live taping of ABC鈥檚 鈥淒ancing with the Stars.鈥�
鈥淚t was so fun,鈥� Godsey said. 鈥淭o see the show live 鈥� it was crazy to see all the cameras. The dance was definitely more emotional than I thought it would be.鈥�
海角社区CI鈥檚 program is not your typical college Dance Studies major, according to Associate Professor of Performing Arts Heather Castillo, M.F.A., who has been a champion for the program along with Performing Arts/Dance Lecturers MiRi Park and Bonnie Lavin-Hughes.聽
鈥淭he degree is a global look at dance and how dance has always been a way to communicate and pass down our culture from generation to generation with the stories in our bodies,鈥� Castillo said.聽
The Dance Studies major will provide students with the athletic training and technique necessary for dance performance but will also provide a broader look at how dance is integral to the human experience. 聽
鈥淭he dances we want to honor in our program all have developed in North America,鈥� Castillo said. 鈥淔or example, we have jazz because of the African people forced to migrate here. When you look at forced migration along with the oppression of First Nations people through the lens of dance, it creates an embodied connection to our history.鈥�
Through Park鈥檚 connections in the New York hip-hop community, she was able to get Swift to guest lecture. Swift is widely considered 鈥渢he epitome of the B-Boy,鈥� pioneering movements and terminology for the dance form that is now recognized worldwide.
鈥淚 have a background as a B-Girl and a hip-hop dancer,鈥� Park said. 鈥淚 learned for free in the park in Brooklyn. It鈥檚 just as vigorous as any other dance style, and it has shifted my perspective from 鈥榶ou got to pay to play鈥� to 鈥榠f you want to get in it, you gotta get down鈥�.鈥澛�
Castillo said the 鈥淒ancing with the Stars鈥� experience was to expose the students to 鈥渃ommercial鈥� dancing, where dance is used as part of the product or used to sell a product such as a reality show.聽
鈥淲e exposed them to live commercial dance with all the bodies and the energy and the wild number of 15 cameras,鈥� Castillo said. 鈥淭hese sorts of things you just can鈥檛 get when watching it on TV.鈥�
Students are also being introduced to other career options open to those with a degree in dance by hearing from 海角社区CI alumni. For example, Alyssa Zepeda 鈥�12 uses dance in her social work. Miesha Goetz 鈥�14 is a dance agent at Clear Talent Agency. Also, students are learning from choreographers like Alison Faulk, who is touring with the Broadway production of 鈥淢agic Mike,鈥� and the associate choreographer for 鈥淢oulin Rouge,鈥� Camden Gonzales.
鈥淢ost people enter into a dance degree believing it is limited to being a dancer,鈥� Castillo said. 鈥淏ut you can do so much with this degree.鈥�
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漏 Winter 2023 / Volume 27 / Number 2 / Biannual