Performance will feature pieces choreographed by students, faculty and guest artists

Creativity. Inspiration. Movement. Music.

According to the Theatre/Dance Department website, these four aspects will combine to create Dancescapes ’11, an annual dance concert presented by the department.

The pieces featured in Dancescapes are choreographed by students, faculty and guest artists, and are performed by students from a variety of majors.

Dancescapes ’11 will take place at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Sunday, and at 7:30 p.m. Monday and Tuesday in the Barnett Theatre.

Nine pieces will be featured in Dancescapes ’11, with six of them having been created by students.

While a majority of the pieces in Dancescapes fit contemporary/modern dance, there will be a tap dance piece and a hip-hop duet featured during the dance concert.
While it is typical for audiences to long for understanding in a performance, artistic director Robin Pettersen said understanding every facet of each dance is not crucial to enjoy the show.

“Sometimes people come and try to figure everything out and with contemporary dance, you’re just going to end up with a big headache,” Pettersen said.  “You don’t have to understand what everything means.”

Preparation for Dancescapes begins early in the fall semester. Dance minors who wish to choreograph a piece for Dancescapes audition and begin semester-long rehearsals in September.

In December, the Theatre/Dance Department has an adjudication to determine the strongest student pieces that will be featured in Dancescapes.

While the process might seem linear, Pettersen said it is a very intensive process.
“It’s just like writing a paper,” Pettersen said. “You work on it then you edit it; you go back and work on it some more, and edit it again.”

Though the art of perfecting the pieces may be strenuous, Pettersen said the result is well worth it.

“I get excited because it is the culmination of a year’s worth of work and all of us get to see our work evolve over time,” Pettersen said. “[I hope] people just come willing to experience the concert.”

Pettersen has choreographed two of her own pieces, “Arrangements” and “Tangle,” which is an adaptation of tango-style dance with modern influences.

Pettersen has been advising students with their choreography since September.

Junior Brienna Schenck, a dance minor, has participated in Dancescapes for two years, though this is her first year choreographing a piece.

Though Schenck has been dancing since she was 5 years old, she said she is not used to modern/contemporary dance.

“I’m kind of stepping out of the box and trying something new,” Schenck said.
For the upcoming performance, Schenck choreographed the piece, “Aureus Aura,” which she describes as a “flowy piece” with dynamics and speed.

“I’m really looking forward to seeing the whole piece put together,” Schenck said. “It’s going to be really interesting … with all the costumes, the lighting and to see what people think of it.”

Senior Mallory Yott, a human resource management major, has participated in Dancescapes for four years. For 15 years prior to college, Yott was a competitive gymnast. Once she came to college, she said she wanted to get serious about dance.
Along with choreographing a solo and group piece for the upcoming performance, Yott will also dance in a solo piece, as well as two other pieces.

Yott said she is looking forward to concluding her senior year with Dancescapes ’11.

“[I’m looking forward to] ending my senior year with a bang and for all of us putting our hearts on the dance floor and doing what we do best,” Yott said.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.uww.edu/cac/theatre or by calling the Greenhill Center of the Arts Box Office at 262-472-2222.