“To Grieve a Memory” and “Resilience through the Ribbon” were two dances performed at the annual spring dance concert held by the Springfield College Dancers. There were two acts with a total of nine dances performed. Each dance had one of the following roles – choreographer, dancers, understudy and costumes.
This year’s theme was community, as being able to dance and share the same passions together is one of the SC Dancers’ foundations. The concert also had individual pieces that explored themes such as mental health and grief.
To prepare for the show, the club held weekly rehearsals to help the dancers learn the pieces and tweak anything if needed. Next is tech week, a name given to the week of the concert where the club is setting up lights and costumes and doing a full runthrough of the show.
Julia Merk is a junior dance and early education major, and the president of the club. Her role includes setting up the audition, feedback and casting process, as well as overseeing tech week. Merk was proud of the show the club put together and how the product they produced received great feedback.
“A lot of the dancers said that they were fully able to give their whole selves into the show and there were a lot of positive emotions,” Merk said. “There also were people that were able to work through some of the things they were going through as well. Being able to have that moment on stage that we had with the dancers was something really special to me and something that I will forever remember.”
During the show, Merk contributed as a choreographer and dancer. The dance Merk helped put together was titled “Beyond Self-Reliance”, her first ever choreographed work presented at the school. Merk wanted to highlight the importance of mental health and allowing yourself to rely on others.
“It meant a lot to me,” Merk said. “I explored the idea of mental health and allowing people to be there and support you when you need it instead of trying to support yourself. It was nice being able to set that work on my dancers and then seeing the growth and development while seeing how close the dancers got.”
The concert included senior choreographic research projects. Seniors that are dance majors have to choreograph a dance to be included in the show that represents issues in today’s world.
Haylee Ritter and Hannah McGee each choreographed a senior dance research project. Ritter titled her project “Paradox”, recognizing the clash between individualism and unity. The audience saw, through the dancer’s perspective, how those ideals can conflict yet coexist.
McGee choreographed two of her own research projects. One was titled “Ignored COMPONENTS OF THE isolated CAROUSEL”, exploring how past trauma is related to body dysmorphia and anxiety. McGee was the solo dancer for this project that saw her stuck in a spiraling pattern as she continuously reached out for hope and deciphered what was real of the reflection she sees and the voices she hears.
Merk joined the SC Dancers club when she was a first-year student, but never thought it was going to mean as much to her as it does now.
“Coming in as a freshman, it felt like a place where you could dance and have fun but taking more of the leadership role and being president, it’s amazing to see the impact that this group of people has,” Merk said. “Seeing that we’re able to create something so magical on this stage in such a short period of time and the willingness of the dancers is something that I don’t feel like you’ll find elsewhere.”