Throughout the week, students have been stretching on stairs and doing pirouettes on the sidewalks of Global Neighborhood. Turing the heads of onlookers, they've actually gotten a sneak peek of "Dancing in the Landscape," a performing arts production that will utilize sites on campus for different sets on Oct. 1 at noon beginning in Love Terrance at the Performing Arts Department.
Originally the brainchild of Lauren Kearns, dance program coordinator, "Dancing in the Landscape" is co-directed this year by Renay Aumiller and Sara Tourek, assistant professors of dance.
Guests are invited to follow the performance around various locations in the Global Neighborhood.
From the beginning of the year, they have been coordinating advertisements and social media, selecting a cast of dancers and choreographing a dance using a specific space on campus. Susanne Shawyer, assistant professor of theater, and William Moner, assistant professor of communications, are also involved in the project and offer unique perspectives outside of dance.
“We showcase all of our first-year dance majors in this performance,” said Aumiller. “It gives them an opportunity to think about dance in a broader definition and to start their college careers thinking experimentally and creatively.”
The show usually highlights at least one student-choreographed dance, and this year senior Allison Dyke and junior Julia Goldberg were chosen.
Goldberg said different choreographers use the landscape in different ways.
“Some choreographers have chosen to tell a story, others have chosen to mimic the elements of the landscape in their movements, and others have used the landscape as a sort of prop within their piece,” she said.
Goldberg's piece, set in the Global volleyball courts, uses the sand and net to generate movement and create structure in the dance, but the location also comes with some concerns.
“Performing in a space like the Volleyball courts means reacting to the landscape rather than just dancing within it," Goldberg said. "In an outdoor concert, both the dancers and the choreographer have to expect the unexpected. What if it rains on the day of the concert? Does that mean we will perform in dense, wet sand?”
Luckily, despite the cloudy weather from the week, it is currently looking sunny for Saturday.
"Dancing in the Landscape" offers the audience a chance to see Elon's campus in a way they haven’t before. Aumiller believes the outdoor location will bring greater admiration to the architecture of the university.
Above all, she wants viewers to realize that dance and movement can happen anywhere.
“I get to experience our environment in new ways as I open my eyes to the many visually stimulating elements that I pass by each day to Moseley," Aumiller said. "It’s a way to appreciate my surroundings. We want the performers to experience dance that does not have a marley floor, music or curtains.”