It’s the last chance to dance and perform on a Ball State stage for senior dance majors. This Friday, senior Ball State dance students will display their choreographed routines at “Infinite Movement,” a showcase held for senior choreography projects.
“A choreographer creates a concept; this could be a narrative, an emotion, or an idea,” Carley Luster said. “With that concept, the choreographer [then] creates movements and movement phrases that are taught to a desired number of dancers.”
Luster has been a dance enthusiast for many years, but it wasn’t until she came to Ball State that she became interested in choreographing her own routines.
The “Infinite Movement” will provide senior choreographers with the opportunity to display their personalized concepts that they have been crafting over the span of the semester. The pieces performed within the showcase are all original choreographies created by Ball State dance students and vary in terms of style and approach. They are all modern yet “differ in theme, energy, and athleticism.”
Maranda Mastin chose to choreograph her routine to a dubstep remix of the song “Fangs” by Little Red Lung. The theme of the piece is based around athleticism and honing the power and strength of the dancers.
“I kept trying to define a reason or a story behind my movement to figure out why I was creating what I was creating,”Mastin said. “Eventually, I found my own meaning for the piece but decided to keep it personal; this allows others to gather what they want from it.”
Mastin has been dancer and a gymnast for nine years but never attempted to choreograph her own routine until last year. She said she is somewhat indecisive on her endeavors after college, but has thought of auditioning to dance on a cruise ship or go back to school and obtain a master’s degree.
Some of the hardships students faced when preparing for the showcase were defining an overall theme or message for their piece, dealing with writer’s block, as well as conflicting schedules between the dancer and choreographer.
“It’s always a challenge to coordinate the schedules of our lives with the schedules of the dancers,” Heather Clossonsaid. “It can also be a challenge to try and find time that I have just to myself to choreograph, but I always manage to sneak it in somewhere.”
Closson first started choreographing when she was 15 years old. Her piece that will be performed at the showcase is more calm in comparison with others on the bill; the music accompanying the movements is a solo piano composition. After college, she said her dream job is to be a director or choreographer for a show on Broadway. Prior to that endeavor, she plans to be a freelance choreographer and plans to land a secure position with a dance company ortheatre.
Closson said the pieces are personal.
“This is like our thesis statement or immersive learning project,” she said.
