Senior dancers finish dance projects despite abrupt leap into remote learning

salvetoday Posted On May 20, 2020

Salve Regina is in the midst of celebrating the tireless efforts of the Class of 2020, despite the challenges that the University experienced during Virtual Salve. Today, seniors in the dance program and their work will be showcased.

While dance students graduating in 2020 are minors and don’t have to complete a capstone, they were working hard toward presenting unique dance pieces they’d been choreographing in the Student Choreography Showcase. Some students had been rehearsing since September 2019 with that goal in mind.

When Salve Regina moved online and knew that the performance would be canceled, the program worked with the students to figure out how they could best honor their work. There wasn’t one right way for them to finish, but most of the seniors, which total 12, edited together a blend of on-campus rehearsal footage with new at-home footage. They worked remotely with the dancers in their respective pieces, giving them directives and choreography. Each student found their own unique approach, just as they do in their creative process overall

On Friday, May 8, a virtual Student Choreography Showcase was held where students, families and friends came together to celebrate the work. Although it required everyone to to let go of expectations of what the concert would have been, it was heartwarming to see the students at home with their families, sharing their artistry and accomplishments. In most works, there was a seamless blend of dancers in Antone Academic Hall studio and in their current homes — a surreal and striking collision of both homes that made the virtual concert feel very intimate.

“I was especially proud of the students for their courage in sharing their works in this way,” said Lindsay Guarino, associate professor of dance. “Audiences typically see dance in its finished state, complete with costumes, lights and well-rehearsed dancers. Because our time on campus ended so abruptly, the students shared pieces of their works that were never meant to be seen. That required a certain vulnerability that was really beautiful to witness.”