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WVU’s dance studio is located on the top floor of E. Moore Hall, with arched windows facing the center of the downtown campus.
Inside students learn many different types of dance, including ballet, modern, and jazz, but near the end of the semester, a group of 16 dancers are doing something else: hip-hop and West African productions. I had the opportunity to learn.
The piece, titled “Piece of Mind,” was choreographed by Miami-based artist Robin Sanders, who visited WVU in December. Includes music from Kendrick Lamar’s “United in Grief” and “Mother I Sober”.
“It’s essentially like dealing with your own inner conflicts,” Sanders said.
According to Sanders, the work also addresses how the artist is navigating the post-pandemic world.
“It’s been really interesting and intriguing to me what’s going on with artists who have to come out of COVID and redefine themselves in this culture, the cancellation culture,” she said. rice field.
“Piece of Mind” is inspired by another work Saunders is working on, titled “Love is the New Black,” in which the protagonist struggles with his sense of self.
“You can see her inner world grappling with faith, identity and all sorts of heavy topics that have come out of COVID. There is,” Sanders said. “So what I’m doing with this piece is how I saw things in my mind.”
These themes of identity, acceptance, and belonging are represented visually by the dancers being grouped into ensembles representing the concept of home and generating others.
“You can see the movement going on between the two. There are lines of defense and sometimes other things that represent external turmoil,” Sanders said.
This message-based approach to choreography has long been part of Sanders’ work. For her, dancing is a form of activity.
“I may not protest or picket on the front lines,” she said. “But when I am able to do this kind of work, this is my own activity. But it is also my own catharsis and my own liberation.”
Sanders’ work is about showing the world what she has to say and paying homage to a genre of dance she says is too often labeled “recreational.”
“I feel that hip-hop and that kind of cultural dance don’t always get the respect they deserve, so I always try to say something when I make a piece.”
WVU’s dance program typically invites guest artists to work with students every other year. Sanders’ visit to WVU was made possible by General Hambrick, a dance and musical theater professor at WVU who met Sanders while working on his version of The Nutcracker in Memphis, Tennessee.
“I loved her choreography on the show,” said Hambrick.
By inviting Sanders, Hanbik hoped to bring movement diversity to WVU’s dance students.
“The idea was to bring students something they hadn’t done before,” says Hambrick. “It’s a more diverse take on choreography and the fact that it’s a West African one. It’s never taught here.”
Megan Tropman, a junior dance and animal nutrition student, said Sanders taught her not only a new style of dance, but a new approach to art.
“She really brought a new side of art to our program,” said Troppman. “When it comes to dancing, she learned new techniques and new styles. taught me the process.
For Sanders, the ability to bring this education to young dancers means everything.
“It is great to be able to take this and help students in academia have a more fulfilling dance experience. I feel like it helps me deconstruct,” she said.
“Piece of Mind” will be performed at the School of Theater and Dance’s annual concert “Dance Now!”February 2nd and His 3rd at 7:30pm and February 5th at 2pm at the Metropolitan Theater
Tickets are available online at cal.wvu.edu/event/dance_now for $20. For more information and updates, visit the School of Theater and Dance website or follow us on Instagram @dance_wvu.
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