Tim Brown is well known at the College of Charleston and around the city for his incredible dancing abilities and pure talent. He is a true performer and has a love of being onstage, as it shows when you see him perform live. Tim has made many appearances dancing throughout our beautiful city with various performance groups. He was kind enough to take time out of his busy schedule to answer a few questions for me about his background, experiences, and aspirations in the field of dance. Meet Timothy Brown, everyone.
Class of: Fall 2014
Hometown: Clover, South Carolina
Major: Dance with a performance and choreography concentration
So Tim, how long have you been dancing?
I’ve been dancing since my freshman my year of high school (going on 8 years).
What performance groups have you performed with in the past?
Besides competitions in high school, I have been a dancer at the Miss South Carolina Pageant (goes to miss America) for 3 years (2008-2010). Also, for the past 3 years, I have been helping with choreography and as a backstage manager (2010, until now). I was also a member of the cougarettes (CofC dance team) my freshman year of college.
What performance groups are you currently performing with?
I am currently a member of the Charleston Dance Project at Dance FX.
Do you find it difficult to balance your dancing schedule with your academic schedule?
I do not think that it is that hard to balance the two. I also work at a restaurant on my days off. I just made sure that I didn’t take on too much. The only times that I get stressed are during tech rehearsal week. That is usually when I have to balance schoolwork and practice every night.
What is your favorite style of dance? Why?
I like modern/contemporary dance. I like being able to flow through movements and breathe through the choreography. I also like being grounded with the modern movement.
What do you think is your strongest style of dance? Your weakest?
Modern would be my strongest style of dance. My weakest would be hip-hop. It’s hard for me to learn fast footwork and syncopated rhythms.
What is the coolest dance event you’ve attended?
When I was at the Alabama Dance Festival, I saw Kyle Abraham’s company Abraham in Motion. It was the first show that I saw with a storyline for modern dance. I’m used to seeing a storyline in ballet shows, but I really loved seeing the modern movement articulate the story.
Do you have a favorite piece of choreography that you’ve performed? Why was it important to you?
The piece was by Sara Carte (an instructor at Dance FX Charleston). It was my first site specific piece which was done outside, beside the Music Farm downtown. The theme was Great Gatsby, and we recreated the shirt scene where he threw the shirts over the balcony. It was such a cool experience dancing outside and then seeing shirts flying down. It was also the first time that I officially danced with Dance FX!
I hear you’re choreographing a piece for the spring dance concert at the College of Charleston- how is that process going?
I’m so nervous. I’m worried about not finishing on time or not liking my work. It’s also a different experience being able to tell people what I want and having total freedom (instead of always being told what to do). I’m excited to see the final piece and take the audience on a journey.
What do you hope to achieve with dance in years to come?
I want to dance with a company for awhile and also teach dance in a high school. That has always been my goal: to teach others about movement and expression.