This weekend marks the beginning of the first set of shows for the New Movement Project’s Fall Dance Concert, the first of Northwestern University’s student produced dance performances. The show, “To Be Continued”, highlights the work of nine senior dance majors who have spent the past five weeks preparing pieces showcasing their skills as dancers and choreographers.
“I’ve been wanting to choreograph a piece around this idea for a couple of years…it…ties into my minor, I’m an Environmental Policy and Culture minor so it was a great way for me to fuse [those] two things,” said Josh Rubietta, who choreographed “An Invasive Species”. This piece about endangered species combines his creative mind with his interests outside of dance.
He described the experience of watching his piece begin to come together as “emotional,” and expressed a deep hope that the audience, while viewing the piece would experience the same impact that his piece has had on him.
“I really, really love the choreography that [the seniors] have come up with so I feel like I have a responsibility to do that justice and to do all their hard work justice…I owe it to them to make it look…how they envisioned it to look,” said Morimoto.“I feel really honored,” she added. “I just have a bunch of ….people to look up to and try to pick their brains a little bit.”
Rubietta and Morimoto felt that the create process brought dancers and choreographers closer, while still having the feel of colleagues and co-workers working toward a common goal. The pieces featured in the show have emotional content for all involved. But for each, the meaning of the unified theme,”To Be Continued”is different.
“To be continued for me means that…this is one marker, one stepping stone in my choreographic journey and endeavors and the next one will be completely different, but also inspiring and fun,” said Rubietta.
Morimoto, took a more universal approach to describing the theme’s significance to her.
“I feel like everybody’s to be continued,” she says. “Everybody’s always growing… your life is constantly changing …It’s like, what’s, what’s going to happen?”
Regardless of the way the theme is interpreted, the show is sure to make an impression on viewers.
Rubietta hopes that the audience will take away a “zeal and an excitement” about movement and that each piece will make them think and be “memorable…make them want to see more.”
The 2012 Fall Dance Concert is produced by sophomore Jacinda Ratcliffe, and features choreography from Josh Rubietta, Parker Murphy, Sophia Rafiqi, Margaret Tudor, Suzanne Hutt, Alaya Turnbough, Jennifer Keats-Snow, Rachel Molinaro , and Ross Flores. The shows run Saturday November 10 at 8 p.m. and Thursday through Saturday November 15-17 at 8 p.m. in the Ballroom Theatre of the Marjorie Ward Marshall Dance Center.
The show is $5 for students and children, $10 for adults.