Dancers hope to become part of arts institute tradition

For more than 40 years, the African American Arts Institute has provided thousands of students with the opportunity to preserve African-American culture while pursuing their passion for performance.

The ensembles of the Institute — the African American Dance Company, the African American Choral Ensemble and the IU Soul Revue — have performed and facilitated programs on both the local and national level, offering entertainment and community service.

Since its conception, the Institute has built a resume to be proud of, including an opening performance by the IU Soul Revue for The Temptations.

The Institute offers the performers one benefit in exchange: academic credit. The Revue, established in 1971 by Herman C. Hudson, was America’s first collegiate black popular music ensemble offered for academic credit.

Last night, the Institute held auditions for the African American Dance Company, which performs a broad range of dance styles representing the African diaspora.

Everyone secured numbers to their chests when entering the studio. The occasional pop of joints was heard as people on the marley floor stretched. Old friends chatted while new faces looked at their reflections in the three surrounding mirrors.
Any performer could recognize it as an audition.

“Whatever your style is, I want to see it,” shouted Iris Rosa, a professor in the Department of African American and African Diaspora, as the dancers traveled across the floor.

The African American Dance Company held its semi-annual auditions last night. The 17 first-time auditioning dancers and five returning members performed to African beats in hopes of being a part of the company for the 2012 spring semester.

Rosa, who has been the director of the African American Dance Company since 1974, stressed for the dancers to find individual expression in the movements.

“I do look for the normal things, like technique and if they take direction,” Rosa said. “I also look at what their expression is in their face and body when they are performing.”
Rosa said she choreographs pieces that tell stories and “are based on concepts.”

This kind of expressive and conceptual dancing is what drew senior Amelia Smith to the auditions.

“So many people told me I had to audition for the African American Dance Company when transferring to IU,” Smith said. “The repertoire and instruction are so unique. It is rare to find such a wide range of dance in one place.”

The audition displayed the company’s diversity with a fusion of modern, jazz and African dance styles in the choreography. Diversity was also seen in the people present.

Though the company’s mission is “to provide dance from the perspective of the African diaspora,” Rosa said, the company is not exclusive to African-Americans and represents all backgrounds.

“I love the diversity of what we do,” said freshman and returning company dancer Alex Rhodes. “There are so many different dance styles and backgrounds. Then Rosa adds so much deep rooted history into the dancing.”

The dancers reached their arms, rolled to the floor and contracted sharply to the rhythmic music. Even in the audition, Rosa’s choreography told a story. The undulating and grounded movements were meant to portray people in African slave ships.

“It was really fun and I loved the choreography,” senior Patricia Millard said. “It has very much encouraged me to do more with African dance or just something with dance.”

Eight new dancers, as well as three understudies, were selected for the spring semester.

The company will have several performances this semester including a show on Feb. 9  at Ivy Tech and its annual spring concert on April 9 at the Buskirk-Chumley Theatre.
“I hope to instill a love for the dance discipline, learning, history and respect for each other and what we do,” Rosa said.

Senior Rachel Livingston has been with the African American Dance Company for four years and has seen the company, as well as her own dancing, evolve.

“Everything I have learned in dance has come out of this company,” Livingston said. “The company is always evolving. I’m expecting a lot of big and great things this year.”