WOU Magazine Spring 2011: News
WOU’s Spring Dance Concert packs the house
On May 5, 6 and 7, Rice Auditorium was filled for three consecutive nights. This year’s guest artist was Maurice Watson, a contemporary dancer, choreographer and teacher from Los Angeles. His piece, Epiphany, was designed to depict “a revelation about this journey called life – seeing life through a crystal ball and watching as we live it.”
Watson has choreographed and performed with some of the finest African American dance companies in the country, including the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble and Dayton Contemporary Dance Company. Watson has also appeared in television programs and feature films. Presently, his dance focus lies in teaching modern, hip-hop and contemporary master classes at local studios and universities.
What's Your Pointe? (left) choreographed by Sharon Oberst, Invitation (right) choreographed by Deborah Jones.
Fantasy for Strings, choreographed by Darryl Thomas and Valerie Bergman.
Photos by Clifford Coles.
Dance faculty Deborah Jones, Darryl Thomas and Sharon Oberst choreographed pieces for the event. WOU dance students, Sara McIntyre, Kelsey Bartlett, Barbie McGehee, Kaitlin Bauld, and Jessie Hargrove each choreographed numbers for the show. Music student, Ryan Eiler, also composed original music for Bartlett’s piece, which combined modern, hip hop and African dance styles and rhythms.