UNM’s dance program is hosting a series of shows that give students the opportunity to express themselves and communicate what cannot be shared through language.
The series features various dance works which pair students, faculty and guest artists with musicians and set and costume designers.
The concert, which consists of multiple shows, brings together good old fashion hard work and old world flamenco as it joins amateurs and professionals alike. Artistic director Donna Jewell said the shows are the culmination of the dance students’ years of study.
“I’m in charge of the overall look of the show, the order of the pieces and anything that helps the show as a cohesive whole,” Jewell said. “All the people on stage are students of the program, and the faculty work with the students. We started last September on some of the pieces.”
Jewell says the concert brings in professors and artists from all over, including a few from Spain.
“We have visiting artists from Spain coming, sometimes two different ones a semester. Two of the works on the program are from these visiting flamenco professors,” Jewell said.
The shows in the concert are distinct and require a lot of time and effort from the students and staff involved. Primarily it is the students who work the hardest to see their time and commitment pay off.
“All the pieces on the program are developed separately and have no common theme,” Jewell said. “It’s really for the students in the dance program. It is the culmination of all the work they put in to technique classes, choreography classes. It is one of the most significant experiences they have in the dance major. It’s literally that bridge between being a student and a professional dancer.”
The concert is also a vital opportunity for Hispanic students to reconnect with their cultures and find expression through means familiar to their cultural heritage found in both Spanish and Pueblo traditions.
“We have the highest rate of Hispanic students of any program on campus,” Jewell said. “It’s one of the faces of New Mexico. Put on a stage for the nation to see — this is what we do here in New Mexico, and flamenco is part of it”.
The event is a chance for the community to experience New Mexico’s mixed and varied culture, and to witness the graceful first steps of future dance professionals.
The concert runs on March 2, 3, 4 at 7:30 p.m. and March 5 at 2:00 p.m at Rhodey Theater.
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Manuel Chavez is a freelance reporter for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at culture@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @DailyLobo.
