Water splashes high into the air while dancers swirl ribbons and stretch their limbs. As a breeze moves through the oaks, an audience rests in the surrounding grass and studies the dancers’ intricate elongations and lines.

Jane Wellford, associate professor of performing arts, and Assistant Professor of Performing Arts Lauren Kearns’ fall Choreography I class created the “Movement in the Landscape” dance concert last Sunday around the fountain in front of Alamance.

“We wanted to make the dance program more visible this year by initiating some concerts at different locations around campus,” Wellford said. “Fonville Fountain is a site where I have always wanted to choreograph a dance work. Therefore, the vision has been percolating in my mind for some time now. This fall it becomes a reality.”

The 40-minute concert was separated into two segments. The first section, “Fall Fantasy,” featured a piece choreographed by Wellford to the extravagant sounds of Bach, Boccherini and Yo-Yo Ma.

“Lauren instructed the dancers to visit the fountain one day and write down what images came to mind: what they felt, what they saw and what they heard,” said senior Sara Dunham, Kearns’ teaching assistant.

“The music is gorgeous, and the choreography is composed of four sections, each one uniquely different but beautifully threaded by the music,” said Wellford.

The girls dressed in all white, carried ribbon sticks and danced on the grass and on the edge of the fountain to express a light, airy and somewhat ethereal feeling, according to Wellford.

“Most dancers are used to dancing on a big stage with artificial lighting and elaborate costumes, but this experience was completely the opposite,” said sophomore dance major Rachel Perlman. “We danced outside with natural light and the noises that are constantly around the fountain.”

The second section consisted of three 5-minute dances and was performed by women from Kearns’ class. Participation in the show was required for the 15 females.

In order to look as normal as possible, performers dressed in pedestrian clothing. It was as though they were students that happened to stop between classes, set down their books and begin to dance.

“I placed the students in three quintets, and they all choreographed a one minute phrase based on their observations of the fountain. Each group then taught each other their phrase,” said Kearns.

The first dance, “Inward Energy,” had a mechanical quality and made use of the music. “The Shape of Things,” the second piece, was filled with an evolving sense of drama and joy. Finally, “Splash” finished out the concert with childlike energy.

A passion for dance was radiated from the performers. It was the love for such an art form that had an impact on an audience that, for the most part, knew nothing about the technicalities and discipline of dance.

“I think when students watch dance they think about how beautiful and peaceful it can be,” Wellford said. “For me, I watch dance because I am compelled from within my very soul to do so—to watch, to create, to be involved in, to dream about it. As a choreographer, I see bodies moving in space every time I hear music. It’s a blessing and a curse. I carry it with gratitude.”

Certainly, the dance program’s “Movement in the Landscape” concert was both enjoyable and inspiring for the Elon community—the perfect way to begin the fall season. Upcoming dance events will include the Dance Salon in October and the Fall Dance Concert in November.

Reporter: Evann Clingan - 09/26/07