GRACE LUKENS, Staff Writer—
The Eisner Center hosted their Fall Dance Concert for the Dance Department’s Fall 2022 semester. Titled “River/Rios,” the show was a collaborative effort in music, performance, and visuals that came together for a spectacular show over the weekend.
With pieces from Assistant Professor Marion Ramirez, Associate Professor Dr. Ojeya Cruz-Banks, and visiting Vail Series artist and guest choreographer Joshua Manculich, each experience varied in the stylistic points of metaphorical connotations, but were all ultimately connected through a common thematic thread.
The production as a whole focused on the concept of rivers (“rios” is ‘rivers’ in Spanish), with emphasis on the metaphor, sound, and pathway implications that bodies of water have. Additionally, the pieces focused on the concept of honoring oneself and the people around them. Inspired by the native history of Ohio, which translates to, “the great river” in Iroquois, the messages within each performance held implications for not only an internal reflection, but an appreciation for the land that Denison calls home.
The dance piece “Rio Contigo,” choreographed by Professor Ramirez, focused on states of regulation and flow of energy throughout the body. Both solo and group elements were used to reveal how healing could be reached alone, but made waves when it was achieved with other people.
Josh Manculich created two pieces for the show: “I Wish I Had A River” and “Free To Channel.” The first piece was a solo dedicated to the intersection of thoughts and action, while the second exhibited the flow and expression of emotions both internally and externally.
Grace Han ‘25, was a performer in both of these pieces. The thematic elements of the dances’ choreographies resonate not only with the audience, but also with the performers themselves. She mentioned that the most difficult part of preparing for the concert was emotional rather than physical, dealing with the anxiety of getting ready to perform.
“Going into it, you feel like you’re going to be stressed and you’re going to be exhausted,” Han explains. “But then once it’s happening you realize it is very fun…everyone is so uplifting here!”
The final piece of the show was titled, “Pachot Tåsi: Black River,” choreographed by Dr. Cruz-Banks. Unlike the other dances, Cruz-Banks’ piece focused very overtly on the influences of Black artistry and the power of indigenous voice, and asked students themselves to collaborate in the process of creation to develop a personal view on these ideas.
One of the performers in the piece was Olivia Snyder ‘25. She reflected that, “[the] piece is very much connected to ancestry [and] culture; the piece itself is called “Black River,” and it’s about black culture and how it flows through all of us, no matter your culture, ethnicity, [or] race. Black culture is really ingrained into all of us, and so, being able to go out there and make that statement and pay my respects to black culture was super satisfying and fulfilling for me.”
The combination of humanity and nature was central to every piece, and the concept became a very important consideration for those performing in the concert. Though the cast was small, 12 dancers in total performing four separate pieces, each dancer developed the theme for the audience’s eyes while crafting their own nuanced perspective through their dancing.
This concert came at a time where the size of the department has been increasing, and this performance was a tangible expression of the efforts and successes allowing the discipline to garner interest.
“The Dance Department is growing, so jump in now, join now!” Han encourages. “There’s a bunch of new cool classes, and a ton of new opportunities, and hopefully [this performance] will encourage more people to take part in the dance department!”
