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LAWRENCE — Attendees to the University Dance Company Fall Concert should expect an array of dance styles reflecting our diverse world.
“Nina Simone said it best: ‘The artist’s duty is to reflect the times,’” said guest choreographer Amirah Sackett, an internationally recognized hip-hop dancer, choreographer, educator and activist whose work “Olive Branch” will serve as the concert’s finale.
Performances are at 7 p.m. Nov. 22 and 23 and 2 p.m. Nov. 24 in the Crafton-Preyer Theatre at Murphy Hall. Choreography featured in the Fall Concert was created in conversation with the Department of Theatre & Dance performance season’s themes of fearlessness and breaking barriers.
For more details and to purchase tickets online, visit the KU Dance website. The concert will be livestreamed via CUR8. To learn more and purchase a livestream ticket, visit the KU Theatre streaming site.
Sackett was in residency this fall to teach master classes and choreograph a work, which features popping, locking and house dance moves. Department of Theatre & Dance faculty choreographers Ashley Brittingham, Claire Buss, Michelle Heffner Hayes and Marisa Plasencia also have created pieces for the concert. Student-led and choreographed works from Jayhawk Tap Co. will provide entertainment.
“Performing for the public is an integral part of our Jayhawks’ career preparation; your attendance and enthusiasm is vital, as it validates their work and urges them to continue pursuing their goals. With 53 KU students, from all disciplines, rehearsing for almost 12 weeks, the impact cannot be denied. With their tremendous dedication, and that of others behind the scenes, we will be ready to amaze audience members,” said Maya Tillman-Rayton, KU director of dance and UDC Fall Concert producer. “The UDC Concerts are always a highlight for our students. The seven original works that will hit the stage are a combination of storytelling, beauty and athleticism. What we have been able to accomplish on the stage fills my heart with pride as a professor.”
Design team members are Kelly Vogel, associate teaching professor and head of scenography, as costume designer; Dennis Christilles, associate professor of scenography, as scenic designer; Elliot Bowman, senior in theatre, math and linguistics from Topeka, as lighting designer; and Jenna Link, assistant specialist/production manager, as production stage manager.
Sackett explores her Muslim American identity through the fusion of hip-hop movement and Islamic themes. She’s achieved viral fame and has garnered international recognition for her innovative work. Notably, Sackett was honored as one of “17 Muslim American Women Who Made America Great in 2016” by The Huffington Post. She has shared her insights as a TED speaker, guest lecturer at Harvard University and cultural diplomat with the U.S. State Department. She represented the U.S. as a cultural performer at the Expo 2020 Dubai, the S.W.A.N.A. region’s inaugural World’s Fair in the United Arab Emirates. Based in Chicago, Sackett remains committed to nurturing the next generation of artists and empowering emerging talents to utilize hip-hop culture as a catalyst for positive social change.
Brittingham is a full-time lecturer in the department. As a professional dancer, she has performed a wide variety of classical and contemporary principal roles by the world’s leading choreographers. For the past four years, she has set her original choreographic work on the University Dance Company. Read more about Brittingham on the department website.
Buss is originally from Salt Lake City and moved to Lawrence in 2017 to attend KU. She’s worked with Tristian Griffin Dance Company, House of Dragons, and performed in City in Motions Modern Night and Dance in the Park. She has been teaching and choreographing at KU for two years. She also serves as the Lawrence Arts Center’s dance program coordinator. Read more about Buss at on the department website.
Hayes is a professor of theatre & dance. She has a wide-ranging career as a scholar, choreographer and dancer. Her most recent publication credit is “Burla y Bulla: Humor and Critique in Flamenco,” in Funny Moves: Dance Humor Politics. While she works in contemporary dance, improvisation and musical theatre, Hayes has been training and performing flamenco since 1991. In 2018, Hayes performed as a flamenco choreographer and soloist at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., in Palos Nuevos: The Jazz Flamenco Project with the KU Jazz Ensemble. Currently, she is part of the Cuadro program with the Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana company. Read more about Hayes on the department website.
Plasencia is a visiting assistant professor in the department. Prior to arriving at KU, she taught courses in dance studies and technique at Tufts University and Reed College. She received her doctorate from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Read more about Plasencia at the department website.
Student cast members are Maren Benz, freshman in dance and sports media journalism, from Raymore, Missouri; McKenna Bizal, senior in dance and psychology from Overland Park; Morgan Blanton, senior in dance from Wichita; Abby Boyd, sophomore in dance from Topeka; Penelope Brown, freshman in dance from Kansas City, Missouri; Rylee Brown, sophomore in business analytics and journalism from Houston; Tara Burgat, senior in dance from Spring Hill; Maisie Cowdin (understudy), sophomore in dance from Topeka; Dinah Criswell, freshman in media design and production from Brooklyn Park, Minnesota; JT Czoch, sophomore in dance; Alexandria Demps, senior in dance from Kansas City, Missouri; Sofia Dunkelberger, sophomore in dance from Wichita; Nicole Fronek, freshman in marketing from Plainfield, Illinois; Mia Godinez, junior in digital marketing communications from Chanute; Penelope Guezuraga, freshman in dance and human biology from Kansas City, Missouri; Alyssa Harris, freshman in elementary education from Olathe; Sophia Harrison, junior in dance from Topeka; Keaja Hodge, freshman in psychology from Wichita; Jillian Housh (understudy), freshman in dance and English from Kansas City, Missouri; Alex Hunt, senior in dance and mechanical engineering from Farmington, Minnesota; Jadyn Kaufman, sophomore in business management and leadership from Iola; Cullen Krishna, senior in dance and ecology & evolutionary biology from Bellevue, Nebraska; Nick Lange, senior in computer science from Valley Center; Jazmyne Le, senior in journalism from Wichita; Alexandria Lefler, freshman in architectural engineering from Lebanon, Missouri; Kaylee Lempke, freshman in dance; Marti Lond, senior in marketing from La Quinta, California; Kate Long, freshman in dance from Dallas; Abigail Lorenz, junior in exercise science from Schaumburg, Illinois; Esther McBride (understudy), sophomore in dance from Alameda, California; Lillian McLaughlin, freshman in psychology from Wichita; Mahika Meesa, junior in political science from Overland Park; Ella Nadeau, freshman in pre-nursing from Topeka; Sarah Perez, sophomore in psychology from Wichita; Dylan Pope, sophomore in psychology from Naperville, Illinois; Mallory Price, junior in dance and journalism from Leavenworth; Natalie Remack, sophomore in behavioral neuroscience from Keller, Texas; Alaina Rossell, freshman in theatre and pre-law from Kenosha, Wisconsin; Paul Ruf, junior in biochemistry from Overland Park; Eliana Rundus, senior in dance; Madi Seelye, junior in dance from Lawrence; Emily Shaw, sophomore in interior architecture from Hutchinson; Anna Shelton, senior in dance from Hesston; Sloane Smith, junior in dance and exercise science from Littleton, Colorado; Quinn Stahly, sophomore from Topeka; Nikolette Treadwell, senior in dance from Wichita; Joslyn Vetock, junior in dance from Elkhorn, Nebraska; Elizabeth Wellman, junior in dance from Lawrence; Mackenzie Wichman, freshman in dance from Omaha, Nebraska; Stephanie Wirth, junior in dance from Topeka; Rizzy Xiong, junior in education and psychology from Shanghai and Los Angeles; Claire Yarborough, freshman in dance and atmospheric science from Elkhorn, Nebraska; and Annika Yoder, freshman in psychology from Newton.
The UDC Fall Concert is made possible in part by the Janet Hamburg Fund and the John M. and Frances R.B. Peterson Visiting Artist Fund.
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