The WashU Dance Collective (WUDC), the resident dance company of the Performing Arts Department in Arts & Sciences, will present “Alchemy,” an evening of new and original choreography, at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, April 10 and 11.
Led by founding artistic director Cecil Slaughter, a professor of practice in dance, “Alchemy” will feature 25 performers — representing a wide range of backgrounds and movement styles — in nine works by faculty, student and guest choreographers.
“Dance can be a powerful tool that transforms the elements of time, space and movement into an art form that transcends social boundaries, creates shared experiences and fosters unique perspectives,” Slaughter wrote in his director’s note. “’Alchemy’ seeks to explore how kinetic energy can be both emotion and invention — the crack in the concrete that allows a rose to bloom.”
Choreographers and program
The program will open with “Faith in Togetherness,” a work for the full company by Lily Rich, a Losos Fellow majoring in dance and in religious studies. Adapted from Rich’s senior thesis, the piece explores the “power of collectivity, specifically the beauty and joy that result from moving together in space.”
Next will be “Inner Inertia,” a work for nine dancers by Maddy Pestine, a senior studying business, psychology and political science, followed by “The Wilis,” a work for seven dancers by biology major Amelia Barfield. “Body to Ashes, Earth to Dust,” by WUDC co-artistic Ryadah Heiskell, explores dance, grief and one’s sense of self in difficult times.
Following intermission, the program will resume with “Transmutations,” an original dance choreographed by nine performers with direction from Slaughter. In “Daydreaming,” first-year students (and sisters) Harper and Libi Horn explore the feeling of drifting off and reliance on community when facing the unknown. Natalie Green’s “we fall apart” examines the way “movement changes, erodes and loops over time.”
Concluding the program will be “Vignettes No. 2” by guest choreographer and former Saint Louis Dance Theatre company member Jorrell Lawyer-Jefferson. Structured as three vignettes, the piece explores themes of connection, both hoped for and imposed, and “the perseverance of the human spirit.”
Tickets and production
The production crew is led by stage manager Jimmy Bernatowicz, with assistance from Samaria Coleman and Jason Cai. Lighting designer is Caroline McNich. Projections and sound designer is Sean M. Savoie. Props designer is Emily Frei.
Performances take place in Edison Theatre. Tickets are $20, or $15 for seniors, students and WashU faculty and staff, and free for WashU students. Tickets are available through the WashU Box Office.
Edison Theatre is located in the Mallinckrodt Student Center, 6465 Forsyth Blvd. For more information, call 314-935-6543 or visit pad.wustl.edu.
