With over 20 pieces from over 100 dancers and choreographed by 21 students, the Cal Poly Theatre and Dance Department is hosting the “Polaris,” dance concert, a reference to the North Star. The annual spring dance show will be in Spanos Theatre from May 22 to 24 at 7:30 p.m.
According to construction management senior and student director Dana Craighead, student directors settled on the theme because the idea of the North Star as a tool in navigation to relate to what motivates the dancers through life.
“So dance has always been something that motivates us to be better as human beings and as artists,” Craighead said. “We wanted to symbolize some sort of like North Star or like guiding light of sorts that would be a symbol for our artistic endeavors.”
Craighead, biochemistry senior Carly Morris and nutrition senior Chloe Rosero were chosen to be the student directors for this event. As directors, they hosted auditions, selected choreographers, held photoshoots for the concept photos and communicated with their faculty advisors, Diana Stanton and Leann Alduenda. They also had to work with their lighting designer, the crew, videographers, dancers and choreographers.
Morris said she is so excited to see this year’s performance come to life.
“Every year since we’ve had this show, post-COVID, I feel like it’s grown and improved each year,” Morris said.
Rosero said the stage is like “magic.”
“There’s something about translating what we’ve done in studio bare-bones into the theater,” Rosero said. “There’s something magical that happens and seeing everything come into fruition on a stage with the lighting, the costume and the zeal of the dancers is truly something I’m looking forward to seeing,”
Student leaders held auditions on Feb. 22 and 27. Everyone who auditioned got a spot in the show and were placed based in their respective dances. Choreographers create a piece from start to finish, from casting dancers into their pieces, choosing costumes, designing the lighting and conducting rehearsals for seven weeks according to Morris.
Student choreographers undergo this process in the Dance Concert Practicum class (DANC 341).
Choreographers can take a basic concept and be creative, such as incorporating concepts related to their major and passions in their pieces. Child and development junior Emily Olster incorporated psychology concepts into her piece.
“She’s experimented with concepts of deja vu and other psychology-based things to generate movement,” Rosero said. “They come from different places for everyone, but people can integrate what they’ve studied at Cal Poly – whether it’s their dance minor or their major – into their pieces.”
Throughout the process of bringing this show together, they have three showings, where the whole cast gets together to see each pieces’ progress.
Morris said she hopes the audience will gain something from the event.
“I hope the audience just gets to take a moment to kind of step out of their own lives and appreciate what has been put on the stage,” Morris said. “There has been so much energy and emotion put into these pieces, so many hours in the studio.”
Tickets can be purchases through the Performing Arts Center website. Tickets for students and seniors (65+) are $10 and tickets for adults are $15.