BYU Contemporary Dance Theatre Company Members Travel to New York City for Dance Intensive Experiences and Professional Networking
BYU dancers saw firsthand that New York City is truly the city that never sleeps.
“New York is full of energy,” said Kara Williams, a senior majoring in dance. “The environment of authenticity, creativity and diversity opened my eyes to all the incredible opportunities ahead.”
The BYU Contemporary Dance Theatre (CDT) recently completed a field study in New York City. BYU professors Adam Dyer and Kate Monson worked for months with BYU alum Jeff Whiting and BYU Dance friend Jesse Obremski to design an eight-day dance intensive field study for CDT members.
Jeff Whiting is founder and director of the Open Jar Institute in Times Square, New York — a studio space for training professional dancers, singers and Broadway stars. CDT dancers spent 30 hours at Whiting’s Open Jar Institute working with seven of “the most extraordinary dance makers on the planet — Jie-Hung Connie Shiau, Cindy Salgado, Kristine Covillo, Jake Tribus, Georgia Osbourne, Amy Miller and Jesse Obremski,” Dyer said.
Each morning, students took master classes at Open Jar Institute and danced for five to seven hours. Rather than traveling to New York to perform in a show, students went there to “roll up their sleeves and get sweaty in the studio,” Dyer said. CDT is a performance company, so this trip was a unique opportunity to work side by side with professional choreographers to develop original work. Dyer said that “this creative process mindset will ultimately lead to awesome performances.”
“It was so rewarding to spend time with experts who had the brilliance to coach, create and cultivate a space of growth for us,” said Kailene Talbot, a junior studying American Studies with a minor in Contemporary Dance.
In the evenings, dancers had designated time to go see shows such as Broadway productions, professional contemporary shows and even operas with casts featuring BYU alumni.
Ella Memmott, a senior majoring in English and minoring in Contemporary Dance, said, “It was a constant cycle of inspiring each other and being inspired by New York's incredible dance industry.”
CDT members were inspired by the connections made throughout the week. For Dyer, the goal of this trip was to “connect our students to the dance community at large and give them a chance to see themselves fitting in the dance landscape that exists today.”
“This experience helped me grow as a member of society because I was immersed in a historic and iconic metropolitan area,” said Talbot. “It exposed me to various artists and professionals who have careers in New York City.”
The dancers loved experiencing New York City; likewise, Whiting and the Open Jar choreographers appreciated the chance to work with BYU students. “To me, it was a wonderful week of exchange,” said Dyer. “We received in abundance, but we also shared who we are as Brigham Young University.”