Spring Dance Concert | News | Painesville, OH

The Lake Erie College Department of Dance will present its Spring Dance Concert on Saturday, April 10 at 7:00 p.m. in the C.K. Rickel Theatre in Royce Hall for the Fine and Performing Arts. The performance will feature works by adjunct faculty Heather Young, dance team coach Rachel Rudolph, BFA candidate Gabriela Peters, undergraduate students Alexandra Strawbridge, D’Lani Timely-Gant, Isabella Golen and Avery Rickenbacher.

This performance marks the first in several years for the dance department. When Lake Erie College’s Dance Department began in the 1980s, the College invited several prominent dance companies from Northeast Ohio and beyond to perform. In the years since, dance has continued to grow. The importance of the arts in the community has especially been evident during this pandemic as individuals turn to the arts as a means to escape the reality of the challenging situation.

Heather Young, an adjunct faculty at Lake Erie College, received her Master of Fine Arts from Case Western Reserve University in 2008. Young’s choreographic style is a fusion of contemporary and modern with a focus on the emotional experiences of both audience members and performers. Professor Young will present three pieces in the Spring Dance Concert. Set to SimplyTruth’s instrumental version of Senorita, the ballet inspired choreography has a Spanish flair mixed with classical technique. Moving into more of a modern vernacular is Finding _____. Set to music by Max Richter, this piece explores the missing parts that many of us seek outside of ourselves when in reality all that we need is within us. With spoken word and music combined, Young’s last piece is entitled What We Don’t Know and looks at how we can step outside our comfort zones to grow.

Rachel Rudolph joined Lake Erie College as their Dance Team Coach in the fall of 2020. Rudolph, who holds a BA in dance and BS in marketing from West Virginia University, has been tasked with growing a competitive dance team for the college. For the April concert, she is presenting a selection of the dance team’s choreography. The audience can look forward to an exciting, upbeat style that highlights the dancers’ athletic abilities.

Featured on the program will be works by BFA candidate, senior Gabriela Peters. Peters is a dual major in Early Education and Dance. She is also a student ambassador, a Mortar Board historian, the student government president and the campus activities board president. According to Rudolph, this multi-talented student has a lot to offer and her choreographic works are equally as impressive as her academic endeavors. Her BFA performance centers around the psychology of color and how different colors affect one’s emotional being.

Additional student choreographers include senior History major Alexandra Strawbridge, junior Criminal Justice major D’Lani Timely-Gant, sophomore Entrepreneurship major Isabella Golen and freshman Pre-Early Childhood Education major Avery Richenbacher. These works vary in style and reflect each student’s unique connection to their chosen music.

Tickets

Tickets for this event are $5 and are available for purchase on its Eventbrite page HERE. This event will also be live-streamed on Lake Erie's YouTube page.

Click here to watch the live-stream
Click here to view the digital program

Questions regarding the Spring Dance Concert can be made by calling the Lake Erie College Fine Arts Department of Theatre office at 440.375.7451.