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WMU student's dance selected for conference concertMarch 26, 2008 KALAMAZOO--A dance by a Western Michigan University dance major was selected for the gala concert at the East Central Conference of the American College Dance Festival Association. The dance, titled "Carson Keepsake," was choreographed by Marissa Staniec, a senior from Sterling Heights, Mich. Her dance was one of 12 selected from 37 dances adjudicated during the conference. The conference took place March 5-8, with the WMU Department of Dance acting as host. Three adjudicators chose the gala concert dances, which were judged as the best of college/university dance in the east central region. More than 450 dancers and faculty from eight states attended the conference. "Carson Keepsake" premiered in the October 2007 Orchesis Dance Concert and was featured in the dance department's February 2008 Winter Concert of Dance. The dance is about the balance between perceptions of reality and imagination. In addition to being picked for the conference's gala concert, Staniec's dance was selected as the alternate to represent the region at the National American College Dance Festival at Barnard College in New York in June. Staniec is a dual major in dance and communication and has been a scholarship recipient since 2005, receiving the Jean Warner Labell dance scholarship, the Ethel Perry Eaton dance scholarship and most recently the Dalton Exceptional Dance Major scholarship for the 2007-08 academic year. She was selected by audition to perform in two of the dance department's "Great Works" choreographed by Doug Varone and George Faison. She also performed at the Kennedy Center in the 2006 national conference of the American College Dance Festival Association and in the 2005 Masters of African American Choreography concert series. Media contact: Mark Schwerin, (269) 387-8400, mark.schwerin@wmich.edu WMU News |
