Dance Season Opens with the Emerging Choreographers Concert

From left to right: Shannon Sakaitis, Shannon Van Dusen, Vida Sealy, Gianna Galanti, Victoria Edwards, Zoe Lopez, and Adriyanna Kushner in Faith Marie Pelli’s work, Τηι καλλιστηι. Photo by Victoria Polidoro.

The dance department opens the 2024-2025 season with the popular Emerging Choreographers Concert, Nov. 1 through Nov. 3, in the Schubert Theatre of the Labuda Center for the Performing Arts.

The Emerging Choreographers Concert is a program of new works choreographed by a select group of student choreographers. Under the artistic direction of Angela Sigley Grossman, associate professor of dance, the concert, from the choreographers to the performers, designers, and student managers, is primarily student-run.

"The Emerging Choreographers Concert marks the exciting start of the dance season at DeSales and is a platform for our department to highlight the creativity of selected student choreographers,” said Grossman. “This year, our students are investigating a diverse variety of themes, conducting thorough research on their topics to deepen their artistic concepts. We are thrilled to present five choreographic premieres, each exploring a distinct perspective and movement style, and each piece is truly a unique expression of the choreographers’ artistry.”

The world premiere dances will focus on themes of human relationships, humor as a coping mechanism for trauma, the life cycle of neutron stars, and the experience of soldiers during the Vietnam War. The fifth work is inspired by the traditional Greek mythological telling of the Trojan War.

Performances are Friday, Nov. 1, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Nov. 2, at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; and Sunday, Nov. 3, at 2:00 p.m. and take place in the Schubert Theatre in the Labuda Center for the Performing Arts. 

Tickets are $18 for adults, $15 for seniors and students, and $8 for DSU/LVAIC students for all performances. Tickets are available by calling the Labuda Box Office at 610-282-3192 or online at tickets.desales.edu. Follow the dance department on social media at @DeSalesUDanceDept on Facebook and Instagram.