Dance/NOW: ECU Dance Blog #18

Hello Dancers!!

HAPPY FALL!! The leaves are falling and the weather is getting a crisp chill so bundle up when going outside after sweating in class! We all want you all to stay happy and healthy dancers :)

 ANNOUNCEMENTS AND UPCOMING EVENTS

HALLOWEEN WEEKEND
is this weekend! Please stay safe!
Also thursday is our "dance-friday" before halloween so ECDA invites all dancers to dress up in your favorite halloween costumes for class! Make sure you are able to dance full-out in your costume though because we will still be having regular class!


CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL HALLOWEEN BOOTH
Some of the ECDA members will be traveling to the children's hospital Friday of this week to set up a halloween booth with a pirate dancer theme. The children in the hospital do not get the opportunity to go out and participate in trick-or-treating, so the halloween booth's are their only chance to dress up and celebrate this holiday.  Thank you to everyone who is involved in this incredibly important community activity!

REHEARSAL SCHEDULES
Keep an eye out each week for changes and/or additions to the main-stage and senior choreography rehearsal schedule. This schedule gets sent out on call-board and it is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to stay up to date with changes.  You don't want to miss a rehearsal that is on the schedule, so stay vigilant and check every day! :)

 CONGRATS!!! 

WHEW - so many fabulous events in the last week alone!  Way to go everyone!!!

DANCE @ GOLDSBORO
Congrats to all of those students and faculty involved in the Goldsboro show!  Word has it that it was our largest audience yet at that theater and that the audience truly loved it.  It's a long, hard day so way to go everyone for being professional and putting on a great show!

SOTD OPEN HOUSE
Thanks to all those students who volunteered their time to represent our school at the Open House last weekend.  It always makes a huge difference for prospective students to have our majors there to answer questions and show people around.  I am sure you all did our program justice - thank you! :)

NC MUSEUM OF ART 
A huge congrats to those dancers who performed at the NC Museum of Art last friday night! That is such a cool experience and a great opportunity to get the ECU SoTD name out there! The piece "Monochrome" was choreographed by Tommi Galaska and Dirk Lumbard and was a huge success!

COLLEGE DAY OF DANCE
Thank you to all those dance majors and the NHSDA for volunteering your time to help for College Day of Dance. There were many students from highschool who came to check out our program and they were given a great representation of the ECU SoTD. Thanks! 

INSPIRATION FOR THE WEEK

"Merake" (v) to do something with soul, creativity, or love; when you leave a piece of yourself in your work. 

"Work for a cause, not for applause. Live life to express, not to impress. Don't strive to make your presence noticed, just make your absence felt."

"Never stop doing your best just because someone doesn't give you credit."

With Love,

       Nicole Gemmell

ECU chapter of the National Honor Society for dance Arts, President

East Carolina Dance Association, Secretary

AND

      John Dixon

Dance Area Coordinator

Dance/NOW: ECU Dance Blog #17

Hello Dancers!!

I deeply apologize for the hiatus in blog posts last week. 
BUT you all were ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE at auditions. 
Wow. I feel so blessed to be able to dance alongside all of you. And to watch you in auditions too! 

and now.... the blog ;)

 ANNOUNCEMENTS AND UPCOMING EVENTS

GUEST ARTIST ZALMAN GRINBERG'S BALLET AUDITION
We're very excited to have our next guest artist coming up soon!  Details are:
5:30-7pm on Monday, 10/19.
Check-in will begin at 5pm in the 115 hallway.
All dancers on pointe and all male dancers are called.
The audition will take place in 114.

REHEARSAL SCHEDULES
Keep an eye out each week for changes and/or additions to the main-stage, Goldsboro, and senior choreography rehearsal schedule. This schedule gets sent out on call-board and it is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to stay up to date with changes.  You don't want to miss a rehearsal that is on the schedule, so stay vigilant and check every day! :)


FALL BREAK
....is this coming weekend though next Monday and Tuesday.  Stay safe and keep stretching and active! We will be jumping right into rehearsals as soon as we return. Yay Dance! :)

GOLDSBORO TOURING SHOW
The "Dance @ Wright" show will be touring in Goldsboro at the Paramount Theatre on October 24th.  Please post this on your Facebook pages and let your friends and family know so that we have a fabulous audience to support our hardworking dancers in this performance!

COLLEGE DANCE DAY
On Friday October 23rd, we will be hosting College Dance Day for regional high school students to introduce them to life as a dance major here at East Carolina. The day will include performances, class, and a tour for the students.

If you would like to volunteer to help the NHSDA officers with check-in and other things that need to be done throughout the day, please contact me at: gemmelln12@students.ecu.edu   This will count as community service hours for your induction in National Honor Society for Dance Arts. :)

 CONGRATS!!! 

To Kanon Sapp and her gorgeous dancers MeganAnna Griffin, Kristalyn Gill, Jazlyn Moore, Ashley Hill, and Kayleigh Allen for their performances in NYC! Way to represent our program and the Pirate Nation!

To Arelia Hoy, Shannon Carter, Alissa Heroux, Nicole Gemmell, Kayleigh Jewell, and Katie Gannon!  These students will be traveling this week to Phoenix, Arizona to represent East Carolina University and the National Honor Society for Dance Arts at the National Dance Education Organization's 2015 annual conference. Nicole Gemmell will also be presenting a poster of her research on teaching/learning the kinesiological terms of movement with Arelia Hoy as demonstrator.

To the winners of REBEL 58 Choreography Competition!! 
1st place: Kanon Sapp "dadt"
2nd place: Stephanie Watterson "Trapped in my Chrysalis"
3rd place: MeganAnna Griffin "I hope some day you find a Picture of me and wonder if I still love Coke iceys"


Not only will these entries be included in the REBEL issue coming out this spring, but they are also currently on display at Emerge Gallery & Art Center (October 2-30)- So Go Check It Out!!!

INSPIRATION FOR THE WEEK

Just wanted to give a little encouragement to all of those who may feel a little down after the cast lists came out. YOU ARE NOT DEFINED BY WHETHER OR NOT YOU WERE CAST.  There are so many different variables that go into the casting process and if you were not cast that does not mean that you are a bad dancer or that the choreographers did not like you. You are all individually beautiful and you are in this program because of all of your talent, skill and potential.  Keep your head up and use this opportunity to focus on perfecting your craft!  You are not in competition with others, only with yourself.  So do what it takes to make yourself better every day and don't let this round of auditions get you down! :) You are LOVED.

Note from John - please also come to us, the faculty, for feedback or simply to talk through any feelings or questions that you have about the casting process.  We're here for you!!!  

With Love,

       Nicole Gemmell

ECU chapter of the National Honor Society for dance Arts, President

East Carolina Dance Association, Secretary

AND

      John Dixon

Dance Area Coordinator

Dance/NOW: ECU Dance Blog #16

Hello Dancers!!

 ANNOUNCEMENTS AND UPCOMING EVENTS

REBEL 58 CHOREOGRAPHY COMPETITION
Many of you have already seen John's email about this, but THIS FRIDAY (9/25) from 2-5 pm in studio theatre will be the filming of students works to be submitted for this year's REBEL competition. This is a perfect way to get your work out there and this year's dance composition choreographers will be submitting many of their works, so you should too! See John's email for attached documents to fill out before showing up for filming. 

DAY OF DANCE
Our first annual Fall Day of Dance was also a HUGE success this past weekend! Thank you to all those who volunteered their time to help get kids registered and teach classes and also HUGE THANKS to our very own Tommi Galaska for putting it all together and making sure everything ran smoothly. You are all SO appreciated!

ECDA CLOTHING
Just a reminder to make sure you are getting your money to ECDA Prez Alissa Heroux or your individual class representatives for clothing as soon as possible. :)

SENIOR CHOREOGRAPHY AUDITIONS!!!

• Get ready for the fall 2015 senior choreography auditions this Saturday the 26th! They will start at 9:30am with check-in at 9am. An email will go out sometime this week with more specifics on attire, but get hype because it is going to be awesome.
• Please be on the lookout for an email with details about attire and the availability form attached.  Make sure you fill it out thoroughly and bring it with you to the audition.  

ANOTHER POST REGARDING OUR SENIORS:
The Senior Solo Showcase has been moved to the SPRING SEMESTER for this year, so keep an eye out!  Date/Time: TBA
 
DANCE 2016 AUDITION DATES/TIMES:
This is coming up soon! WAHOO!! 

(Remember, the times were updated to the ones listed below)

Wednesday, September 30
Check in – 5:30pm
Auditions from 6-9:30pm (we may end earlier but please keep this full time available)
Choreographers – Tommi, Teal, Ji-Eun, John

Thursday, October 1Check in – 5:30pm
Auditions from 6-7:30pm
Choreographers – Galina, Dirk
NOTE - Callbacks for all choreographers will be held from 7:30-10pm on Thursday, 10/1

THE UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH AND CREATIVE ACTIVITY AWARD GRANTS:

The "URCA" grant is due by September 25.  If you have a great idea you would like to submit to be reviewed, information on this grant can be found in the link below:

http://www.ecu.edu/cs-acad/rgs/ur/urca-awards.cfm
 

ECDA:  MY SISTER'S CLOSET VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY 
Come and join the East Carolina Dance Association in this wonderful volunteer service opportunity with the My Sister's Closet second hand store! We will be volunteering this FRIDAY (9/25) I personally volunteered last year and it was really a fun experience!
-See your class representative or ECDA vice president, Kristalyn Gill to sign up for a shift.
Shift 1 (10am-12pm)
Shift 2 (12-2pm)
Shift 3 (2-4 pm)
Shift 4 (4-5:30pm)

 CONGRATS!!! 

DANCE @ WRIGHT!
WWWWOOOOOOWWWWW!!!   I was absolutely blown away at the performance of Dance @ Wright this past weekend. All of our dancers did an EXCELLENT job! All of your hard work truly paid off and I am so proud!!  This show will also tour to the Paramount Theater in Goldsboro on October 24.  Go dance!

If you have not done so yet - check out our very own John Dixon's BREATHTAKING photographs of the show.  Many of the photos are now in the ECU: DANCE! Facebook page.  The rest of the photos and video will be on the archive drive soon.  You will need to see Lauren Pittman to set up a time to get them off of the drive.  For videos, you will need to send John Dixon and Lauren Pittman an email request with approval from your choreographer/s to have access to their works.  

TO THE JUNIOR CLASS FOR THEIR HARD WORK LEADING UP TO THEIR FIRST DANCE COMP SHOWING THIS FRIDAY!  Come to the ST at noon to see the results of their first choreographic projects.  It's going to be FABULOUS!

AND A HUGE SHOUT OUT TO Donterreo Culp, Emily Donston, Jessica Holloway, Sierra Gorham,  Kolina Simpson and Shannon Wright for their performances at the Lucille Gorham Intergenerational Community Center's Community Engagement Day on Saturday, 9/19!  The students choreographed and performed their own works as well as took the audience through a lecture/demonstration of some of the material they do in classes here at ECU.  So proud of them for stepping up for this important community service event!  Thank you, dancers!!!

INSPIRATION FOR THE WEEK

YOU ARE LOVED!

The week after a show can always be hard as a dancer because our bodies are more susceptible to injury after the heightened performance level the weekend before. Here is a link to a website on Epsom Salt and its healing benefits! :)
http://www.saltworks.us/salt_info/epsom-uses-benefits.asp

With Love,

       Nicole Gemmell

ECU chapter of the National Honor Society for dance Arts, President

East Carolina Dance Association, Secretary

AND

      John Dixon

Dance Area Coordinator

Dance/NOW: ECU Dance Blog #15

Hello Dancers!!

 ANNOUNCEMENTS AND UPCOMING EVENTS

DANCE @ WRIGHT!
IS THIS WEEKEND! WAHOO!! Merde to all dancers involved with this production and if you are not in the show- Definitely go see it!! As a declared dance major, you will receive a comp ticket at the box office- so take advantage of this awesome opportunity to watch dance and support your peers!

NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY FOR DANCE ARTS INTEREST MEETING
Will be held THIS WEDNESDAY at 3:40!
This is a great opportunity to learn about how you can get started on graduating with honors! No commitment, so come check it out! If you are unable to attend this meeting, no worries! Shoot me an email and I will send you a recap with the documents you will need attached. 

INTERESTED IN DANCE SCIENCE?
Please email me by THIS WEDNESDAY to let me know your interest. There are many exciting projects coming up and opportunities for everyone to get involved and learn more about this up-and-coming field! No experience necessary, just an interest!  gemmelln12@students.ecu.edu

DAY OF DANCE
A huge Thank You to Tommi Galaska for organizing day of dance! This is an exciting time where we are able to share our love of dance and this program with students from local schools. There will be classes for all ages taught by our own dance majors and a guest artist Tap class taught by Christian Donnelly!

ECDA CLOTHING
This is the week to try on clothing samples and fill out order forms! Alissa Heroux or one of the other officers will have the box of samples in the halls throughout the week so if you are a part of ECDA and are interested in buying some rad clothing- make sure you find them this week!!

DANCE 2016 AUDITION DATES/TIMES:
(Remember, the times were updated to the ones listed below)

Wednesday, September 30Check in – 5:30pm
Auditions from 6-9:30pm (we may end earlier but please keep this time available)
Choreographers – Tommi, Teal, Ji-Eun, John

Thursday, October 1Check in – 5:30pm
Auditions from 6-7:30pm
Choreographers – Galina, Dirk
NOTE - Callbacks for all choreographers will be held from 7:30-10pm on Thursday, 10/1

THE UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH AND CREATIVE ACTIVITY AWARD GRANTS:

The "URCA" grant is due by September 25.  If you have a great idea you would like to submit to be reviewed, information on this grant can be found in the link below:

http://www.ecu.edu/cs-acad/rgs/ur/urca-awards.cfm

 CONGRATS!!! 

TO ALL DANCERS IN THE WRIGHT SHOW THIS WEEKEND!!
YOU ARE ALL BEAUTIFUL AND TALENTED AND I AM SO EXCITED TO SEE THE SHOW!
xoxo

  

INSPIRATION FOR THE WEEK

"The thing about performance, even if it's only an illusion, is that it is a celebration of the fact that we do contain within ourselves infinite possibilities." -Daniel Day Lewis

Do what you LOVE and LOVE what you Do! (:

With Love,

       Nicole Gemmell

ECU chapter of the National Honor Society for dance Arts, President

East Carolina Dance Association, Secretary

AND

      John Dixon

Dance Area Coordinator

Dance/NOW: ECU Dance Blog #14

Hello Dancers!!

I hope you are all doing well and getting excited about the upcoming auditions and shows! Remember to take good care of your bodies and stay healthy. We don't want anyone else catching "The Sick" around the dance building, because we all know how quick that spreads! Keep that hand sanitizer ready and drink lots of fluids. :) 

 ANNOUNCEMENTS AND UPCOMING EVENTS

8 am Workouts are Still Happening! 

Join us in a nice 45-50 minute workout to start the day out strong! There will be a sign up sheet on the ECDA bulletin board this week for next week's leaders, so if you would like to lead a workout make sure you sign up for a spot and indicate what type of workout you would like to do. This can be anything from stretch and strengthen to cardio or even yoga/pilates. Or bring a mixture of your own workouts! 

• The mainstage dance auditions have been officially rescheduled to the following dates and times. Please make sure these are in your calendars! 

DANCE 2016 AUDITION DATES/TIMES - CORRECTED:

Wednesday, September 30

Check in – 5:30pm

Auditions from 6-9:30pm (we may end earlier but please keep this time available)

Choreographers – Tommi, Teal, Ji-Eun, John

Thursday, October 1

Check in – 5:30pm

Auditions from 6-7:30pm

Choreographers – Galina, Dirk

NOTE - Callbacks for all choreographers will be held from 7:30-10pm on Thursday, 10/1

THE UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH AND CREATIVE ACTIVITY AWARD GRANTS:

AKA: the "URCA" grant is due by the 25th of this month (September 25). So if anyone has a great idea that they would like to submit to be reviewed, information on this grant can be found in the link below:

http://www.ecu.edu/cs-acad/rgs/ur/urca-awards.cfm

GUEST ARTISTS: 

•     Richard Smith (Artistic Director of Inaside Chicago Dance and ECU Alumni) will be joining us for a full guest artist residency in late November (exact dates TBA, BUT LIKELY 11/30-12/6) Richard is a master teacher of jazz dance who trained directly under Gus Giordano and brings an incredible range of skills and experiences to the work he will be doing with you. Richard will be teaching two classes per day and will be setting a piece on a group of our dancers to be performed on the Dance 2016 show. (I have also personally taken class from him and- yall... get hype. This guy rocks!)

•     We also have Kristin Sudeikis coming to teach a 3 hour masterclass workshop on Sunday, October 4th from 3-6 pm in the studio theatre. If you would like to take this masterclass, email John Dixon ASAP to reserve your place.

 CONGRATS!!! 

To dancers: Sierra Gorham, Jessica Holloway, Emily Donston, Donterreo Culp, Kolina Simpson and Shannon Wright. They will be representing the ECU dance program by performing at the Community Engagement Day on Saturday, September 25.  Way to go, dancers!!

  

INSPIRATION FOR THE WEEK

•    "If you can imagine it, you can dream it. If you can dream it, you can become it."              -William Arthur Ward

With Love,

       Nicole Gemmell

ECU chapter of the National Honor Society for dance Arts, President

East Carolina Dance Association, Secretary

AND

      John Dixon

Dance Area Coordinator

Dance/NOW: ECU Dance Blog #13

SECOND WEEK OF SCHOOL!!!!

Welcome Back, Dancers!!!
Congrats, you have made it through to the second week of school. I know everyone is still getting used to being back in the swing of things (or just entering the family), but I can already see that this is going to be a WONDERFUL year of dance! The ECDA bulletin board is not up and running yet, but will be fully renovated for the current school year by the weekend. It is located in the hallway of studios 115 and 116 and will have a hard copy of the events calendar as well as bios and pictures of your current officers and student representatives.

My name is Nicole Gemmell. I am the secretary of the East Carolina Dance Association and will be writing for the "ECU Dance Now" blog this year. If anyone has any ideas, special announcements, or exciting news to share, please let me know!! We would all love to celebrate your accomplishments! 

Also, the East Carolina Dance Association now has social media headed by our very own Ally Caho :)

                                      GO FOLLOW @ecda5678 on Twitter and Instagram!

 ANNOUNCEMENTS AND UPCOMING EVENTS

• 8 AM WORKOUTS!!! they are not that bad- I PROMISE! It is very important as a dancer to keep your body as physically fit and active as possible to prevent injury. These workouts are student led and are a great way to start the day strong! If you would like to sign up to lead or co-lead one day, there will be a sign up sheet on the ECDA board in the hall next week. You can sign up to do anything from high-intensity cardio to pilates, yoga or an extended stretch.
• REMEMBER: ECDA dues need to be given to an officer by this Thursday if you wish to participate in the Big/Little program and buy clothing. The East Carolina Dance Association is a wonderful opportunity to mentor, be mentored, and give back to the community.  
• The Big-Little reveal/ECDA welcome social will be this Friday at 6pm
  • Sophomores- plates, cups, forks/spoons, and drinks
    Juniors- snacks/real food
    Seniors- desserts
• Teal will be returning to Messick next week (9/10) so be sure to welcome her back with open arms!

 CONGRATS!!! 

Congrats to the National Honor Society for Dance Arts for receiving SGA funding for their trip to the National Dance Education Organization in Arizona this fall!  

Congrats to Kanon Sapp and Nichesa Jones for having their works presented in the upcoming Dance@Wright show!  This is the first time that student choreography has been presented on a mainstage show here at ECU so we're especially proud of these two incredible choreographers!  Nichesa will be dancing her senior solo and Kanon has five fabulous dancers performing her final Comp 2 project from last spring.  In fact, Kanon's work has also been accepted to be performed at two venues in New York this fall.  In other words, way to go, Kanon!!!

 (This is the part of the blog where we celebrate YOU! So let me know what you have been up to this summer or if you have received a grant or other awards!)

INSPIRATION FOR THE WEEK

"If you are sad, add more lipstick and attack." - Coco Chanel

"The temptation to quit will be greatest just before you are about to succeed." - Chinese proverb

YAY DANCE!

With love :)

Nicole Gemmell 

East Carolina University, 2016

Dance Performance, BFA

Exercise Sport Sciences, Minor

ECU chapter of the National Honor Society for Dance Arts, President

East Carolina Dance Association, Secretary

And...

John Dixon

Dance Area Coordinator

Dance/NOW: ECU Dance Blog #12

A word from the DAC…

Dancers!

I'm so happy I get to see all of your bright and shining faces in a little over a week!  I hope you have all had truly fabulous summers chock full of exciting adventures, satisfying learning experiences, delicious dancing and, of course, SLEEP!  We have another great year coming up and I wanted to send out some important details so that you can plan ahead. 

One of the most exciting aspects of this year is the presence of our new faculty member, Ji-Eun Lee!  Professor Lee will be serving as a Visiting Assistant Professor for this academic year and will be teaching two levels of both ballet and modern as well as dance history. Originally from South Korea, she has danced internationally and her award-winning choreography has been presented in 25 countries around the world.  Her work is cutting-edge, smart, extremely physical and articulate and fluidly moves within the realms of contemporary ballet and contemporary modern dance.  As a doctoral candidate in dance at the University of Surrey in the UK, Lee has a rich academic background that will provide much in the way of helping to deepen her students' understanding of dance art on every level.  I hope all of you will welcome her with as much excitement and enthusiasm as we feel in bringing her here! 

We also are putting together what we feel is a great roster of guest artists for the year.  Our main residency will be with Zalman Grinberg who danced with NYCB and ABT and now choreographs for Carolina Ballet.  We also have residencies with Megan Bowden, who danced with Urban Bush Women and David Dorfman Dance, and are proud to bring back Tiffany Rae-Fischer, Artistic Director of the Elisa Monte Dance Company in NY. We're working on several other residencies with NY-based choreographers and teachers and will send out updates as soon as those details are in place. 

In addition to our Dance Activities Calendar I'm also attaching our tentative Wright Show Master Rehearsal Schedule for everyone to stay up to date and plan as needed.  Make sure that you review the calendar before school starts.  In particular, please note that we have a number of important events in the first week of school.  The Tap Ensemble auditions on Tuesday, the SoTD mandatory meeting on Thursday and then our Dance 2016 mainstage show auditions will be held on 8/29 from 11:30am to 2:30pm with callbacks from 3-5pm.  This is a quick start to our year so make sure you're actively preparing yourself to do your best dancing!  

That's it for now!  I'm looking forward to having a great year working with all of you and can't wait to get started.

See you soon!!!

John 

John Dixon

Dance Area Coordinator

PS - One note about Dance 2016 rehearsals…

Unless announced otherwise, faculty choreographers for Dance 2016 will not begin their rehearsals until after Fall Break.  In other words don't worry, we're going to start fast but not too fast!  ; )