By Hazel Scott
Alabama State University’s BFA dancers are travelling to Long Beach, California on May 26-28 to perform in the American College Dance Association’s (ACDA) National College Dance Festival at the Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center.
The BFA dancers will join 34 colleges and universities from around the country in celebration of ACDA’s 50th anniversary as the largest organization serving dance in higher education in the United States.
“The 34 dancers performing at the National College Dance Festival were chosen for their artistic excellence from each of ACDA’s 11 regional conferences around the country. Alabama State University is proud that its BFA program is recognized for its excellence,” said Jerome Stigler, who choreographed the dancers’ performance.
Stigler noted that nationally recognized panels of adjudicators selected the works to be presented at the National Festival.
The National Festival offers audiences an opportunity to view the next generation of dancers and choreographers in three different programs. The choreography in each program represents a breadth of styles and themes created by guest artists, faculty, and graduate and undergraduate students. Highlighting the ongoing American tradition of dance as a medium to investigate a wide range of aesthetic, emotional and social issues, dances in the National Festival delve into the nature of human relationships and interactions, explore the joy and beauty of pure movement or powerfully reflect the current political and social climate.
“With exciting and varied choreography and ferocious dancing by emerging artists, the Festival reflects the vitality of dance across the country,” stated Executive Director Diane DeFries in a news release.
The 2023 National College Dance Festival is co-sponsored by the CSU/Long Beach Department of Dance and is made possible by the generous support of Harlequin Floors, Dance Media, Dance Magazine, lifetime members of ACDA and individual donors.