Remembering music legends through dance
Advanced dance students rehearse their dance to David Bowie’s Fame.
With Fine Arts Week only a week away, we have taken a few moments to speak with Michelle Scurlock Jensen and Anna Sapozhnikov, the dance teachers at York, about their choreography for the Advanced Dance Concert. The performance will take place on Feb. 25 in the Black Box Studio during second and third period.
“Last year, the FAW [Fine Arts Week] Dance Performance was inspired by Musical Theatre/Broadway shows that represented the best of dance,” said Sapozhnikov. “Ms. Jensen and I wanted to do something different this year.”
After the death of David Bowie, Sapozhnikov felt inspired to choreograph dances to music by artists who had passed. She began with Ella Fitzgerald’s Too Darn Hot, a piece featuring classical jazz dance. In an effort to also represent the Modern and hip hop styles of dance, Sapozhnikov and Jensen chose David Bowie’s Fame and Amy Winehouse’s Valerie.
“Fame was created as an extension of our Modern technique classes, utilizing movement that explores the floor and travels through space,” said Sapozhnikov. “For a smooth hip hop centered piece, Winehouse’s Valerie is used. Finally, Ms. Jensen and I chose to combine our Intermediate Dance classes and created a modern dance work to John Lennon’s Imagine.”
Senior Darcy Kummerow will also be performing a self choreographed solo to Louis Armstrong.
Laura Swain, senior at York, is a Co-Editor in Chief for York-hi. She has been a dancer for 10 years and teaches ballet at the Elmhurst Park District....
