Young artists need to be in an environment where they can question their own work in a somewhat public environment. In dance classes at Hollins, students learn not just dance technique but also how to express themselves, verbally and with movement. They learn that dance is not just a way of doing, but a way of thinking. I firmly believe that movement has knowledge. I learn from it not only when I improvise with movement, perform, or choreograph, but also when I teach movement and watch my students learning, rehearsing, improvising, making their own dances, and performing.
Dance is the physicalization of ideas, emotions, and the spirit.
Although most of the dancer's training is physical, my classes focus on the need to integrate the body with the creative, emotional, mental, and spiritual self. At Hollins, students learn to participate and thrive in the world of dance. Course work and exposure to professionals and scholars in the field of modern dance, combined with opportunities both on and off campus, prepare students to reach beyond their assumptions about dance. The Hollins Repertory Dance Company gives students the opportunity to perform on a professional level, with gratifying results. A recent performance at the Southwest Region American College Dance Festival in California brought rave reviews from adjudicators and an invitation to the national American College Dance Festival held in College Park, Maryland.