Northwestern State University’s Dear School of Creative and Performing Arts Department of Theater and Dance presented this year’s spring dance concert, “Dancescapes,” from Feb. 9 to Feb. 11 in the A.A. Fredericks Auditorium.

The spring dance concert featured students in the department, which allowed the dancers to showcase their skills in front of an audience. The only other opportunity for dancers to perform is “Modern in Motion,” which is not held on campus.

There were 19 dancers in “Dancescapes” who performed ballet, tap and contemporary dances choreographed by the dance professors. The music was performed by students in the music department which helped the dancers enhance their performance.

There were five dances in the concert, each with different themes and music. The dances were choreographed by Kirsten Riehl, Brett Garfinkel, Joy Campbell and Rebecca Allen.

Kirsten Riehl, director and professor of dance, directed the concert. Riehl has been involved in the spring dance concert since 2010.

Riehl choreographed two of the dances, “Winter Solstice,” with music composed by Julia Kent, and “Changing Tides,” with music composed and performed by Joshua Webb. Riehl believes events like “Dancescapes” can unite NSU, and support the students and faculty that are up-and-coming artists.

Brett Garfinkel, the chair of the department of Theatre and Dance, choreographed a piece titled “A Minimalist Coupling.” Garfinkel has been involved in the Spring Dance Concert since 2012.

According to Garfinkel, “Dancescapes” was special because the dances are not all connected. They each tell their own story, or no story at all. Some of the dances, like his own, are choreographed and performed in a way to make people think, and simply experience the event.

“My approach to this work is different from others in the sense of using musicians in the percussion ensemble as true collaborators in the work,” Garfinkel said. “I am interested in exploring ways to incorporate the musicians more freely with the dancers and having them interact more with each other.”

Josie Randle, a freshman theatre major, was one of the students in attendance at the 2023 spring dance concert.
“My favorite part about the dance concert was the story you could piece together through the dancing,” Randle said. “The way they incorporated the musicians was fun to see as well.”