NATCHITOCHES – Three graduating senior dance students at Northwestern State University will present original works and perform solos at the annual Senior Dance Concert on Saturday, April 13, at 7 p.m. in the A.A Fredericks Auditorium. Admission is free and open to the public.
The concert will feature works by Cullen Barrilleaux of New Orleans, Star Davis of Natchitoches and Carleigh Murphy of Meadville, Pennsylvania, and solos by each graduating senior. Barrilleaux, Davis and Murphy will receive a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance in May.
Barrilleaux’s work is called “tidal gloom. tidal gloom” and is based on the Mexican folklore story of La Llorona.
“The piece depicts the mental and emotional battles someone faces while fighting depression and suicidal thoughts using La Llorona herself as a personification of death,” she said.
Performing the work are Gabrielle Marino of Lafayette, Nicole Miller of Rayville, Ellie Dufrene of Covington, Khuyen Tran of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jillian Duggan of Shreveport, Journey Wills of New Orleans and Allyce Richards of Fort Johnson.
Davis’ work “I am SHE; SHE is ME” is a visual portrayal that showcases the inner reflection of Davis’ perception of herself while dancing.
“I invite the audience to experience a transformative journey as I explore the depths of my own thoughts and feelings through my artistic interpretation,” Davis said. “As a performer in dance, you are deeply connected to your inner self. Our reflection in the mirror not only captures our physical movement, but also reflects our confidence, poise, sensationalism and sass when we dance. As dancers, we must be able to reflect on ourselves to understand who we are and what defines us.”
Davis said being a member of the dance company for the past four years has given her the opportunity to grow and develop as a dancer.
“Throughout this journey, I have discovered who I am as a performer, owning my skills and refining my style,” Davis said. “Now, the time has come for me to share this revelation with my dancers to enable them to relate to that ‘inner me’ that has thus far remained hidden.”
The performers of the piece are Tran, Wills, Ashanta Wilson of Leesville, Ariyonna Sarpy of Natchitoches and Cameron Bruno and Jaeda Barrett of New Orleans.
Murphy’s work is titled “Bleeding Silver” and is inspired by a dance that was choreographed by a teacher Murphy had when she was younger. Murphy believes the teacher shaped her into the dancer she is today and inspired her to pursue dance in a more serious way at that early age.
“I was not a performer in the original piece, but I remember the feeling I got when watching it for the first time, and having an overwhelming love for the choreography, costumes and music of the piece,” Murphy said. “I took that feeling and memory and created my own piece that symbolizes something different from the original.”
According to Murphy, silver represents power, strength and confidence.
“I have an all-female cast, so through the movement and choreography my dancers embody strong confident women while they dance,” Murphy said. “I also told my dancers that I want the meaning of the dance to be personal to them. I told them to think about a moment in their dance career where they have been inspired. Whether it’s a performance, teacher, peer, etc., I want them to remember that feeling while they are performing.”
The cast is Bruno, Marino, Barrett, Miller and Makynli Delcambre of New Iberia.
