CLAS Acts November 2022
Monthly newsletter of the TT faculty of CLAS
A Note from Dean Drake
What a stunning West Michigan fall we’ve had! I’ve so enjoyed getting into the woods and out to the lakeshore to make the most of all this beauty, and I’ve also had the great pleasure of attending a variety of in-person events on our now-lively campus. Here are some of November’s offerings:
- GVSU Arts Celebration presents "South Chicago Dance Theatre: Energy | Power | Grace", Nov. 7,7 p.m., in the Louis Armstrong Theatre. Arrive early for this one and read more about it in our feature article below.
- Check out the program and make some time for the annual Teach-In on Nov. 9-10.
- On Saturday, Nov. 12, round up the kids for STEM activities on the Allendale campus for Energizing our Weekend.
- Nov. 16 is open projector night for Cinespace at the Wealthy Theatre, 6:30 p.m.
- Nov. 18 offers several options: we are holding our last CLAS Faculty Research Colloquium for this fall (2:30 -5 p.m. 308 PAD), Jeffrey Byrnes (PHI) will be speaking on Ethical Decision-Making in Healthcare at the Philosophy Colloquium (3-4:30 p.m. MAK BLL-110), and Theatre begins the run of Gloria (7:30 p.m., Louis Armstrong Theatre).
- After Thanksgiving, Giving Tuesday is November 29, and we hope you will consider supporting Replenish (the student food pantry) and the CLAS Fellowships for Liberal Education In Action.
It truly is harvest time, reaping what we have sown. Many of you have advocated for a cluster hire in CLAS, and it is fast becoming a reality. Our newly hired CLAS Project Manager in the CLAS Center for Experiential Education and Community Engagement joins us today so please watch for the official announcement in tomorrow’s CLAS Weekly Mailing. A couple weeks ago, the Repair Clinic provided its 526th free service to students thanks to faculty and staff volunteers. And a GVNext article officially announced our CLAS Scholar-in-Residence, Dr. Henry Luttikhuizen.
I also want to remind you about the CLAS Fund for Liberal Education in Action which supports student access to HIPs.
As the parent of a college student, I know that Thanksgiving break provides a special opportunity for students to show their friends and family who they are becoming. This is both glorious and a bit uncomfortable. If you have a chance to encourage your students to reflect on their journey so far, they may feel better prepared to speak to that over the break.
As I fly between meetings, I’m often taken with the beauty of our campus and how thankful I am for you. Our college is already impressive, and we continue to move together in the direction of our aspirations.
Best,
Jen
Generous and Intentional—Empowering Leadership in Dance
GVSU Arts Celebration
South Chicago Dance Theatre: Energy | Power | Grace
Monday, November 7, 2022. 7 - 8:30 p.m.
Louis Armstrong Theatre, Haas Center for the Performing Arts, Allendale campus
Seamlessly fusing classical and contemporary dance styles, South Chicago Dance Theatre, a leader in the Chicago dance scene, will perform an evening of recently commissioned work from nationally acclaimed choreographers.
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Dance Professor Carrie Brueck Morris started seeing the name Kia Smith popping up over and over on social media. Smith is the founder of the South Chicago Dance Theatre, so, with her colleague Hannah Seidel, Carrie decided a road trip was in order. In May they attended a performance that convinced them that this troupe was first rate, high energy, and lived up to the hype.
“This is real, the place to be,” Carrie knew. “Hannah and I had a quite a conversation on the way back.”
Smith has BFA in Dance from Western Michigan University and an MFA from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. As it turns out, new GVSU Assistant Professor Edgar L. Page overlapped with Smith during his time at Western.
“I always try to find up-and-coming, starting-to-peak dancers to bring to GVSU,” Carrie explains. “I contacted Kia and found her to be generous, kind, an amazing human. She asked what she could bring to us, what she could do with our students. She was familiar with us and knew we have good dancers.”
As it turns out, Kia Smith will hold an audition while at GVSU for our students. She will teach classes in ballet, modern, and choreography. GVSU Students will also work backstage supporting lighting and sound.
“She was really looking to add to what we have and to build relationships.”
Edgar is also very enthusiastic about his experiences with Kia. During his time at Western, Edgar started a student group called Ebony Vision which Kia joined. “It was a space for students of color to bond despite the way classes are structures,” Edgar notes. “Kia is intentional about offering others a vision of themselves as leaders. Her family was influenced by the Chicago jazz scene—her musician father and singer mother set the stage. You see in her choreography innate musicality which honors her lineage. She sets up spaces that resonate—they expand but also have clear boundaries. She finds opportunities based on what is going on in the world.”
As female choreographers of color began to be on people’s radar, Kia Smith made the most of it, celebrating the voices not usually heard. “She started that while she was still in grad school,” Edgar recalls. “We started our companies months apart and talked about the journey and reached out to our networks. She visited me at the Dayton Contemporary Dance Company and went on to fill her resumé time with black dance leaders, especially women. She picked up the best from each experience.”
Edgar is impressed with how Kia went right back to her roots and started in school in her original neighborhood. He sees her not thinking about competition so much as community and notes that she rents spaces that put money back into the community as well as teaching at many different studios where she has worked.
“She’s an influencer. She makes intentional connections. She documents what is happening powerfully and bravely journeys as the world evolves.” Edgar saw this bravery in her response to the pandemic. While many companies shuttered, she was producing broadcasts and her troupe rehearsed and performed in masked pods with choreography created on Zoom and employing lower density.
Edgar sees Kia’s work as providing a bridge for emerging artists to the professional world outside the college cocoon of safety. Calling her “sweet and authentic and the embodiment of the adage that all who wander are not lost”, Edgar coins “wonder lust” to describe her combination of sought out experiences and empowerment of other leaders. “She promoted one of her senior dancers to a leadership role rather than going outside the company.”
Carrie and Edgar agree that the South Chicago Dance Theatre is very well described by their tag line Energy, Power, Grace”. They feel that brands this athletic fusion of dance genres. They are also excited that the program will bring to GVSU the work not only of Kia Smith’s choreography but also that of Ron De Jesus, Stephanie Martinez and Wade Schaaf.
The November 7 performance is likely to be very popular the GVSU Arts Celebration strongly recommends arriving at least 15 minutes before the performance to avoid disappointment.