As the velvet blue curtains rose, dancers stood on stage, poised and ready to perform. An excited audience greeted them with cheers and applause, and the first song began to play.
They have a lot to say — and they have composed the pieces to say it. “Room to Dance” is an annual show hosted by Santa Fe College Fine Arts and Entertainment Technology.
The students choreograph the 11 pieces, which are performed by a group of 28 dancers. After the show, the choreographers host a Q&A for the audience, explaining the “why” behind the pieces.
Melissa Brenner, the director of the show and a Santa Fe assistant professor, said she’s got the best seat in the house.
“I know what they went through, and I have all that background knowledge,” she said. “I’m really just excited to see them take the stage.”
Brenner has directed the show for over five years. She said each class seems to grow more talented.
“I have seen the kind of talent that I can’t believe from an 18-year-old, 19-year-old, 20-year-old,” Brenner said. “I think each generation has something different they want to say to the world.”
The students began preparing for the show last Fall. They are enrolled in a class called “Dance Composition,” where they learn different styles of dance and choreographing skills.
At the end of the Spring semester, the students come up with their choreography and begin a seven-week rehearsal process.
“Room to Dance” has been an annual performance for over 25 years. The first show was performed in a dance studio the performers used as a makeshift theater.
They made it a “room to dance,” Brenner said, a name that’s stuck with the show ever since. Now, the shows are hosted at Santa Fe’s Fine Arts Hall in the auditorium.
“Room to Dance” was performed two nights, June 12 and 13
Lucas Hollis, a 20-year-old dance junior, said his solo piece “After the Applause” is based on his personal experiences.
It’s about the emotional weight people silently carry and their struggle through it, he said.
Hollis said he selected the music based on what he felt and what he could move to.
“My proudest moment is probably just being able to show the vulnerability and show the rawness of the music and really honing in on what my movement means,” he said. “Really just making people feel things.”
He also said knew he wanted to dance since he was young when he saw his sister on stage.
He danced in four other performances in the show, and he’s most excited to showcase his and his fellow dancers’ growth, he said.
Gylla Macgregor, a 19-year-old dance junior, said her group piece, titled “Korrosion,” is based loosely on the poem “Dante’s Inferno.”
The piece explores themes of escapism, desperation and reflection, she said.
Macgregor said her piece was mostly choreographed in the moment. She listened to the music and danced through it.
She danced in five other performances in the show.
“There’s so much diversity in the show, so many different styles,” she said. “I think the new generation is really pushing boundaries … that's going to be really cool to see through dance.”
Contact Tess Lippincott at tlippincott@alligator.org. Follow her on X @tesslippincott.
Tess Lippincott is a third-year journalism major, spanish minor, and meteorology and climatology certificate student. This is Tess' first semester at the Alligator and first time on the university desk. She also works as a deputy editor for WUFT-FM. In her free time, Tess loves playing pickleball, running, and reading. If she's not working you can find her with her roommates and friends.
