Student dance group makes Impact

By Robyn Melamed

Daily Arts Writer

University Activities Center presents the winter production of Impact Dance Theatre this weekend. The show consists of several different styles of dance, including lyrical, pointe, tap and jazz, and will be performed to modern-day popular music. Co-chair Becky Kraft said she thinks that with the popular music, the production will be "appealing to a wide range of audience members, even those without any knowledge of dance."

Impact Dance Theatre is a student-run group that is only open to non-dance majors. This allows students from every neck of the woods the freedom to use their creative expression. This year, the company consists of 10 women, although men have been involved in the past. Rather than a precision dance group, Impact Dance concentrates on performance. "Playing to our audience is our specialty," Kraft said. "All of the girls are wonderful dancers, but they all have different strengths, so we try to showcase those strengths and work individually and as a team."

Being a student-run group is exciting because the dancers are completely responsible for the choreography of the show. "The show ends up having such wonderful variety and combines so many different ideas and disciplines," Kraft said. This eclectic mix of choreography is rarely seen in dance performances, making Impact Dance interesting and, overall, more fun to watch.

On top of the choreography, the dancers are also responsible for costuming themselves and the publicity of the event. The production is entirely in the hands of the performers, which strengthens the bond between the girls. "We all realize that it will take all 10 of us to make the show a success, and so we work together," Kraft said. "There is a sense of sisterhood."

The cast expects this production of Impact Dance will be better than years past. "Every year the company goes through a little growth spurt," Kraft said. "This year that growth was even larger than in years past ... we will be better prepared at the show time and deliver an even better performance."

In the past, the guest performance has been a vocal or musical group. This year, Comedy Company will perform, and Kraft thinks this will "make for a fun twist on the traditional show."

The audience should also expect to see the performers having a great time. The technical aspects will be there, but the energy and expression will shine through. Kraft said, "We dance because we love it, and that really comes across to the audience when we are on stage."