Student Choreography Featured in Manhattanville College's Annual Fall Dance Concert

Six Manhattanville College students have spent the semester studying the art of choreography, learning both the artistic and professional aspects, and are taking what they’ve learned to create the featured performances in this year’s Fall Dance Concert.

This semester’s student choreographers are Micaela Abernethy’16, Marykate Breidenbach’16, Rachel Johnson’16, Maria Piccininni ‘16, Jess Roller’17 and Amanda Sirakowski ’16, all of whom are working under the tutelage of renowned Choreographer and Manhattanville’s Artist-in-Residence Peter Pucci.

“The students are required to audition dancers, spend four hours a week in rehearsals, they are also responsible for booking rehearsal space, and having their ideas prepared each week,” says Pucci, who is directing the dance concert. “At the end of the process, students leave with a respect for the craft of choreography.”

In addition to the students choreographed pieces, the dance concert will also include guest artist performances from Ara Fitzgerald, director of the Dance and Theatre Department at Manhattanville, and alumna and professional dancer Tessa Grunwald ’11. This year’s guest choreographer is Lawrence Goldhuber, artistic director of Big Man Arts and professional dancer for more than two decades who started with the Bill T. Jones Dance Company.

His piece entitled “Life during Wartime” explores the millennial’s sense of apathy towards war.

“Our country has been at war the entire lifetime of the students I have performing in this piece,” says Goldhuber, “But it doesn’t seem to have any impact on our lives. Somehow things have remained business as usual.”

The piece features a dozen dancers dressed in corporate suits while performing Goldhuber’s rich choreography.

The concert will take place from Thursday Nov. 20 through Saturday Nov. 22 at 8 p.m., and concluding with a 2 p.m. matinee performance on Nov.23. Admission is $5 with a Manhattanville I.D. or $10 for the general public. All shows will take place in The Little Theatre in Brownson Hall at Manhattanville College, 2900 Purchase Street, Purchase, N.Y.

For reservations call (914)323-7175.