“10: The Katrina Project” infused aspects of all visual arts, and was based off
of the experiences of all the choreographer’s during the storm.
The Lion's Roar/Larshell Green
Silence filled the Vonnie Borden Theatre last week as dancers, choreographers and musicians captivated audiences in a production inspired by Hurricane Katrina’s 10th anniversary.
Southeastern’s Dance Performance Project presented an InterArts concert called “10: The Katrina Project” from Thursday, October 15 to Friday, October 16.
The cast consisted of choreographers Lindsy Brown, Joseph Matherne and Christa Clement-Sevin, who also danced during the concert. The dancers included: Connie Adams, Haley Bruch, Forrest Duplantier, Hayley Jordan, Lillian Marcus, Alexis May, Lauren Larson and Grace Taffaro. Musicians Matt Hawkins, Chance Phillips and Blayke Weatherford created music and performed alongside the dancers, and Rebecca Miller was the costume designer for the performance.
“InterArts is a fusion of dance, movement, visual arts and music as the base for artistic expression and exploration,” said dance instructor, artistic director and choreographer of the concert Skip Costa. “A true work of art combines all of these elements and incorporates them into a true collaborative process and production.”
The InterArts fused dance, student musicians and costume design.
“This project brought all the arts together, not separately. We are all in visual arts, so why not share the stage,” said senior general studies major Brown. “We’re one as a unit, but do different things on the stage.”
Costa believes that using an InterArts approach in productions gives participants the opportunity to enjoy a variety of InterArts at once.
“I liked when there was scattered chaos, but some dancers were in unison and the ending duet,” said freshman math major Annie Goodman. “It was very chilling and impactful.”
The student-based production was inspired by the choreographer’s own experiences with Hurricane Katrina. During the storm, Costa was in New York and could not get in touch with his family.
“I lost all communication with my mom for a couple of weeks,” said Costa. “It was like reliving 9/11 when my mom couldn’t contact me for a couple of weeks. It created a parallelism that was an inspiration for the production.”
Dancers were chosen through an open call in May based on movement quality, their commitment to exploring new movement vocabulary and being fully committed to the idea of doing a production based on Hurricane Katrina. Choreographers had to write essays that validated how their choreography related to Katrina.
“While choosing choreography, I thought [about] what Skip would do,” said Brown. “I wanted the audience to know that what happened was serious, but to move forward and see it as an uplifting event instead of a tragedy.”
The set designed by associate professor in the Department of Fine and Performing Arts, Jeff Mickey, was 29 feet long and 11.5 feet tall.
Costa wants people who visited the performance to remember that lives were lost and to remember how Hurricane Katrina affected them.
“It can still happen again, but there is still hope and we can survive it,” said Costa. “I want them to experience something, to be touched and moved. I want them to feel the power of dance and how it can change lives and heal people.”
Costa encourages students who are inspired by dance to take dance courses at Southeastern. He teaches dance at all levels, from beginning to advanced. For more information, contact Skip Costa at [email protected].