San Jacinto College South Campus remembers two decades of movement
By Melissa Trevizo
The San Jacinto College South Campus is celebrating Twenty Years of Dance, marking the anniversary of the Campus' dance program.
In 1999, Dr. Suzanne Oliver was approved to turn dance at the South Campus from a physical education credit into a full-fledged fine arts program with the goal of educating dancers and exposing them to as much professional choreography and experiences possible.
"I joined the program on scholarship in 2001 after high school, under the direction of Dr. Oliver," said Jennifer Salter, dance adjunct faculty and alumna. "I fully credit my love for modern dance and teaching in higher education to my start at San Jac. The program, along with Dr. Oliver, gave me a strong foundation for my educational career as well as a greater passion for concert and academic dance."
Salter, who has been on the dance faculty at San Jacinto College since 2014, is excited to share her experience along with other alumni at the celebration this fall.
"I feel very grateful to have maintained relationships with so many pillars of this program and I am thrilled to be able to bring them back to San Jac for the reunion," Salter said. "To us this is celebrating 20 years of fighting for art, finding joy in movement, cultivating young creators, and watching students blossom into educated professionals both in and out of dance."
The celebration will take place over a two-day period Friday, Nov. 22 and Saturday, Nov. 23, including a dance concert Friday evening.
"Our current students will be working with former professors and alumni to perform either new pieces created by them or older works that were originally choreographed 10 plus years ago here at San Jac," said Jamie Williams, dance professor. "We've also invited alumni who are still working professional dancers to revive pieces they performed while students."
Four alumni including Tuesday Boswell and Seth McPhail will return to not only reprise choreography they performed as students, but will also join former professors in conducting master classes on Friday and Saturday morning. These classes will be free to the community to expose them to different methods of choreography and to learn from the best that San Jacinto College has to offer.
"There will be eight master classes, four each day and they are open to everyone," Williams said. "You don't have to be a student in our program, or an alumnus to attend. We would love to see students from local high schools, studios and dance teams join us for these classes."
Saturday evening the celebration will culminate with a reception in the San Jacinto College South Campus Gallery, showcasing photos and videos from throughout the program's 20 years.
"Alumni and friends of the program will be able to walk throughout the gallery space and reminisce about past performances and catch up with one another," Williams said.
To learn more about the Twenty Years of Dance celebration and the dance program at San Jacinto College South Campus, visit facebook.com/sjcsdance.