Excitement was in the air as ushers made the call for audience members to take their seats at the Evert B. Person Theatre Friday. 

As the show began, the spotlight was on student dancer Farrah McAdams. McAdams, a senior, who was also in Fall Dance this past semester was the first performer onstage in the Spring Dance Concert 2016, an annual event that featured 26 dancers this year.

This first performance, “In the Absence,”  had a contemporary feel and was choreographed by Kristen Daley with the help of some of the dancers.
Unfortunately, the performance was challenging for viewers as it provided a storyline that was difficult to follow.

“The first and last dance [before intermission] were confusing, I couldn’t understand the stories that were being portrayed and the dances were all very intense,” said Vanessa Thoa, a freshman bio-chemistry major. “It was hard to grasp the concepts and meaning of those two dances.”

From the very beginning the dance was confusing. More specifically, there were too many dancers to follow in this piece making it a little overwhelming. Overall, it was beautiful to see the heights that these dancers could go to.

What made this dance stand out was the original music from composer Jesse Olsen Bay. His music was electronic and even space-like. The dancers were also on point with the music throughout this dance and seemed to hit every clink and pop of the music with moves that surprised the audience.

The second dance of the performance was called “Modus” and choreographed by Eric Handman. This dance felt modern and was one of the few dances where the costumes were saturated with color.

The music, which was played by Brandan Wolcott and Emil Abramyan, was upbeat and happy. There was nothing confusing about this piece since the storyline was pretty clear.

“Modus” was a fun piece to watch, and it seemed as if the dancers were very proud of this dance based off the confidence that seemed to beam from the dancers’ faces.

One of the most enjoyable dances was the third dance of the night called “Cease.” This dance was choreographed by Jennifer Meek with the help of the dancers as well.

What was special about this piece were a lot of aspects such as lighting, sound, powerpoints and costumes that made the piece come together beautifully. This number touched on difficult topics such as gun violence and drug and alcohol abuse, and the choreographer knew exactly how to express these topics that our world faces everyday.

“My favorite dance of the night was ‘Cease,’” said Thoa. “The lighting went well with the dance and I was able to follow it.”

Spring Dance Concert performers Anjelica Martinez and Katy Waechter expressed their thoughts on the the performance and their preparation for the show.

“Opening weekend is a crazy stressful time for all of us,” said Martinez, a senior double major in psychology and dance. “I feel relieved, but at the same time melancholy that opening weekend is already over. We put a ton of work into this show over the semester for a handful of performances that go by way too quickly, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“The first show is always nerve-wracking and the end is always bittersweet. I feel accomplished tohave completed one of many, and sad as that means it will be over so soon,” said Waechter, a junior double major in business marketing and theater arts. “It was a small but mighty crowd.”