Tag Archives: Dance

Presentation of Student Projects

May 04, 2012   Gina Butler

Destiny Greer and Mirannda Lindberg hosted an informal concert free of charge on Tuesday, May 1, 2012, within the Lucille Norton Health and Physical Education Complex.

The concert featured four original pieces of choreography. Lindberg, a senior dance major, choreographed a solo piece for herself and a group piece for 11 dancers. Greer, a senior communication studies major, choreographed both a hip-hop piece and modern piece.

Since the concert was student led and student ran, Greer and Lindberg were responsible for all facets of the production, ranging from holding auditions to finding students to work as tech crew.

For Lindberg, the two pieces of choreography served as two honors contracts for the SFA Honors Program. Honors contracts are additional projects that students, under the guidance of a faculty member, may complete for honors credit.

Lindberg’s solo piece titled “Drifting Alongside My Mind” was an honors contract for the Rhythmic Analysis of Dance Movement course.

“I had to compose my own piece of music and choreograph a dance that would both complement and accentuate the rhythmic pattern of the music,” Lindberg said.

The solo told the story of Lindberg’s personal struggles throughout the semester. “I focused on the kind of pushing and pulling your thoughts do when you just have too much to do and not enough time to do it in,” Lindberg said. “You’ve just got to keep going.”

Lindberg’s group number titled “The Ophelia Tours” served as an honors contract for Modern Dance III. To fulfill the honors contract Lindberg had to choreograph a work that included the four modern techniques studied throughout the semester.

“My task was to use each of the techniques given to us from the four choreographers we study in class and create a complete work without losing myself as a choreographer,” Lindberg said. “The piece had to be engaging and have the principle elements of each technique.”

“The Ophelia Tours” told the story of women in Victorian asylums. Lindberg decided to run with this idea after learning one of her favorite musical artists, Emily Autumn, was inspired by Victorian asylums herself.

“It intrigued me,” Lindberg said. “I thought more along the lines of what if I could make this project more profound by having an underlying historical theme portrayed in this dark, almost creepy circus atmosphere.”

The piece featured 10 female dancers and one male dancer. The cast was dressed in romantic and classical tutus to add to the Victorian feel of the piece. In addition, tulle was placed on the headpieces to appear as if the dancers wore veils.

Just as Lindberg’s pieces were part of an honors contract, Greer’s modern piece served as an independent study assignment for her major. “I had to present a creative work of art showing the aspects of work-life balance and the tension it creates,” Greer said. To reveal the changing roles, dancers would take on and off an apron over their business attire.

In addition, Greer choreographed a hip-hop number titled “Not As It Seems.” This piece featured four dancers. Within the piece, three of the dancers acted as spies while the fourth acted as the victim of a crime.

“The dancers learned the hip hop all in one day, the Sunday before the show” Greer said. “I was about to release them when I saw Ty laying on the ground looking dead, then she did something really cool and dropped back to the floor. I thought hey we could be spies trying to solve her murder.”

One of the biggest challenges for Lindberg and Greer was the lack of time. “The time restraints didn’t help,” Lindberg said. “Let’s just say I’m surprised but glad we pulled it off.”

Even though the process proved quite stressful for Lindberg and Greer, the hard work paid off in the end. “My favorite part of the process was seeing it all come to fruition onstage,” Lindberg said. “That moment, watching the audience enjoying the pieces and getting feedback from the dance professors, made it all so very worth it.”

Gina.N.Butler@gmail.com

 

 

 

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3rd Annual project Unity

April 23, 2012   Marcus Reynolds

This past Friday, April 20, 2012, the office of multi-cultural affairs at Stephen F. Austin State University put on the 3rd annual project unity step show for the student body. It brought out a crowd of about 1000 people from many different Greek and non-Greek backgrounds.

The show consisted of 3 teams composed of mixed Greek organizations. These organizations were Alpha Phi Alpha and Alpha Chi Omega, Omega Delta Phi and Delta Delta Delta, and Sigma Lambda Beta and Zeta Tau Alpha. Each team worked together to promote greek unity across the SFA campus. The teams practiced for months at a time to put on the performance of their lives in front of a panel of judges that consisted of members of SFA faculty and staff, but the real judges were the people sitting out in the stands.

To start off the show, SFA student, Virginia Durham, sung the national anthem and then the main part of the show began. Alpha Phi Alpha and Alpha Chi Omega started off the show with a performance that was themed Mafia. They began their performance breaking into the bank and stealing the money. Then they were trying to figure out how they were going to get out of the bank without getting caught. Alpha Phi Alpha showed Alpha Chi Omega their way of getting out then Alpha Chi Omega did the reverse. If they were to get caught they had to come up with a way to persuade the cop to let them off. If it was to be a girl cop the boys would serenate them with some risqué dance moves to persuade the woman cop while Alpha Chi Omega chose to seduce the male cop.

Next up to perform was Omega Delta Phi and Delta Delta Delta; they did not have a theme to their performance. So to wow the judges they stepped hard and danced harder. Their steps were together and even the girls from Delta Delta Delta were getting down and stepping just as hard as they boys. Of course they could not leave the stage without wooing the crowd; they put on a tasteful sexual dance that was a crowd pleaser for some.

Last but not least was Sigma Lamda Beta and Zeta Tau Alpha  with a theme titled “Stomp the Yard 11.” They were trying out to be in the movie Stomp the Yard in New York City. To show they deserved to be in the movie they stomped their hearts out. Once they made past their audition and they found out they got the part in the movie they went to New York and stepped and of course they could not be left out with the sexual dances.

In between the performance to give the judges a chance to tally up their points and collect their thoughts of each performance they had intermission. During the intermissions there were different performances, Kierra Dixon did her own rendition of Alicia Keys Unthinkable; she had the crowd standing with applause. Then Krumping Slow Dance Organization did a dance routine that had the crowd watching in amazement.

After the deliberation the teams were brought back out and the winners were announced. In second place was Sigma Lambda Beta and Zeta Tau Alpha. They received a trophy as their prize for their performance, in first place was Alpha Phi Alpha and Alpha Chi Omega. They received a larger trophy and a grand prize of $5000 to split between the two organizations equally. Alpha Phi Alpha is now on a 2 year win streak and have hopes of continuing to win for years to come.

“I look forward to this time of the spring semester every year. Stepping is what I live for. Its how i clear my head.” He went on to say,” This unfortunately will be my last stepshow. I am going to retire as step master and pass the torch to one of my younger neophytes. I think I’ve prepared them to bring home another trophy without me,” said Step master, Mario Perez.

Below is a video link of the winning teams step.

Alpha Phi Alpha And Alpha Chi Omega Winning Performance Clip

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Kaitlyn Porterfield Performs at Miss Greek

April 23, 2012   Will Hackney

Kaitlyn Porterfield at Miss Greek

hackneywr@titan.sfasu.edu

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Jack Attack Reigns Supreme

April 23, 2012   Gina Butler

Members of Jack Attack gather around trophy and banner after winning at nationals in Daytona Beach, Florida. Pictured are Cinzia Ballou, Angel Besanceney, ShiConna Carter, Stefania Castro, Brittney Crawford, Sarah De La Rosa, Ariel Gilbert, Destiny Greer, Bryana Guttman, Caity Houston, Catherine Lane, Lauren McCraw, Chess Parchman, Brittany Pierce, Alex Ragan, Megan Rogers, Tasia Sapp and Kayla Stafford. Jack Attack is under the direction of TJ Maple and Sarah Drolet.

Established in 2009, Jack Attack, SFA’s hip hop team, has left a mark on not only SFA and the surrounding Nacogdoches community but on the nation. The 18 member team just recently claimed first place at the NCA/NDA Collegiate Cheer and Dance Championship held in Daytona Beach on April 11 to 15.

The team competed in the Hip Hop Division I category against 11 other universities. With a final score of 9.522, Jack Attack came in first with the University of North Carolina-Charlotte and Idaho State University ranking second and third.

Jack Attack members learned their nationals routine in January from Denise Galjour, the LSU Tiger Girls Dance Team coach. Galjour also choreographed Jack Attack’s nationals routine last year which placed fourth in the same division.

“Denise is very inspirational and pushes you to your limits,” Kayla Stafford, sophomore dance major and Jack Attack member, said. “She believed that we could definitely win and made sure our routine was worthy of winning.”

The girls continued to work on the routine through both the Spring Break and Easter Break holidays. In addition, they had practice Monday through Friday from 6 to 8 a.m. and on most Saturdays from 9 to 11 a.m.

“The hardest part for both the team and I was tricks,” Stafford said. “We had to make sure every individual, partner and group trick hit.”

For the competition, Jack Attack members wore baggy tanks that read “SFA,”  black harem pants and black and purple boots. The inside of their shirts included an “Angry Axe” face. This was revealed when the dancers raised their shirts over their head. To show their talent at dancing together, the girls used the shirt to take away one of their most important senses, their eyesight.

To bring the look together, the girls spent hours preparing their hair and make-up. “Hair and make-up took pretty much all day,” Stafford explained. “We each got 4 cornrows on the left side of our head from Tasia Sapp and then teased out the rest of our hair.”

For their make-up, Stefania Castro, a fellow Jack Attack member, did the team’s eyeshadow. “We also applied silver eyeshadow under our lipstick,” Stafford added.

Members will receive their championship rings next fall at a SFA football game. “The ring symbolizes all of our blood, sweat and tears,” Stafford said. “It’s a reward for our hard work.”

In addition to competing at nationals, Jack Attack performs at home volleyball and women’s basketball games. They also can be seen at homecoming, the Battle of Chief Caddo and throughout the community.

As the 2011-2012 school year draws to a close, auditions for next year’s team approach. Auditions will be held April 27 and 28 in the William R. Johnson Coliseum. Jack Attack candidates should have hip hop experience and upper body strength to perform tricks such as head stands and stalls.

For further information about Jack Attack or the tryout process, contact TJ Maple, head coach, at (936) 468-1604 or e-mail him at maplejv@sfasu.edu. You can also find more information on the Spirit Team website.

“The feeling after winning was the absolute best feeling ever,” Stafford said. “I hope next year Jack Attack can be just as successful and have a strong family bond again.”

Lauren McCraw Interview

Gina.N.Butler@gmail.com

 

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Spirit Teams Put on a Show at Nationals

April 17, 2012   Samantha Emerson

Universities like the University of Texas and Louisiana State University draw students in with their history of consistently being at the top of the ranks in Division I football. Schools like Duke and Baylor showcase their successes in basketball. For Stephen F. Austin, our enormous organization of “Spirit Teams” is our strong suit.  SFA Spirit Teams is consisted of Large Co-ed cheerleading, small co-ed cheerleading, Pom Squad, and Jack Attack.

All four teams have anywhere from eighteen to thirty-five members, and all four teams have seen an extreme amount of success since the introduction of our first cheerleading team, over eighty years ago. The SFA cheerleading program won it’s first NCA (National Cheerleading Association) title in 1994 under head Coach Jeff Dickerson. The championship acted just as a stepping stone for the huge program to accumulate over a dozen more titles. Any student passing through the first floor of the student center may even have seen the history of success themselves; the Spirit Team’s office is a shrine of newspaper clippings from previous years, old uniforms and posters, and several giant gleaming trophies.

Coach Maple explains a day of life in a spirit teams member with just one word: dedicated. All spirit team members are expected to maintain peak health: at least one workout and two hour practice is expected of all four teams every week day. All teams are also required to cheer or dance at every home event.

Just this past week, Spirit Teams traveled to Dayton Beach, Florida for their annual competition. The four teams went under the leadership of TJ Maple, Head Dance Coach, Jason Williams, Assistant Cheer Coach, and Trisha O’Connor, Spirit Coordinator and Head Cheerleading Coach. The teams arrived in Daytona on Monday, April 9th, prepared for the few days up to the preliminaries on Thursday, and all four made it to the finals round on Friday. Each team was required to perform a routine no longer that two minutes and fifteen seconds, and was expected to have every last detail and stunt perfect. Out of all the teams present, Maple explains that typically Spirit Teams’ main competition are the teams from University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and of course, the Bearkats from Sam Houston.

Both large and small co-ed cheerleading teams found that everything counts – large co-ed came in 2nd place nationally and small co-ed came in fifth. While neither took home a national title, the feat was still impressive considering there were 250 teams competing at all levels.

It was the Jack Attack and Pom Squad performances though that surprised everyone, including Coach Maple. “I was very emotional… just the pure fact that they have only been around for three years and this past year was the first year they’ve competed nationally.”  Pom Squad competed and earned third, but the Jack Attack hip hop team wowed judges and earned their first national title.

Jack Attack’s outfit’s and appearance also caught the eye of spectators. With the dancers sport wild, animal-like hair, dark monster-esque makeup, and of course SFA purple and black, viewers couldn’t help but wonder what was Coach Maple’s thought process behind the outfit choice.

“I obviously like to keep the school colors in there, but I wanted them to look as aggressive as their name sounds. There personalities really come out when they are out there on the floor,” said Maple.

Maple described the concept behind the Jack Attack team as it was a purely hip hop based team; Pom Squad does feature some elements of hip hop, but they also incorporate jazz and collegiate pom. He created the team and invited anyone with an interest in the art of hip hop to try out just three years ago. Since then, the team has grown tremendously, and can now claim a national title of their own.

The routines from this year’s competition can be viewed at http://varsity.com/.

svemerson15@gmail.com

Coach TJ Maple

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Repertory Dance Company Auditions Approach

April 16, 2012   Gina Butler

Members of the 2011-2012 SFA Repertory Dance Company include Hannah Ballard, Nicole Bereznak, Lauren Brandon, Gina Butler, Atalia Castro, Jessica Chance, Megan Chinworth, Elena Conde, Melissa Cotner, Katie Husfelt, Kelsey Jones, Mirannda Lindberg, Erika Marschke and Michelle Stocking.

The SFA Repertory Dance Company will hold auditions on Thursday, April 19, at 5 p.m. in Room 201 of the Lucille Norton Health and Physical Education Complex.

The audition for the 2012-2013 school year will consist of an abbreviated class, including ballet barre, across the floor combinations and center floor combinations. Students of all majors are welcome.

“I chose to audition for the company last spring,” Jessica Chance, senior dance major and Repertory Dance Company member, said. “I was looking to try something new.”

If selected, members of the company must enroll in DAN 380, the company class. The company rehearses Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. In addition, company members must be enrolled in a level 2 or 3 ballet, modern or jazz technique class.

Company members are provided numerous performance opportunities. Within the 2011-2012 season, company members performed in the Lumberjack Bash, the TAPHERD “Kaleidoscope” concert held in Dallas, the American College Dance Festival held in Laredo, the SFA Repertory Dance Company Concert and the Danceworks concert held within the William M. Turner Auditorium.

In addition, company members worked with an array of dance professionals. During this past year, the fourteen company members took a master class from Rashana Smith, a graduate teaching associate at Ohio State University.

“Rashana’s class was so physically demanding,” Megan Chinworth, junior French and psychology major and SFA Repertory Dance Company member said. “She really brought the company together by making us move as one. I’ll never forget how she made us act like a flock of birds moving together.”

The company also had two weeklong guest artist residencies. During these residencies, the company learned two new pieces of choreography to add to their repertory.

Early last fall, Sarah Imhoff-Jones, owner of Hunstville Health Movement and dance faculty member at the White Mountain Dance Festival, came to SFA. Jones graduated from Texas Woman’s University with a MFA in dance. She set a nine-minute piece on company members titled “Sieve.” This piece was originally choreographed in 1996 during Jones’ final year in grad school.

Birgitt Bodingbauer and Simone Grindel, two award-winning choreographers from Berlin, made up the second guest artist residency. These two women restaged “A Shot in the Dark” on eight company members. “A Shot in the Dark” won the 2009 SidebySide International Online Dance Festival.

One of the biggest highlights of the year for company members is their trip to the American College Dance Festival. While at the festival, members take classes from nationally and internationally renown dancers, teachers and choreographers. In addition, company members perform as well as watch dance pieces from colleges and universities throughout the South-Central region. Next year, the American College Dance Festival will take place at Sam Houston State University March 5 to 9.

“I have had so many great memories from my year on company,” Chance said. “I really enjoyed the guest artists, the trip to Laredo and, of course, the people in company with me. If you love to dance, I highly recommend auditioning.”

For further information about the SFA Repertory Dance Company, contact Stan Bobo, SFA Repertory Dance Company director, at (936) 468-1812 or e-mail him at sbobo@sfasu.edu.

Gina.N.Butler@gmail.com

 

 

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Spring Danceworks Concert

March 26, 2012   Gina Butler

The SFA Dance Department held its spring Danceworks concert on March 25, 2012, within the William M. Turner Auditorium.

The concert featured three works performed by the SFA Repertory Dance Company, eight senior choreographic projects and one faculty piece.

The SFA Repertory Dance Company performed “Sieve”, “A Shot in the Dark” and “Twixt Dusk and Dawn.” All three pieces were originally performed within the SFA Repertory Dance Company Concert last fall.

“Sieve” was first choreographed by Sarah Imhoff-Jones in 1996 as part of her graduate studies at Texas Woman’s University. This piece was restaged for company members last October and recently performed at the American College Dance Festival in Laredo.

Choreographed by Birgitt Bodingbauer and Simone Grindel, “A Shot in the Dark” featured eight dancers that interact with each other around three tables. Bodingbauer and Grindel, both from Berlin, spent a week with SFA dancers last fall. The piece won the 2009 SideBySide International online dance festival.

Lastly, “Twixt Dusk and Dawn” was performed by seven dancers. The dancers each represented a zombie from a different era. This tap piece was choreographed by Stan Bobo, co-director of the SFA dance department.

In addition to these pieces, Heather Samuelson, adjunct dance instructor, choreographed “Impulsions.” Since debuting in last fall’s concert, Samuelson added a second part to the piece. Within the second part, Donovan Carter and Destiny Greer perform a duet to music by Frederick Chopin.

The eight senior choreographic projects were choreographed as part of the DAN 480 course. Every dance major is required to choreograph a five minute piece as part of their degree requirements.

Within this concert, the works of Bethany Anguiano, Jessica Chance, Alexandria Charles, Katie Husfelt, Mirannda Lindberg, Katie Reeves, Hannah Schultz and Tamara Story were presented.

Under the guidance of Libby Rhodes, director of senior choreographic projects, the seniors do all of the necessary work to create, run and produce a show. To begin, the seniors hold an audition to cast dancers for their pieces. “There was a lot of talent this semester, so it was really hard to choose,” Anguiano said. “It was a great turnout.”

After casting the dancers, the seniors schedule two to three rehearsal times each week. Each rehearsal lasts from one to two hours. On top of rehearsals, the seniors showed their choreography to the dance professors every Wednesday. “The showings with the professors were difficult because they always wanted something different,” Charles said. “It was so hard to change my piece after working so hard on it.”

The senior choreographers were taught to take one movement and manipulate it until it can’t be manipulated any more. For Tamara Story, this proved challenging since the concert was held a month earlier than usual. “The short semester made it hard to fully develop my work,” Story said. “With that said, I believe the audience easily understood my dance was about split personalities.”

For Chance, choreographing to one theme was difficult but not impossible. “I managed to keep my theme throughout,” Chance said. “I’m surprised I did because it doesn’t usually happen that way.” Within her piece, five dancers are dressed in lavender tops that she personally sewed and designed herself. The piece focuses on self-image and not being accepted by others.

Once the concert was finished , Schultz as well as the other seven senior choreographers breathed a sigh of relief after seeing the months of hard work come together. “I’m just happy I got to perform with my friends,” Schultz said. “It was a great way to end my senior year.”

gina.n.butler@gmail.com

 


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SFA Repertory Dance Company travels to Laredo

March 21, 2012   Gina Butler

The SFA Repertory Dance Company traveled to Laredo, Texas, Feb. 28 to March 4 for the American College Dance Festival.

The festival, comprised of universities and colleges from Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas, took place at Texas A&M International University. It featured more than 600 students from 30 schools.

The American College Dance Festival dates back to the 1970s. It was established to bring collegiate level dancers together to take class, perform, receive feedback and build friendships within the dance world. 

During their time at the festival, company members were involved in all things dance. Every day, students chose four master classes to take. Ranging from hip hop to men’s flamenco technique, the conference offered classes to suit any student’s desire. Classes were taught by dance faculty as well as established dancers known around the world, including Jeffery Bullock, William Evans and Marc Aurelio.

“It was a great opportunity to try something new. It was a real learning experience,” Mirannda Lindberg, a senior dance major, said. “Taking class with Jeffery Bullock was amazing. He gave me personal corrections and tools I can take with me into grad school and when performing.”

On top of offering master classes, the festival featured five adjudicated concerts and three informal concerts. Adjudicated concerts include one student and one faculty work from each university in attendance. These pieces are then critiqued by a panel of three adjudicators to help the choreographer understand the strengths and weaknesses within their piece.

The SFA Repertory Dance Company submitted “Sieve” and “Sofia” for the adjudicated concert. “Sieve” is a nine minute piece that was choreographed by Sarah Imhoff-Jones in 1996. Jones restaged the piece on company dancers during her weeklong residency last October.

“Sofia,” choreographed by Chelsea Dowden, a 2011 SFA graduate, is a six minute piece that features five dancers who eventually find their voices throughout the dance. “Sofia” was originally created as part of Dowden’s senior choreographic project last spring.

The three informal concerts provided further performance opportunities for each university. These concerts, however, weren’t critiqued or judged. For SFA’s informal concert submission, “Twist Dusk and Dawn” was chosen. This tap number, choreographed by Stan Bobo, SFA dance program director, focused on the life of zombies. It originally debuted in the SFA Repertory Dance Company’s fall concert.

While attending the festival, company members also were given the opportunity to audition for the American Dance Festival Summer School. The summer program is held at Duke University and lasts for six weeks. While there, students take classes in ballet, contemporary, composition, improvisation and an array of other disciplines.

“The audition was fast-paced, energetic and challenging,” Lindberg said. “There was something the instructor, Michelle Gibson, said that really rang with me. She told us about how she was from little New Orleans and how the American Dance Festival gave her the chance to take class with people from around the world. She also told us that we can achieve anything so long as we are willing to work for it. ”

“I wouldn’t trade this week for anything,” Erika Marschke, junior dance major and company member, said. “We really bonded as a company and shared so many laughs that my abs hurt. I can’t wait until next year’s festival.”

Next year’s festival will be hosted by Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas. It will be held in The James and Nancy Gaertner Performing Arts Center, a new $38.5 million facility that houses four dance studios and a dance theater, between March 5-9.

For further information about the American College Dance Festival or about the SFA Repertory Dance Company, contact Stan Bobo at (936) 468-1812 or e-mail him at mbobo@sfasu.edu.

gina.n.butler@gmail.com

 


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A Dancer’s Life

February 12, 2012   Gina Butler

Bethany Anguiano in the dance studio.

Many view dance as just a hobby. While this may be true for millions upon millions, this is far from the truth for Bethany Anguiano, a senior dance major and captain of the SFA Pom Squad.

For Anguiano, dance is a lifestyle. From the moment she wakes up to the moment she goes to bed, her life revolves around this art form.

Born and raised in Dallas, Anguiano stumbled upon dance at the age of 15 during her freshman year of high school.

“My sister was a cheerleader at Bryan Adams High School,” Anguiano said. “Just to spite her, I decided to join the Belles, the high school’s dance team.”

With no prior dance experience, Anguiano spent hours practicing in her home just to master the technique level of her teammates. Through this dedication, Anguiano managed to climb up the ranks, becoming lieutenant her junior year and captain her senior year.

During her senior year of high school, the Belles got a new director, Amy Green.

“Amy was my biggest inspiration,” Anguiano said. “Amy taught me what it takes to dance at a collegiate level and introduced me to my future sisters, the Trinity Valley Cardettes.”

After graduation, Anguiano found herself in Athens, Texas, a city 90 miles from her home. Following in the footsteps of her former high school director, she became a Trinity Valley Cardette herself.

“While a Cardette, I was given so many once in a lifetime opportunities,” she said. “The team traveled to New York to perform and visit Ground Zero. We also performed at a parade in Hawaii. While we were there, we took a trip to the Pearl Harbor Memorial. I even got to meet one of the oldest living veterans of the Pearl Harbor attack.”

Once it came time to hang her red hat and white boots, the outfit made famous by the Cardettes, Anguiano looked no further than Nacogdoches to finish her bachelor’s degree. “I heard about SFA from one of my Cardette sisters,” Anguiano said. “I wanted a small school with big opportunities, and I knew SFA could provide that and then some.”

With her eyes set on SFA, Anguiano readied herself for the two day SFA Pom Squad audition. “It was a grueling process,” Anguiano said. “I gave it my all, and luckily, my all was enough. There was no greater feeling than when I performed the fight song for the first time with my new teammates.”

In Fall 2010, Anguiano enrolled in her first semester at SFA. “I chose to pursue a dance major and health science minor because they coincide with each other,” she said. “Also, dance is an outlet for me, so I hope I can teach others how dance can be an outlet for them as well. It’s my passion.”

On top of balancing a full course load, Anguiano attends pom squad rehearsals six days a week. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, the squad works out from 6 to 7 a.m., practices and cleans their routines 7 to 8 a.m. and takes a ballet technique class from 8 to 9 a.m. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, the team runs two miles and then practices from 6 to 8 a.m. Finally, every Saturday the team rehearses for an additional three hours.

“We also usually perform at basketball games on Wednesday and Saturday evenings,” Anguiano said. “I love getting to perform in front of students with just as much school spirit as me.”

Currently, the squad is rehearsing for upcoming basketball halftime performances as well as for competition season. “The SFA Pom Squad has won six national championships in its history, and we strive to bring home a trophy again this year.” Anguiano said.

In addition, Anguiano is busy choreographing her senior dance piece to be showcased in the Turner Auditorium on March 25. Every week she holds three hour rehearsals for her piece. The piece must be at least five minutes long and use music with no lyrics.

“This piece takes me out of my comfort zone, but I’ve decided to embrace the challenge,” she said. “There are times when I’ll choreograph something great in my dream and forget it by the morning. Lately, I’ve been sleeping with a notepad near me just to prevent that from happening again.”

When Anguiano isn’t dancing, she can be found at the Family Dollar located on University Drive. “I usually work there around 20 hours a week,” she said with a smile. “My manager is extremely understanding of my rehearsal and practice times, so it works out well.”

“I don’t know how she does it,” Martha Coon, senior dance major and Anguiano’s roommate said. “She is extremely dedicated to what she does and is a talented performer. I’m envious of her work ethic. She’s like the Energizer Bunny that just keeps going.”

Following graduation in December, Anguiano has big plans for her future. She aspires to become a Dallas Mavs dancer and a dance teacher within the Dallas Independent School District, the same district that started it all for her.

“I believe Bethany can achieve anything she sets her mind to,” Briana Stratton, dance major and SFA Pom Squad member, said. “She is an outstanding leader for the pom squad and knows how to discipline without being too harsh. Everybody appreciates her and takes her opinions to heart. It’s going to be hard to find a leader as good as her.”

While at SFA, Anguiano has had the opportunity to compete in Daytona, Fla., visit Walt Disney World, judge dance competitions and choreograph routines for Mike Moses Middle School, Bryan Adams High School and the Trinity Valley Cardettes. “I believe my two years at SFA have been well spent,” she said. “I’ve made so many friendships while I was here and will always wear my purple with pride. Axe ‘Em Jacks!”

Gina.N.Butler@gmail.com


 

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