USM Dance Program Presents Spring 2023 Dance Company Concerts

Fri, 04/14/2023 - 09:14am | By: Ivonne Kawas

The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) Dance program, housed in the School of Visual and Performing Arts, is proud to continue its spring 2023 concert series featuring choreographed works that have been developed by faculty and staff over the course of this semester. 

The series features the Southern Miss Repertory Dance Company (RDC) for Concert II on April 27-29 at 7 p.m. and culminates with the Spring Dance Showcase on May 6 at 2 p.m. All performances are held in-person in Studio 115 of the Theatre and Dance Building on the Hattiesburg campus.

 Tickets are $15 adults, $10 faculty/staff, seniors, and military, and $6 students. However, the Spring Student Dance Showcase on May 6 has free admission for all audience members. 

The RDC’s upcoming showcase will feature new works choreographed by junior choreography students as well as faculty. This event will also feature choreographer, Brianna Jahn, a dance faculty member at USM. 

Lauren Soutullo, assistant teaching professor of dance, shared her excitement for audiences to experience these incredible performances.

“Our spring performances were designed to allow audiences to encounter dance up close and personal in an intimate setting for a totally immersive experience,” said Soutullo. “We look forward to sharing an array of choreographic works that span from classical to contemporary. Additionally, each dance concert will bring a unique mood and feeling, so our audience is sure to enjoy what our faculty and students have been working so hard on all semester.”

“Dance faculty member Brianna Jahn is the featured choreographer for the second RDC concert, with a piece entitled I See You. Since 2019, Jahn has explored the concept of portraiture through a choreographic lens, and this concert is designed to immerse the audience in a “gallery” of dances which highlight the human experience,” Soutullo added. 

In addition to the anticipation surrounding Jahn’s work, several students whose work will be featured in these concerts expressed how proud they are to see their creative thought process come to life.

Emaleigh Ousterhout, a Dance Performance and Choreography major from Brandon, Miss., shared the inspiration for her piece entitled, While You’re Here.

"My piece is simply me in dance form, as I've taken my experiences in life and dance and transferred that onto my dancers,” said Ousterhout. “I specifically dive into the topic of safe spaces and treat this dance as a thank you to those people, places, and things that have fueled my growth through the years. I am excited to share a piece of myself with the audience."

Additionally, dance student Gabby Bass, a Performance and Choreography from Ripley, Miss., shared the thought process that inspired her piece entitled, The Shadows Fall Behind.

“My piece is about the power music has in our lives,” said Bass. “I have taken mine and my casts experiences with a song that impacts a long of people’s childhood and relationships with loved ones,” said Bass. “I found it fascinating how music can take us back to a time and place, and I hope that’s something the audience experiences as well.” 

The final Spring Dance Showcase of the season is a collection of original choreography from students of all levels in the Dance program. This event will be held on May 6 at 2 p.m. and is always a crowd pleaser. 

Buy in-person tickets via the Southern Miss Ticket Office or visit the School of Performing and Visual Arts for more information.