The movements of life

The stops and starts of life -- the jerky little bits of daily actions and reactions -- are on Katharine Stricker's mind and in her movements.

The senior at Southeast Missouri State University choreographed a dance that is part of the "Full Tilt" repertory dance concert at the university. Shows are at 8 p.m. tonight (Feb. 20) and Saturday.

The dance concert, coordinated by professor Paul Zmolek, includes works by students, faculty and guest artists. It also showcases a blend of the theater and dance departments with collaborative works -- a musical chorus, fabric sculptures and original compositions are also part of the performance.

The university offers two repertory dance concerts each year: "Transitions" in the fall semester and "Full Tilt" in the spring semester. Each one showcases new material and work by students and faculty.

Since it's a repertory dance concert, there's a lot of variety in the dances performed, Zmolek said. There are both modern pieces and classical ballet movements. "It's like the old-time variety show. If you didn't like the first act, there's another one on later."

Stricker's piece, called "A little heap, loftier than mine. Hardly. So much the better." actually began as a class project.

Stricker was enrolled in a script analysis course and had to develop a project that would examine the themes in a play; she chose dance as her outlet. A classmate performs with her on stage.

"In a sense there's a schizophrenia that's sort of the trademark used in postmodern techniques," she said of the piece. "I'm not necessarily trying to change the audience with this piece, but I want to take the audience into that sort of murky underworld that exists in the back of the mind somewhere."

While Stricker's piece takes the audience on a journey, junior Heather Connell wants to bring people back to earth.

Her piece, "Mad World" has a dark side, she admits, but she also wants it to be aesthetically pleasing.

She doubts the audience will have an immediate reaction, but she wants them to think about the elements of the earth: water, fire, air.

"It's about the elements taking back the earth," she said. People need to remember to "be careful about what they do so they don't pollute and destroy all the natural things."

Stricker and Connell also dance in pieces choreographed by Zmolek and his wife, guest artist Josephine Zmolek.

Dancing in another choreographer's work can be hard -- not because of the technical aspects of a piece but because of its emotional aspects, the students said.

"You have to know where the movement comes from," Connell said. When you're dancing, "you have to visually and facially become that movement."

ljohnston@semissourian.com

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