June 10, 2016 (Washington D.C.) – Dance majors at the Belhaven University will represent the Magnolia state in a dance performance in D.C., said representatives from the college. Belhaven University dancers have joined only one other college from the south, and 31 colleges nationwide for the performance.
Eight students will take the national stage at the Kennedy Center and perform an original choreographed dance, “I Am Not A Plastic”, at the National College Dance Festival on June 11, 2016. The dancers were selected after a riveting performance of Sung Yong Kim’s choreography at the American College Dance Association’s (ACDA) southern regional conference.
This opportunity is a once-in-a-lifetime honor, said one of the dance professors.
“Although we have attended the ACDA’s conferences over the years, this is our first opportunity to be awarded national recognition resulting in performance at our nation’s capitol,” says Cynthia Newland, chair of Belhaven’s dance department. We are being recognized for our pursuit of excellence in the arts. Belhaven is one of the smallest colleges who participates at the annual festival, and I believe the solid technical dance training and foundation of our faith, integrated throughout our program, lays the groundwork for our artistic endeavors.”
This performance was not simply an invitational. Belhaven competed against such institutions as the University of Southern Mississippi, Alabama State University and the University of Texas. Belhaven will join 31 colleges and universities across the United States including California State University, Columbia College, Florida State University, University of North Carolina and others for three days of top collegiate dance performances.
“The festival provides a unique opportunity to view the extraordinary work being created in dance in higher education throughout the nation,” says ACDA Executive Director Diane DeFries.
