Last night, I went to see Dance 42, an annual show put on by the Dance Department of Hope College. I wish I had photos to share, but unfortunately photography was not allowed. Last year, it was called Dance 41 and next year it will be called Dance 43. You get the picture, it’s been going on for a while.
Above is a video from Dance 37, the only one that I could find online.
The students audition in September. This leaves them the rest of the year up until March to work on their performances and perfect them.
I went to the show because I had friends in some of the dances, but I didn’t experience it last year. I wasn’t sure what to expect.
Some people had told me it was really good, but some acts were sort of odd. As I watched, I understood why they could seem that way. Some of the dance moves were very interpretive and I had a hard time finding meaning in them.
When my friend, Allie, finished her performance, she came and sat with me. As the show progressed, she told me what each dance was about. They all started to make more sense to me.
What drew me in when thinking about Dance 42 was the fact that everyone has an area of life in which they create meaning or try to draw meaning from. For me, it’s literature and my religion. For others, it’s dance, science, nature, etc.
It’s beautiful how so many different paths can be used to soul-search and make something out of life. Everyone has a preference, and dance works for those who put their time and efforts into Dance 42.
Once I recognized that, I began to appreciate it so much more.
Brooke
You can email me at brookelyn.wharton@hope.edu, find me on Facebook, or check out my Twitter @hopebrooke18.