On a Tuesday night in the Marcy Plavin Dance Studio, students sweat as they study.
In anticipation of its Back to Bates concert, the Bates Dance Company has stepped up its rehearsals to perform a piece titled Passing. It’s a work in progress by Rachel Boggia and Carol Dilley to celebrate the life and works of Marcy Plavin.
“Back to Bates is a real celebration of what Bates embodies,” says Rachel Boggia, associate professor of dance. “It’s one of the few performances during the year that the whole dance community comes together and is in the same space at the same time.”
“It’s been a lot of time, effort, and focus for all the dancers and choreographers to cram into one two-week session,” says Danielle Ward ’20 of Atlantic Highlands, N.J. “I think it takes cooperation from the whole group to be able to pull it off so quickly. So, it’s a lot of hard work but it pays off.”
“Some of my best friends I’ve found right here in the dance department,” says Sofia Elbadawi ’18 of Fayetteville, N.Y. “When I danced all through high school, middle school, and elementary school it was more about competition, and being better than the group. Bates has really had an emphasis on creating community.”
“We have dinner together after class every day,” says Esme Goldfinger ’21 of Lexington, Mass. “I’m slowly getting to know everyone and kind of becoming part of this community, which is great because not a lot of classes have that.”
“I started my first year with two dance classes and I fell in love with it,” says Christopher “Tofur” Castaneda ’20 of Los Angeles. “I just found that the dance program allows me to kind of step back from all the hectic-ness of my STEM career here and really try to go after something that is a whole lot less stressful to me and a lot more about pushing yourself.”
