Guest post by Gregory Flanigan, K'12
When I say I danced in 12 pieces
for Frelon Dance Company’s spring show people often look at me as though I was
crazy, off my rocker, not quite with it, or clearly someone with way too much
free time on their hands. In reality,
that was not the case at all – at least not the part about too much free time. So what would drive a senior Kalamazoo
College student with a full course load, a serious job, and various other
commitments to voluntarily sign up for well over 12 hours of dance rehearsal a
week along with duties as a director? My
love for dance is not explanation enough as to why I would devote all my free
time to such an endeavor. Instead, it is
specifically my love for Frelon and all that it stands for that would drive me
to become a director and ‘serious’ dancer.
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| Photo courtesy of Chuck Stull |
During our Visit the Zoo program
for admitted students, one prospective student told me that she “dances but is
not a
dancer.” I can completely relate to the sentiment – having never
taken any formal dance classes in my childhood the prospect of joining a
college dance company seemed implausible.
But my response to this student was that that is the beauty of Frelon,
where the distinction between being a dancer and someone who simply loves to
dance, in whatever environment or context, does not exist. Frelon allows anyone, regardless of dance
experience, to express themselves through all types of dance and if they’re
passionate enough even become a director as I have. My first year at K, a friend of mine, a
dancer, convinced me to go to preview night to watch the student choreographers
present clips of their pieces so that students may sign up for them. I was so impressed by all the different
styles and skill levels that I immediately signed up to be in 4 pieces,
unaware, of course, of where this would lead me. Since that night I’ve been hooked. Frelon has offered me a space to relax, goof
off, expel energy, create, meet new people, breathe, and realize that I am a
dancer regardless of my lack of formal training. That pressure to be perfect only exists
within me; though I strive to perfect each dance, any external demands to be
flawless seem to not exist within the realm of Frelon. Instead dancers and choreographers can bond together
over a common vision and form of expression in which everyone hopes to perform
to the best of their abilities - we support each other in this project instead
of deriding one another for missteps.
This is not to say that it has been
completely smooth sailing from start to finish.
Co-directing with 6 other distinct personalities, managing over 200
students in 30 dances for 14 weeks all the while hoping not to step on anyone’s
toes on campus, both literally and figuratively, is not easy.
It requires late nights, long hours, patience, organization, and lots of
ibuprofen for those aching feet and bruised knees but in the end I wouldn’t
trade my worn out limbs for anything. I
love to dance but more importantly I love Frelon.
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