By Janet Guerca
The East Los Angeles College Dance Department’s Spring Showcase on Friday demonstrated the student performers’ talent and hard work.
The dance department held its Spring Showcase at the Performing and Fine Arts Complex and S2 Recital Hall.
The student performers showcased various styles of dance throughout the 14 performances of the evening. Kimberly Rabins, Kirsten Reutimann and Kristina Urteaga choreographed the majority of the dances.
The performances began outdoors with a courtyard presentation. Students demonstrated the dance technique and skills they worked on during their spring semester dance courses.
It featured a ballet technique plie combination, conditioning for dance combinations, hip-hop dance techniques and warm-up, and salsa movements.
Attendees then moved indoors to the recital hall for the dance showcase. The audience was full of supporters.
The energy from the audience was felt during a dance choreographed by Rabins. The energetic and playful salsa routine to Celia Cruz’s music got members of the audience to clap along to the song’s beat as they cheered the dancers on.
The vibrant pink stage lighting added to the fun atmosphere. The facial expressions of the dancers captured the joyous mood.
The performances “Simple Complexity Part 5” and “Tipping Point” highlighted the dancers’ control and precision.
The dancers moved across the stage in a way that displayed their conditioning. The movements were performed in different group dance sections.
Bella Macias and class assistant Robert Huerta took the stage and performed “Paranoia.” The dark red lighting set the mood for the intense piece.
They danced to the “Halloween” theme song mixed by Huerta and used flashlights as props. Macias and Huerta’s choreographed sharp movements added to the eerie ambiance of the recital hall.
Huerta also performed and choreographed a solo piece titled “Burned Bright” to music by Coldplay and Rihanna.
The dance showcase featured a lively and jumpy routine titled “Hop.” Irena Azaryan, Karen Barajas, Kristen De Four, and Kevin Montoya-Garza exhibited jazz dance techniques as they bounced to music by Natalie Cole.
Dances such as “Spinal Collective,” choreographed by Reutimann and “Adagio,” choreographed by Rabins, featured 15-16 dancers.
Throughout the evening, the performances allowed all the dancers to shine on stage.
The group walked onto the stage one final time in matching black and white tracksuits to close the show.
“Country Grammar” by Nelly played as the dancers embodied the fun essence of the song and performed a hip-hop-style routine. After hitting their final poses, the audience erupted into applause.
All the student performers of the evening lined up on stage and took their final bows.
The ELAC Dance Department is offering more dance courses in the fall. Students interested can visit www.elac.edu for more class information.