Every week in the Mattin Center, students meet in the Caplan Dance Studio for ballet and modern dance classes. These courses include open sessions, as well as advanced classes for company members. They each run for one semester and are non-credit.
The modern dance program, headed by Marilyn Byers, combines the instruction of technical skills with a focus on creative expression. On the technical side, dancers condition and improve their balance, coordination, breathing and flexibility. The creative aspect of this course centers on experimentation, individualism and turning ideas into a form of expressive art.
“I started taking modern at the start of the second semester, and absolutely loved it,” sophomore Becca Black wrote in an email to The News-Letter. “It wasn’t like any other style of dance I’d done before and was difficult to adjust to after having almost exclusively ballet training growing up, but Marilyn encouraged me every step of the way, and even asked me to perform in the modern dance showcase that spring.”
In addition to weekly classes, dancers may choose to be a part of the JHU Modern Dance Company, which was founded in 1981 and is open to both undergraduate and graduate students. Currently, the Company has about a dozen dancers.
Byers has been at the helm of this group for over 30 years and is praised for her creativity and dedication. She pushes her students to see dance as an art form and to think about movement in a multidimensional manner.
“I try to inspire them to go deep into their own selves so that they can communicate and express themselves through movement,” Byers said. “I utilize a lot of the techniques that are important for research. We work on creativity, on thinking outside the box, on brainstorming, on all of those skills that they will find useful later on. The modern dance program is about generating ideas and incorporating voice and becoming authentic in the way that they’re expressing themselves at the highest professional level.”
Byers was asked to serve as the group’s artistic director in 1981 and has held that position ever since. Currently, her daughter assists her in running the program.
“It’s been delightful working with all of these brilliant young people,” Byers said.
The JHU Modern Dance Company was Hopkins’ first dance company.
“Marilyn holds us to a very high standard to live up to the company’s impressive history,” Black wrote.
Modern dance differs from other dance forms in that it focuses more on freedom and individualism as a means of achieving expression. Byers advocates for pushing boundaries, teaching her students to move in a non-formulaic, democratic manner that forces them to think on their feet.
“Modern dance is like a new language... and each modern dance individual creates their own language to express ideas and tries to find a universal means of doing that,” Byers said. “It’s wonderful that the group I have now are risk-takers; I think it takes courage to do something new and different and adventurous as opposed to reiterating what you did in high school. To go somewhere new, I think, takes courage.”
The ballet program, directed by Lisa Green-Cudek, a dance instructor at Peabody, emphasizes artistic expression in addition to technical development.
“Barre is approached as an opportunity for the dancer to become technically and mentally grounded,” the program’s website reads.
Green-Cudek places emphasis on technique.
“As someone who was relatively new to ballet, I never felt uncomfortable with my technique. The entire company was very welcoming,” sophomore Katie Rubery said.
According to Hopkins Ballet Production Manager Victoria Dawe, the ballet company is open to dancers of all levels.
“It really gives everyone the chance to try ballet and to perform with us. We make sure there are lots of different pieces catered to different levels, and, for example, right now we have some girls that have never done ballet before and some girls that have done ballet their whole lives,” Dawe wrote in an email to The News-Letter.
The Hopkins Ballet Company has regular meetings outside of the weekly classes. Currently, the Company is working on putting on the second annual performance of The Nutcracker.
“We’ve been rehearsing since the first week of class. It’s our second year doing [The] Nutcracker, and I’m so excited for this year’s, because we’re bringing in even more guest groups,” Dawe wrote.
Rubery is also looking forward to The Nutcracker.
“The Nutcracker has been a really fun experience because we’re getting to replicate a classic holiday show within a group of multitalented dancers,” Rubery said.
For several students, dancing at Hopkins has provided an opportunity to both reacquaint with lost traditions and explore new interests.
“I kind of joined on a whim but it was honestly one of the best decisions I’ve ever made,” Dawe wrote.
Rubery felt that the dancing program allowed her to learn new techniques, given that she primarily focused on musical theatre and jazz when she was in high school.
“Dancing offers so much to me — it trains me physically, working on strength, flexibility and balance,” Black wrote. “Dance is also where I’ve made some of my best friends at Hopkins... Dance is also my escape — especially when I’m stressing over midterms or labs or just life in general.”
Both programs are headed for a busy season; The Nutcracker is scheduled to open on Nov. 14 and the Modern Dance Company will soon be showcasing its piece titled Crazy Eights.
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