Looking Back Moving Forward concert fuses art forms

As students and families shuffled into Phillips Hall, anticipation built up for the show to start.

Concert Director Temria Airmet opened the show with a message on how dance helps people connect through challenging times and to further promote the concert’s idea of “Art inspiring Artists.”

The concert began with “Eights 125/Fives 45,” a work inspired by the colorful oil painting, Debra Vodhanel’s “Reprieve (yellow).” The dancers took on the form of the colors, flowing across the stage and blending together. It truly felt as if the painting had come to life, each dancer representing a color and having a moment to “jump” out of the painting. 

Taking an interesting turn, “Danca, Musicorum, Ritmo” combined dance elements and live drawing. The dancers took on the role of music, stomping and clapping, producing percussion through their bodies’ movements. 

“Elohai, N’tzor” was a beautiful piece; in collaboration with Citrus College Singer Alumni, they sang the vocals for this arrangement. The dancers provided a visual representation of the singers’ soft voices, starting in an almost praying stance, letting the vocalist create the range in their movements, getting bigger with their tonal ranges. 

James Joyce’s “She Weeps Over Rahoon” is a poem about dark rain and desolate hearts. This piece inspired Brian Kehlenbach to create a piano composition, “Rain on Rahoon.” Being performed by Temria Airmet, it was a cold piece, with darker lighting and rain in the background, which slowed the concert down to highlight the next dance.

The story leads back to SAC as the dance department chair, Heather Gillette, was also inspired to create a dance routine, inviting Brian Kehlenbach on stage to perform a combination of his piano work and her choreography. 

“Same As I Ever Was” showcased each dancer holding their own headshots taken by SAC’s commercial photography class. The use of the photos gave both the song and dance a more familiar feel. We got to know the dancers we’ve seen perform on stage with the pictures.

“In·ter·con·nect·ed” followed with the dancers climbing boxes and creating patterns not only through themselves individually but as a whole. With the dial-tonal song, the dancers moved their hands like the vibrations of a phone.

The night concluded with a piece from “La La Land,” “Another Day of Sun.” A blast of color filled the stage as dancers combined their dance skills with the showmanship of theatre. The dancers even got moments to connect with the audience, showcasing their personalities.

The concert encapsulated “Art inspiring Artist”; both performers and directors came together to showcase all art forms. From poems to photos, this concert displayed the power of art and community.