B.F.A. dance majors participate in master class with  Nederlands Dans Theater

The renowned dance company performs work by choreographers such as Crystal Pite, Jiří Kylián, Ohad Naharin, Alexander Ekman, Johan Inger, Marco Goecke, Medhi Walerski, Hofesh Shechter, Sol León and Artistic Director Paul Lightfoot.

The Elon Dance Program B.F.A. in Dance Performance & Choreography majors had the opportunity to attend a masterclass with the world-renowned dance company, Nederlands Dans Theater (NDT), on Monday, March 26.

The company performs work by choreographers such as Crystal Pite, Jiří Kylián, Ohad Naharin, Alexander Ekman, Johan Inger, Marco Goecke, Medhi Walerski, Hofesh Shechter, Sol León and Artistic Director Paul Lightfoot.

The two-hour masterclass took place in Chapel Hill at the CURRENT ArtSpace+Studio which was generously provided by Carolina Performing Arts. NDT company dancer, Greg Lau taught the class. He began with a structured improvisation to warm up the students and continued with improvisational prompts across the floor.

Lau also taught two pieces of repertoire from choreographers Crystal Pite, Sol León and Paul Lightfoot. The choreography was filled with drastic shifts in dynamics and movement paired with text. He encouraged dancers to continue their research of movement and to constantly investigate the potential of the body.

The class concluded with a Q&A session in which students asked questions about being a professional in the dance field.

Elon dancers had a unique opportunity to embody choreography that will be performed this week in Chapel Hill by professional dancers. NDT is performing at Memorial Hall on Wednesday, March 28, and Thursday, March 29, at 7:30 p.m. as part of their Tour USA.