With their hair gathered tightly in buns, aprons tied delicately over their 1950s dresses and doll-like smiles painted on their faces, 11 female dancers whisked around Melanie Swihart and Jacob Wright, who portrayed a quintessential '50s married couple.
Ball State University dance professor Audra Sokol choreographed the piece last semester for Ball State Dance Theatre, and the department took it to be judged at the American College Dance Festival Association's East Central Regional Conference this month. From about 60 pieces, Ball State's "... and she was perfect" was one of two selected from the conference to be performed in the national showcase at Barnard College in New York City this summer. The dance will also be performed on campus at 7:30 p.m. April 23 to 26 in University Theatre as part of the 20th Anniversary Ball State Dance Theatre Concert.
Swihart, a junior dance student and a lead dancer in the piece, said the summer showcase will give students the opportunity to learn from other schools' dance programs.
"It's very humbling watching other performances," she said. "There's some really great dancing out there, and a lot of us aren't exposed to it."
Swihart said it has already been an exciting experience to be a part of the Sokol's piece.
"Within the piece, I really liked my character," she said. "I was the one trying to branch out, pushing away from the norm of the '50s housewife."
Sokol describes herself as a true feminist at heart and her dance explores the struggle of housewives expected to fit into the mold of society's ideal woman. The nine-minute piece represents the "quiet struggle" felt among women in the 1950s and still today, Sokol said.
"There are still a certain amount of expectations to being a woman in today's society," she said. "I feel a lot of times women move quickly to fulfill these expectations before connecting with themselves. There is a sense of unfamiliarity with their self as an individual, which can lead to a loss of identity and strange feelings of desperation."
Sokol said piece inspires action.
"We constantly have to move progressively forward in order to have a strong voice in society," she said.
ParticipantsMusic: Alesandre Desplat, Phillip Glass and Steve ReichChoreographer: Audra SokolDancers: Danielle Dunn, Sara Falconer, Brittany Grimm, Cristina Gustaitis, Rachel Higgins, Larra Holding, Rachel Jones, Sara Little, Stephanie Paul, Sara Sandifer, Kayla Stump, Melanie Swihart, Jacob WrightCostumes: Melanie MortimoreLighting: Marciel Greene
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