Combining various styles of dance into an interesting and well-produced dance showcase is a difficult feat that the students in Orchesis Dance Club expertly pulled off Sunday Nov. 4 in Wadsworth Auditorium.
Its Fall 2012 Showcase, “Beyond the Studio Mirror,” consisted of 19 Orchesis-run numbers, as well as an appearance from Geneseo Bhangra.
Orchesis - the largest student-run organization on campus with over 300 members - is made up of beginner, intermediate and advanced dancers who can choose from a variety of student-choreographed tap, ballet, jazz, hip hop and lyrical dance numbers to perform in.
The show opened with a large group number, dancing to PSY’s YouTube sensation “Gangnam Style.” It was a fun way to start off the show, which featured many different types of dance.
While most of the performances were well done, at times it was also fairly easy to pick out dances performed by beginners as opposed to those performed by advanced dancers.
These somewhat obvious differences did not distract from the showcase as a whole, however. Even those numbers at a lower level of difficulty were impressive.
Some of the memorable numbers showed the range of dance styles Orchesis has to offer. One of the bigger numbers, a dance to Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car,” was the standout large-group performance. It was one of the most organized numbers, with all of the dancers completely in sync with one another. The contemporary aspect of the dance came across very well.
The show’s best hip-hop number was a dance to “I Can Transform Ya” by Chris Brown, featuring Lil Wayne and Swizz Beatz. It was a high-energy performance featuring an especially enthusiastic group of dancers. The audience seemed to enjoy the fast-paced dance.
The most interesting combination of music and dance style was a tap number to Fatboy Slim’s “Funk Soul Brother,” a song one wouldn’t immediately think to pair with a tap number. Not only was the dance an unexpected and welcome change from tradition, but the costumes were impressive and worked well with the dance as a whole, making it one of the most put-together numbers.
A performance to the song “Mamma Knows Best” by Jessie J was another large-group dance. Like “Fast Car,” the sizeable amount of people on stage didn’t detract from the jazz number’s fun and sassy nature, and the dancers impressed the crowd with their vibrant and feisty moves.
The closing number, titled “Jackson Five by the Orchesis Six,” was choreographed and performed by the Orchesis officers, and naturally featured the Jackson 5 song “ABC.” It was one of the show’s best performances - The officers not only were on the mark with one another, but their eye-catching choreography meshed well with the music.
The show’s conclusion featured all of the dancers coming back onstage for a freestyle dance to “Gangnam Style.” It was a fun and entertaining way to end a rousingly successful show.