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In order to celebrate this 25th anniversary of Dance program, we thought it was time to
celebrate some of our graduates who have gone around the world and done extraordinary things.
And I invited four choreographers who are having success in the New York City area to
come back who graduated over the past two and a half decades to choreograph for the
students and to present their companies in the performance. Dina has set up her company
in Queens, New York. She has performed all over New York City and she has also been studying
Indian dance, so she’s been trying to incorporate the traditions of American modern dance also
with Indian dance, and most of her works are political in nature and structure. Salvatore
is a man of the theater. He has a wonderful sense of what American modern dance is and
also what the American musical comedy dance is, and he seems to be incorporating, in my
opinion, both of those forms very beautifully in works. Sometimes they’re political, someties
they’re just for the sake of pure dance. Makita Thomas, she actually lives in Trinidad
now, which is where her family is originally from, and Brooklyn, and her company is called
Roots and Wings, which is kind of wonderful, and she’s gone back to her roots, and she’s
incorporating her West Indian influences into her dance works, and the cultural differences
between American and the Trinidadian cultures and putting them on stage for all of us to
think about.
Larry Keigwin is an award winning choreographer and dancer, who has performed not only at
the Metropolitan Opera House and with different modern dance companies, but the modern dance
companies after graduating from Hofstra that were the ones to be seen. They all picked
him up right away because he was a brilliant dancer. He knows how to work with other people
and to listen and to give them what they want. And he also has a vision, a vision of making
dance accessible to everybody and not just to a few, and that’s what I love about his
work. It’s amazing how comfortable it feels coming
back. It still feels like home, it was here for four years, and it still feels very comfortable,
everyone’s always been so welcoming. You also forget how well we were treated here,
out in the real world. It’s definitely a comfort to be back.
It’s such an honor, and it feels really nostalgic, being back here. Being on the stage
is really meaningful, but actually what seems to be more powerful is being backstage and
being part of the community again that I remember so well (mumble)
If it wasn’t for half the professors…they helped build what I have now. They gave me
a great networking source, they gave me the tools for life as an artist, as a human being.
They not only teach us as dancers, you know, teach us the technique and everything, but
I think it’s also they help you become who you are today. They help you learn the ropes
of becoming a professional. It’s so encouraging and fostering my talent
and allowed me to take many more classes in dance. They were just really nurturing and
I really credit them for really leading the way for me and opening many doors.
I also think it’s important for the students here and also Hofstra to know what their alumni
are doing. I think it’s really important. I think it’s
important to share your life post graduation and share the experiences, but also important
to share it wisely, to really respect your own career and also the trajectory of the
students.