Dance

“In-person vs. Virtual Dance”

by Madi Stolarik ︱ 10/20/21

The Holly Springs High School Dance Program is based on discipline, honor, respect, and group collaboration. With extensive training and academic rigor, the program emphasizes on its group involvement. As a result of COVID, the dancers in the program were forced to leave in- person group collaboration and switch to dancing through a computer screen. While all students transitioned to virtual learning, the extent of transitioning to dancing through a screen forced extensive challenges. Most dancers had preparation from March-August 2020 with Zoom and Google Meet with their private studios, which made the transition to virtual dance smoother.

After speaking with the artistic director, Laura Stauderman, she reflected on her perspective of virtual dance, “It challenged both me and my students to communicate through our art form in a much different way. I enjoyed being able to place students in breakouts by setting up several Google meets on various computers and then monitoring the listening to everyone work at once.” While most teachers did not experience success with breakouts, Ms. Stauderman felt “very fortunate to have so many highly engaged students who were willing to be seen and heard in order to do our work.” Students who had cameras on allowed for both Ms. Stauderman and the other students to see a “little glimpse into their personal lives,” which she felt helped her connect to them more. While there were struggles with adjusting to a different environment, especially for an arts class, with commitment and resilience, the program worked together to not let COVID change their love for dance.

1.5 years later, the HSHS Dance Program has transitioned back to in-person classes. Coming back to in person dance has allowed improved group collaboration and spatial awareness.. I asked Ms. Stauderman about what her favorite part(s) about coming back to in person dance was: “In all sincerity, it is using space again, moving big and not feeling confined to the small spaces of our rooms, seeing many bodies traveling and moving as one without the lag of computer screens or having to focus on numerous boxes.” In addition to being able to dance together in person and have a larger atmosphere, Ms. Stauderman takes the opportunity and time to greet her students in the morning and chat with each of them. She emphasizes that it is important to build relationships and feel connected to her students and that she “probably missed that the most.”

I have been a part of the HSHS Dance Program all years of high school, and as I am a senior now, it has been a pleasure to see the development of the program. The program is a part of many projects and performances throughout the year, which the students lost last year. However, coming back has allowed the program to reopen its performance opportunities. The first performance being at Pep Rally, which was a student choreographed performance from the advanced class. This was the first performance that the program has been able to perform in front of a live audience, and it was amazing. As the year continues, keep an eye out for performances, like The Nutcracker, which is being performed in December!