Late in the evening on the stage of Furr Auditorium, eight students and Darryl Clark move through choreography, Clark guiding his Theater and Dance students through the steps of an up and coming dance performance.
The students worked late into the evening rehearsing “New Day,” the final set of the upcoming performance of “Phoenix,” a performance celebrating beauty that honors Black lives lost to police violence. This performance marks the first time McLeod Theatre has held a dance concert according to Clark.
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Directed by Clark, the performance blends modern and tap dance with classical music and features students, guest dancers and directors. He describes it as a ‘passion project.’
The origin of the idea stemmed from a conversation between Clark and School of Music colleague, Dr. Rossana Cauti, who asked Clark to choreograph a dance to a piece of music she was working on.
In the midst of 2020 in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests and the deaths stemming from police violence, Clark said he reflected on these things deeply.
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He read about Elijah McClain who died in Colorado in late 2019 from excessive police force. Clark learned McClain had been a violinist which connected with Clark. Through the frustrations, he wanted to give back in his own way – through dance.
The concert features 16 student dancers, two SIU BFA Musical Theatre alums and three community performers.
The performances will take place Feb. 14 through 16, 2025 at McLeod Theater at 7:30 p.m. on Friday Feb. 14 and Saturday Feb. 15 and a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday, Feb 16.
Editor-in-chief Lylee Gibbs can be reached at [email protected] or @lyleegibbsphoto on instagram. Photo editor Enan Chediak can be reached at echediak@dailyegyptian.com or @enanchediak on instagram.
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