Attending Grossmont College Dance Department’s “Entrances & Exits” dance concert is a great way to support local artists.
“I strongly believe that this is a concert that can appeal to everyone,” said Gina Sorensen, the new chair of the Dance Department. “That dance can reach every person.”
Each faculty member from the department choreographs a piece for the concert. Gina and Kyle Sorensen, adjunct dance faculty, have collaborated on a modern dance for the performance.
Gina Sorensen describes the modern dance “taps into playfulness and lightness.”
The “Entrances & Exits” concert will feature a variety of dance styles, such as ballet, hip-hop and modern.
“Between these really inventive pieces of choreography, professional dancers from our community and live music, it is going to be a really exciting show,” Sorenson said.
While her title as the department’s chair is new, Sorenson is not new to Grossmont College. She has worked for the college’s Dance Department for eight years and has taught dance for over 25 years in various schools.
“I like that I get to support them in the physical aspects of dance; that I am a part of training their technique and performance,” she said.
As the chair, Sorensen directs the college’s touring dance company and the dance concerts, alongside teaching modern dance and choreography classes.
“I feel like I have an opportunity to shape a future path for the department and the dancers,” she said.
Before Sorensen became the chair, the dance department had no full-time faculty for a year. Sorensen is now the only full-time faculty member. “I feel I can really support them because I am here every day,” she said.
The inspiration process for each choreographer is different. The Sorensons began work on the material for “Entrances & Exits” eight months ago, in France, at an artist residency.
“Anything that kind-of catches our interest, that we want to investigate through the medium of dance, we are open and available to having inspiration come at us from different directions,” Kyle Sorensen said.
Because of this, their process and the dances they create look different every time. Sorensen explained that last year they created a haunting and sorrowful dance.
Gina Sorensen teaches choreography classes at Grossmont, describing it as “the most satisfying and rewarding classes that I get to teach.”
“I love helping students explore how movement might manifest, and how organization of movement can create meaning, how we can work with the materials of dance in space and in time to make a dance happen,” she said.
If you are curious to see the choreography work from Grossmont faculty members, check out “Entrances & Exits,” which will be held May 7, 8 and 9 in the Performing & Visual Arts Center (PVAC). Tickets are on sale at gcccd.universitytickets.com.
