Shine Bright, dance auditions take place at LBCC

"Dance like no one is watching" is a motto that many people try to stick to when it comes to performing in front of an audience. Add a few judges and some butterflies in your stomach, and it can be hard to think like that.

The dance studio at LBCC had dancers all over the floor stretching every inch of their bodies, practicing their turns. Many dancers were going over previous routines, there was noise all around from dancers talking and gossiping to music being played in the background.

Each year the LBCC Dance Club, hosts dance auditions for their spring dance showcase. Auditions were Saturday, Jan. 21, in the Activities Center Building.

There were dancers of every shape, size and experience. There were a couple male dancers along with a multitude of female dancers.

There were a range of dance experience among them going from dancing all of some of their lives to just beginning. Most of the dancers that auditioned ranged from ages of 17 to 30 or older.

This was their third annual dance auditions. The auditions were conducted by the club's advisers Katherine Sanders and Liz Pearce along with choreographers who are also part of the club.

"We are planning to have a great show planned for spring term," said Pearce.

"A lot of the dancers that auditioned showed a lot of great qualities for each dance our choreographers are bringing to the table," she said.

The auditions were split up into two parts. The first half of auditions was for dancers interested in modern/lyrical/contemporary styles and then the second half were for Hip-Hop dancers. The audition was free and is open to the general public.

They were held in the Activities Center in the dance studio to provide an appropriate dance environment.

This is where most of the dance department is located at on campus.

The dance studio floor had dancers of every style of dance, from hip-hop to ballet, stretching, asking questions and all in excitement for the auditions and joining the club.

Alyssa Blythe, a local resident of Albany, is a new member of the dance club at LBCC.

Blythe is 20 years old and has been dancing for roughly seven years. She started dancing when she was 13.

"I like that even though everyone dances with different purpose and style," said Blythe while packing her stuff up after auditions, "everyone's gifts and talents were welcomed and everyone rocked it in their own way."

Once the auditions finished, the dancers departed and the choreographers congregated to evaluate the dancers and where dancers were going to be placed. The process usually takes a while, for it takes some time to figure out which dancers fit with the style of dance the choreographers are doing.

"I am very excited for this year's showcase, it seems like it might be a little smaller than last year," said Pearce, "a smaller group might make it easier to polish some of our dances and keep it organized."

There is always a big hope from the club members that they will have a big turnout of people who want to tryout. The greater number of people auditioning means a bigger showcase in the spring.

Unfortunately for this year the turn out for auditions were a little bit of a disappointment.

"Normally we have about 40 people auditioning, this year we had about half of that," said Sanders.

The tryouts had a count of about 24 people this year.

"It's possible if needed that we might have a second round of auditions but it's still up in the air." said Sanders.

The first rehearsal was Saturday, Jan. 28. The spring dance showcase will take place during the spring term on Friday, April 20, and Saturday, April 21 at 7:30p.m. in the Russell Tripp Center.

If you would like to get involved with the LBCC dance club, make donations or even help organize contact:

Katherine Sanders
Downtown Dance Studio
541.829.0070

At a glance:
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LBCC Dance Club

Phone: 541.754.7097
Activities Center: LBCC Campus

Rehearsals: Every Saturday

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Spring Dance Showcase:

Friday, April 20, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, April 21, 7:30 p.m.

Russell Tripp Center