The last few years, I have noticed the Universal Dance Association (UDA) College Nationals become increasingly popular because of the competition’s increased visibility on social media with many routines posted on YouTube and TikTok. The world of dance teams and competitions are not new to me, as I competed in UDA Nationals all four years of high school. However, the attention and popularity that the 2024 UDA College Nationals have gained among college students is undeniable.
During UDA Nationals, which took place the weekend of Jan. 12-14, Ohio State University’s (OSU) dance team competed their Division 1A Jazz routine to “My Way” by Frank Sinatra. The routine, which placed first overall in the category and division, was powerful and emotional. The work that goes into learning, perfecting and performing a competitive dance routine is nothing short of incredible and OSU’s dance team always shows up and shows out. However, the work of the team in my eyes is overshadow by the unfortunate truth that OSU’s jazz routine was choreographed by Travis Wall, a choreographer known for sexually harassing multiple dancers and peers, including minors.
The team’s routine won, but at what cost? OSU’s choreographer, Wall, was part of Break the Floor Productions (BTF), a dance entertainment company that organizes workshops, competitions, training, theatrical productions, video production and more. The company has toured the world since 1999 with various dance projects, conventions and other workshops. BTF has a dark side of allegations of sexual harassment and misconduct that most dancers are pretty aware of.
BTF removed Wall from their faculty in 2021 after multiple sexual misconduct allegations were made against him. Multiple choreographers at BTF have been accused of sexual assault and harassment since early on in the organization’s history including Mark Meismer and Danny Wallace. I question why people continue to use choreographers like Wall on not only small-scale projects, but also routines that are shared with the dance world and taken to national championships.
The dancers can not take the blame for their chosen choreographer, as coaches should be held accountable for the decision. In previous years, OSU’s dance team worked with choreographer Shannon Mather, the owner and director of Mather Dance Company. Mather choreographed OSU’s jazz routine in both the 2022 and 2023 UDA Nationals. In 2022, the team took first place in jazz, but in 2023, they were runner-up. What made them switch choreographers this season? Was a second place trophy enough to choose a known predator over their previous choreographer?
As a dance major and a retired competitive dancer, I know the gravity of what you place at a dance competition. Especially at the collegiate level, sports are some students’ entire life. Student athletes dedicate their time outside of studying to training and perfecting their craft. Even so, I can not excuse OSU’s choice to use Wall as their choreographer. With the prominence and attention UDA nationals brings to choreographers and dancers, I am upset that Wall is being celebrated even with the knowledge of his sexual misconduct.
It feels necessary to acknowledge the idea of separating the art from the artist and recognizing that someone can create something incredible and still be a terrible person. This concept is a moral conundrum. I applaud OSU for their success and performance, but can not disregard the difficult aspect of Wall’s involvement. Sexual assault allegations should never be taken lightly and it is unfortunate that the accused, like Wall, are able to work with new dancers constantly.
