The Department of Music, Theatre and Dance’s (MTD) Spring Dance Concert is just around the corner, and is scheduled to be held in Grand Valley State University’s Louis Armstrong Theatre from April 18-19. The concert will feature choreographed pieces by faculty and guest artists, including featured guest choreographer Jovita Weibel, who’s currently teaching a piece to GVSU dance students.
Weibel, who was born and raised in Switzerland, has extensive choreography experience in both Europe and the United States. Currently, she works as a dance professor at Muskegon Community College. As a guest choreographer, Weibel is teaching GVSU students a piece titled “Life Forms” for the Spring Dance Concert. While many dance program guests only stay for a week-long residency, Weibel will be at GVSU throughout the month of March.
For the Spring Dance Concert, Weibel aimed to create a piece that provokes thought and discussion, rather than just being aesthetically pleasing. She also hopes to inspire audiences to reflect more carefully and draw their own interpretations regarding their relationship with the planet.
“It’s really important that we are careful with our life forms (and) our earth,” Weibel said. “Maybe when we look at it (the planet) a little bit closer and see all the miracles that are presented in (the) tiny details, we’ll end up being a little bit more careful and not as wasteful as we are.”
“Life Forms” explores the evolution of life and incorporates themes related to humans and the natural world. Weibel’s choreographic style and approach to creating pieces is influenced by the European notion of Gesamtkunstwerk (total work of art), which pulls from various art forms to create a cohesive whole.
“It’s more like interpretive dance,” said Anissa Faison, a GVSU dance student in Weibel’s piece. “We’re supposed to evolve into animals. You’re not going to really be an animal because you’re a human, but (you have to) interpret that through dance and find ways to move your body to make that happen.”
Students are continuing to work with Weibel across multiple sessions to develop the piece, which is a notable departure from the typical one-week guest residency. Weibel said that working with students for longer periods of time allows for deeper engagement and co-creation.
“It’s less pressure,” Faison added. “I feel like I can take more time to make sure I learn, and (am) clean with my movement.”
Guest artists from different dance backgrounds and techniques are frequently brought in for GVSU students to experience different forms of choreography and performance styles.
“(The piece) is outside my comfort zone and dance (style) that I’m usually used to being cast in,” Faison said. “It’s definitely going to push me forward in my artistry.
Although Weibel said she has performed the piece before, she added that she was excited to collaborate with GVSU’s dance program because of the distinguished students within it.
“I love the different caliber of dancers here at GVSU,” Weibel said. “I’ve been missing working with higher-level dancers, so this opportunity to work with them was intriguing.”
Above all, Weibel vocalized that dance is a subtle art form, and that audience members can interpret performances with their own experiences, eyes and emotions.
“I prefer to communicate that way (through dance),” Weibel said. “The communication is, not only from my side, but also in the eye of the beholder.”
