Experience the talent of Dance at Wayne State in the final production of the department’s 2023-2024 season

Past and present collide as the Maggie Allesee Department of Theatre and Dance celebrates its 95th year of Dance at Wayne State University with the annual Spring Dance Concert, "Echos of the Future," taking place on the STAGE at the Hilberry Gateway from April 19-21, 2024. 

As part of the celebration, the department is launching a groundbreaking partnership with Gibney NYC. The partnership is represented in the concert with original work by Amy Miller, Gibney NYC's director of learning and leadership. Last semester, Miller visited the department to set a repertory piece, “Suerza,” performed by the senior class of 2024. 

Wayne State Alumna Leah O'Donnell also contributes to the concert with an original dance theatre work in collaboration with the student dancers and scenic designers of Wayne State University. O’Donnell’s creative background includes a prolific international career in concert and commercial dance, with credits including performances at the Metropolitan Opera, Saturday Night Live and for Beyoncé Knowles-Carter. 

Local company Ballet Folklorico de Detroit will be featured in the concert, with their piece titled “La Fiesta de Sinaloa Mestizo.” Led by artistic director Lance Rodriguez, the award-winning company plans to bring traditional Mexican folk dancing to Wayne State audiences.

The concert will also include original pieces curated by To Sangana, led by Artistic Director and Associate Professor of Teaching Karen Prall, and Company Six, a new student-run company. Several other student works will be showcased at the concert, demonstrating the diverse range of interests cultivated by student choreographers and supported by a wide range of curricula. The student works include “Meeting Grounds.” by Noor Kaffarani, “Soul: the memory of yourselves” by Jonathan Chapdelaine, “Farewell” by Adari Torres, and “To be Able” by Gwendolyn Vaughn and Emiley Pegley. 

Alumni of the University are invited to begin the festivities early with an exciting pre-glow event in the lobby of the Hilberry Gateway. Reservations and tickets are required. 

Join us for a weekend of celebration, talent and diversity at the Maggie Allesee Department of Theatre and Dance's Spring Dance Concert: "Echos of the Future." For more information and tickets, please visit https://theatreanddance.wayne.edu/season/2023-2024/spring-dance-concert or call the Hilberry Gateway box office at (313) 577-2972. 

Media contact: Iyla Stebbins at iyla.stebbins@wayne.edu

About the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts  

The College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts is home to today’s aspiring artists, performers, technicians, scholars, dancers, debaters, entrepreneurs, and communication professionals who all represent the college’s legacy of excellence in our respective fields. The college serves students majoring in 17 undergraduate programs, 10 graduate programs and three graduate certificates through its departments: the James Pearson Duffy Department of Art, Art History and Design, the Maggie Allesee Department of Theatre and Dance, and the Departments of Communication and Music. From debate to dance, jazz to journalism, and fashion design to center stage, our students create captivating performances, inspire artistic and academic excellence, and conduct innovative research on behalf of our Detroit community.  

About Wayne State University  

Wayne State University is a premier urban research institution offering approximately 350 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to nearly 24,000 students. Through its multidisciplinary approach to research and education and its ongoing collaboration with government, industry and other institutions, the university seeks to enhance economic growth and improve the quality of life in the city of Detroit, state of Michigan and throughout the world. For more information about Wayne State University, visit wayne.edu.