Angela Harris: Emory Dance Company Choreographer Fall 2021

Raven Crosby, Office Assistant 

Emory Dance ballet instructor Angela Harris is creating a new work for the Emory Dance Company, which will be the first ballet piece that the Emory Dance Company has presented since 2015. Her neo-classical ballet features a strong cast of 16 dancers who are skilled in ballet movement. Working with such a large cast may appear physically difficult; however, Harris is working with her cast in small groups and teaching each different sections and variations.

Harris begins her choreographic process by selecting music before creating movement. “I am heavily influenced by musical choices. I usually start by listening to a lot of music and find the selections that move me. I also consider the style, feel, and intent of the piece I want to create, and start with finding a musical score that will be a match for the concept in my mind.” For this piece, she wants the dancers to be “moved” by the music and capture the spirit of the piano and the intricacies of the instrumentation. She decided on this concept after her first rehearsal where she noticed that the dancers fully embodied her music choices. “When I re-watched [a recording of] the piece and turned off the music, I could still hear the music through the dancers' movement. It was lovely. So, I decided to focus on embodying the music in this ballet.” 

When asked what the audience can expect to see, Harris stated, “I usually like to hear audiences' reaction before I tell them what I want them to feel or see. For this piece, there isn't really a deeper story. It's movement and music, and sometimes music and movement make us feel many different things.” With the diversity of dance genres presented in the Emory Dance Concert this fall, Harris feels that her ballet piece will fit right in. “I think diversity in dance styles always makes for an exciting performance. I don't think my piece will be out of place. On the contrary, I think that the performance will show the wide array of artists that make up the Emory Dance Company and Emory Dance faculty. It will be an exciting show!”