If pre-finals madness has you feeling worn and weathered, skip the club on Saturday, go on down to Cohen Auditorium and let the Tufts Dance Collective bust the moves for you in their latest show, "Traffic Jam." This year, the production consists of 18 different performances from TDC, featuring guest groups including Turbo, BEATS, and Sarabande.
TDC is the largest dance group on campus and is expanding with each semester. This year's show includes upwards of 188 different performers on-stage.
"Half of our choreographers are new this semester," senior and co-director Lisa Schupmann said. "That speaks for how much TDC grows every year, as well as how there is always a lot of people bringing something new to the stage."
The song selection this semester ranges from big titles in hip-hop, like Ciara's "Goodies," to old favorites like "Stayin' Alive." Director junior Steve Leichman advises that the audience be on the lookout for "In These Shoes" (sung by the late Kirsty MacColl) and directed by three first-time choreographers: sophomores Sarah Licht, Becky Hayes and Smita Deshmukh. Under their direction, the dance is "the perfect combination of sexy, hot, and cute," says Leichman, who joined TDC in the spring of his freshman year.
Leichman had no dance experience whatsoever when he joined and has worked his way up to be director and choreographer of two dances in Saturday's show: "Cantaloop" (Us3) and "Ch- Check it Out" (Beastie Boys). This piece has over 20 dancers, a mixture of TDC veterans and virgins, and Leichman describes it as "very snappy, swingy, and flowy."
Third-semester TDC member and senior Julia Shadur says that "Steve did a really good job with incorporating both the beat and the lyrics in making the moves make sense."
The non-threatening environment of the student-run group allows for people who have not had any experience to become involved. There are no tryouts for the group and everyone is guaranteed a place in at least one piece. The afterparty, on the other hand, takes more than a few pushes to get into.
"What I love most about TDC is the all-inclusive, relaxed kind of mentality, and so because of all of those things you find yourself really wanting to put in a lot of effort, and you find it is worth your time," says Shadur.
The members of each dance meet for one hour each week throughout the semester and some students choose to take part in more than one piece.
"The idea behind TDC is for students to enjoy themselves up on stage, to try something new and express themselves in a way they might be too shy to do in a club, or at a formal or whatever," says Schupmann. "Everyone's been there: not wanting to be the first one out on the dance floor." Schupmann choreographed "Nobody's Listening" (Linkin Park).
The TDC viewing experience does not simulate a voyeur's observance of intoxicated college students grinding and stripping to an endless stream of hip-hop or techno (although some of these elements are included). Between the dance, costume, and lighting, there is a lot of room for creativity in the choreographing process, and the performers have put in plenty of effort and expression into their respective dances as well.
"The dances in the last few years have moved from more mainstream music to songs you maybe have never heard before, and they have the moves to fit them," Shadur said. "So you get to see a great range of dancing and hear songs and see moves you wouldn't ever see at a club or at a fraternity party, for example."
