Master dancers

		Master dancers provide learning opportunities for dance students at UK

Peggy Traphorn (above, center) leads UK and Fayette dance students through jazz steps.

Traphorn led aspiring dancers throught the demands of a typical dance audition.

By Josh Shepherd

In January and February, aspiring dancers in Lexington got a valuable opportunity to work with two masters of the form in a training and development program sponsored by the Kentucky Partners in Dance Alliance in collaboration with the College of Education’s Dance Program. The master classes were held in the UK Dance Studio in Barker Hall.

Peggy Traphorn, a director and choreographer with credits on and off-Broadway, conducted her master class in late January. She took students through the rigueur of a typical professional dance audition, introducing them to a variety of styles including tap and jazz.

In mid-February Kentucky dance students benefited from a dance class led by Lula Washington, acclaimed founder of the Lula Washington Dance Theater, a ten-member modern dance company based in Los Angeles, California. Her master class focused on expressive forms of dance. Washington and her dance company are well known for depicting inner city life in their choreography.

Both of these master classes were made possible principally through the support of the Kentucky Partners in Dance Alliance (KPDA), said Rayma Beal, dance professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Health Promotion, with additional sponsorship from the UK Dance Program, the Singletary Center for the Arts, and the UK Office for Undergraduate Studies.

Linda Granacher, President of the KPDA, Inc., said these master classes help fulfill the dance alliance’s mission to promote dance education throughout the state of Kentucky.

According to Granacher, the Alliance is planning to sponsor other master classes throughout the year to give aspiring dancers in the area valuable opportunities to hone their skills and connect with professional dancers throughout the country.

“Kentucky is one of the few states that offers no majors in dance in higher education, only minors at best,” said Granacher. “Kentucky lags behind even our surrounding states in this area.” Programs such as these master classes will, hopefully, promote greater interest in dance in the state.