This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UCSB chapter.
Tell us a little about the exhibit: Transformation and Continuance: Jennifer Muller and the Reshaping of American Modern Dance, 1959-Present: The dance department announced in the spring of last year that they had received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts program American Masterpieces: Three Centuries of Artistic Genius to be able to set a piece that Jennifer had choreographed in the past called Speeds. It is an interesting piece with the dancers all clothed in white and there are several costume changes that happen during the half hour section that the Senior Dance Company performed. I know there are two other sections, but the company performed this section. In addition to having Jennifer set a piece on the company, the department also decided to have an exhibit to showcase her life, to create a book which is now on sale (my name is in it!), and to have a conference held at UCSB in April to honor her work as well. I think the exhibit came to UCSB because one of the faculty members, Christopher Pilafian, was one of the founding members of Jennifer’s company and was a company member for 15 years. When the faculty is trying to decide what pieces they plan for the Senior Dance company to dance in, they often look to who they have connections with. Since Christopher had such a long career with Jennifer and his teaching is greatly influenced from her movement, it seemed appropriate to have her set a piece on them. (of course this took a lot of grant writing and etc.—it is a big deal that we got these grants. I don’t know that much about them, but I do know that my teachers were so excited when they heard that they got them because I guess they are pretty prestigious!)Â
What is your role in the exhibit? My involvement in this began in Winter Quarter when my ballet history teacher asked me if I would be able to work on the exhibit. Before the exhibit opened, I helped re-type the playbills that Jennifer had from her entire career, editing, and typing up other information that my teacher needed. I stayed here during spring break to help with the exhibit and scanned multiple pictures that eventually helped decide how the exhibit was going to be organized. When the exhibit opened, I spent the week taking people through the exhibit. I gave them a tour and discussed all of the panels, videos, and cases that were on display of Jennifer’s scrapbooks that her mom made that documented her life, and answered questions that people had on Jennifer, dance in general, or on the exhibit. It was a great experience being able to talk to people from all over the US who came out for the exhibit. The exhibit is a huge deal because it is the first time since Martha Graham—one of the great pioneers of modern dance in the 1920s and 1930s—had an exhibit. In the dance world, males dominate the higher positions and more often choreographers than women despite the fact that there are always more women involved in the field than men. Jennifer is an important woman to recognize because her choreography has many extremes and the fact that she was able to keep her company surviving since its initial start at the end of the 1950s and is still around is amazing. There are always financial struggles and companies usually have a hard time staying alive because of this.  Â
How can students get involved with the dance program at UCSB? Students can always get involved with the dance program here at UC Santa Barbara. There are beginning ballet and modern classes available that many students enjoy taking. Also, for students who do have a dance background, they can take classes with the students who are dance majors. They have to show up the first day of class to audition and then the professors will let them know if they can take the class. As long as it is clear that they have had experience, they usually get to take the class. Also, there are mainstage performances in the Spring and Fall, and Honors Project, and the Junior’s Dance Concert which people can audition for! The department is full of fun, artistic, outgoing, and happy people, so we always encourage people to come by and check us out or audition for the programs!   Â
What is your role in the exhibit? My involvement in this began in Winter Quarter when my ballet history teacher asked me if I would be able to work on the exhibit. Before the exhibit opened, I helped re-type the playbills that Jennifer had from her entire career, editing, and typing up other information that my teacher needed. I stayed here during spring break to help with the exhibit and scanned multiple pictures that eventually helped decide how the exhibit was going to be organized. When the exhibit opened, I spent the week taking people through the exhibit. I gave them a tour and discussed all of the panels, videos, and cases that were on display of Jennifer’s scrapbooks that her mom made that documented her life, and answered questions that people had on Jennifer, dance in general, or on the exhibit. It was a great experience being able to talk to people from all over the US who came out for the exhibit. The exhibit is a huge deal because it is the first time since Martha Graham—one of the great pioneers of modern dance in the 1920s and 1930s—had an exhibit. In the dance world, males dominate the higher positions and more often choreographers than women despite the fact that there are always more women involved in the field than men. Jennifer is an important woman to recognize because her choreography has many extremes and the fact that she was able to keep her company surviving since its initial start at the end of the 1950s and is still around is amazing. There are always financial struggles and companies usually have a hard time staying alive because of this.  Â
How can students get involved with the dance program at UCSB? Students can always get involved with the dance program here at UC Santa Barbara. There are beginning ballet and modern classes available that many students enjoy taking. Also, for students who do have a dance background, they can take classes with the students who are dance majors. They have to show up the first day of class to audition and then the professors will let them know if they can take the class. As long as it is clear that they have had experience, they usually get to take the class. Also, there are mainstage performances in the Spring and Fall, and Honors Project, and the Junior’s Dance Concert which people can audition for! The department is full of fun, artistic, outgoing, and happy people, so we always encourage people to come by and check us out or audition for the programs!   Â