| Dear Dance Alumni and Friends: | As we move through the spring semester, the Department of Dance is thriving with energy and creativity! The year has begun with an array of exciting performances, guest artist residencies, and upcoming events that continue to inspire our community.
We had the privilege of welcoming alumni guest artist Chafin Seymour (MFA ‘18), who set his dynamic piece, Suite Donuts, on our students. This work, originally choreographed for the Limón Dance Company, will be featured in the Faculty/Graduate Concert this April 24- 26. Chafin also led an engaging Contemporary Movement Practices class during his visit.
This spring, MFA candidates Katelyn Perez, Mariana Tejeda, Joshua Culbreath, Emily Culbreath, and Sophia McLaughlin will also present their thesis concerts, highlighting original choreography developed through their graduate studies. Their work will be featured as part of New Work City, a new spring initiative by Performing Arts at Iowa to highlight the amazing work created by our talented graduate students in the performing arts. Keep an eye out for more posts this spring and follow #NewWorkCity: a nod to the energy and creativity that crackles across this performing arts community.
We are eager to hear about your accomplishments and accolades, too—so please share your news with us!
Thank you for your support!
Warmly,
Rebekah Kowal
Professor and Department Executive Officer | | GRANT WOOD FELLOWSHIP - APPLICATION OPEN
Performing Arts at Iowa is now seeking a Grant Wood Fellow in Interdisciplinary Performance: Dance for the 2025-2026 academic year. This fellowship is open to emerging and mid-career artists in dance making, choreography, performance, and interdisciplinary digital media.
The fellow will teach one course per semester, lead a creative project with students culminating in a public performance, and engage in outreach activities. Fellows receive a $40,000 salary, benefits, and furnished off-campus housing.
For full details and to apply, CLICK HERE. Applications reviewed beginning March 21, 2025. Please share this opportunity with artists who would be a great fit!
ONE DAY FOR IOWA - THE UI'S GIVING DAY
Mark your calendar! One Day for Iowa, the University of Iowa's 24-hour online giving day is Wednesday, March 26. We hope you'll take part and support the Department of Dance and our students! Watch for fun engagement opportunities and challenges on #1DayForIowa, and make your gift any time at 1dayforiowa.org/dance25. Thank you! | | | Departmental News | Exciting facility upgrades are coming to CLAS research spaces at the University of Iowa—including a new home for the Department of Dance! With improvements designed to foster collaboration and innovation, students and faculty will benefit from cutting-edge resources and state-of-the-art environments. Learn more about how these upgrades will elevate research and creative work: Read more here.
 Two University of Iowa MFA candidates have earned top honors at the 2025 American College Dance Association (ACDA) Central Conference. Second-year MFA candidate Emily Culbreath and her cast were selected to represent the conference at the National College Dance Festival in May at Georgetown University’s Royden B. Davis Performing Arts Center: Gonda Theatre. Emily's piece, Plan A: Stories of Embodied Frontiers, was praised by adjudicators as “an incredibly rich and complex exploration” of contemporary dance, spoken text, and audience participation. Second-year MFA candidate Mikey Rioux and their cast also received recognition, with Mystic Sister named Second Alternate, described as “seamless” and “a ritual of resolute connection.” These achievements highlight the excellence of UI’s Dance Department and the creative leadership of our students on a national stage.
Tap Dance at Iowa, a new student organization led by BA student Evan Zukin, will be having a spring concert at the end of the semester. Follow @tapclubuiowa on Instagram for news about the show.
You can read up on more Halsey Hall activities in the latest Halsey Herald student newsletter! | | | Alumni News | 
Renowned choreographer Lar Lubovitch, who studied dance at the University of Iowa before going on to graduate from Juilliard in 1964, continues to make an impact on the world of dance. On March 11, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater will perform his latest piece, Many Angels, at Hancher Auditorium after its recent premiere at the New York City Center. Don’t miss this incredible performance! Tickets are on sale now: Get yours here.
Alvin Ailey Rehearsal Director Ronni Favors has a special connection to Iowa, too. A proud City High graduate, she grew up dancing as a child in Iowa City! In conjunction with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater performance at Hancher, she will be in residence with Department of Dance students and City High students and will also present a talk at the UI Stanley Museum of Art on March 9.
Upon graduating, alumni Jaruam Miguez Xavier (MFA ‘24) secured a tenure-track position as an Assistant Professor of Theater & Dance at Bucknell University, where he is also Affiliated Faculty in Latin American Studies. In this role, Jaruam teached Brazilian Fusion Dance, a course initially developed during his master’s program and have since expanded at the university. During the winter break, he also traveled to Brazil to create a dance piece for a youth dance company, inspired by UI School of Music Professor Jean-Charles François’s album Tenebrae. Additionally, Jaruam was invited to participate in the Ajanta Ellora Arts Residency in India, a collaboration facilitated by Madhu Raghavendra. This April, Jaruam will dance, ORI, a solo performance at the Latino/a/x Contemporary Dance Festival in Texas. The piece was developed during his time on the course Theories of Dance and the Body, led by Professor Rebekah J. Kowal, chair of the dance department.
SUBMIT YOUR NEWS HERE | | | Faculty News | Professor Rebekah J. Kowal is co-editing a special issue of Arts, an international online journal based in China, with collaborator Professor Gerald Siegmund (Justus-Liebig University, Germany). Titled “Bodies on Edge in a Globalized World,” this issue seeks to capture the choreographic and embodied dimensions of the tenuousness of the contemporary global moment. The publication aims to facilitate a dialogue that transcends borders, nationalities, ethnicities, and economic conditions, inquiring: How do contemporary physical conditions and processes such as dislocation, dispersion, and dispossession manifest corporeally in artistic projects, creative processes, imagined worlds, and/or artistic and scholarly methodologies?
Associate Professor Kristin Marrs attended two National Dance Education Organization (NDEO) conferences: the NDEO’s national conference, and the NDEO/ISMETA (International Somatic Movement Education & Therapy Association) conference, both of which gave Marrs the opportunity to present her Ballet-in-the-Round research. Kristin’s Ballet-in-the-Round research draws from her foundations in Alexander Technique and interest in functional anatomy. Marrs is known to experiment with no-barre ballet classes, tapping into the movement quality dancers exude when oriented “in-a-round”. Her workshop at these conferences included an introduction to her background and findings, a movement section, and a Q&A to wrap up the day.
We are thrilled to announce that Professor Jennifer Kayle has been selected as University of Iowa 2024-2025 Graduate College Outstanding Faculty Mentor! This prestigious award recognizes exemplary mentoring of doctoral and/or master's students by members of the graduate faculty.
In November, Kayle performed in Northampton, MA, with her collaborative company, The Architects, as part of a curated artist co-op series, co-funded by an arts trust called A.P.E. (Available Potential Enterprises). Professor Kayle was artistic director for the annual departmental collaboration with IWP: International Writing Program, where she collaborated with Chris Tse, the poet laureate of New Zealand. Currently Kayle is on PDA leave, filming a screendance project called Ageing Virtuosity, with award-winning filmmaker Tori Lawrence (2016 MFA), funded by a recent AHI award. Finally, she has completed a draft of her first book Always in the Making: A Practical Philosophy of Ensemble Improvisation that was mentored by 4 scholars as part of the Obermann Center’s Book Ends award program over the summer.
Assistant Professor Stephanie Miracle organized a public artist talk on Feb. 20 by acclaimed choreographer and disabled artist Jerron Herman in collaboration with the Obermann Center for Advanced Studies and Public Space One. | | | Coming Soon to Hancher Auditorium | | | | | |
