What began as an experiment by Sweet Briar senior Cat Ashley soon became a fascination for nearly everyone at the College. Ashley so wanted her roommate Betty Skeen to include dance en pointe as part of her senior dance concert, that she started a group on Facebook.com, titled “Get Betty Skeen to Dance En Pointe for Her Senior Dance Concert.” The agreement was that if 100,000 people joined the group, Skeen would slip on her pointe shoes and demonstrate her ability.
Betty Skeen. Photo by Andrew Wilds At last count, however, 551 people had voiced their support for Skeen’s endeavor – an impressive number, but well short of the desired goal. And besides, Betty says, two factors would effectively prevent her from dancing en pointe. “I think, a) I’m really out of practice, and b) the dance floor makes it really impossible to do that kind of movement.”
Her roommate’s plan may not have come to fruition, but it has built momentum for Skeen’s Senior Dance Concert on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 1 and 2. The 8 p.m. performances are the first to be held in the new Dance Studio Theater at Babcock Fine Arts Center. Admission is free and open to the public.
The concert will reflect the dances that Skeen has choreographed during her four years studying dance at Sweet Briar.
For Skeen, dance has been a lifelong pursuit. “I began dance training at age three with ballet,” she said, “but I like to think I’ve been dancing ever since I could walk.”
She entered the SBC dance program with a strong background in ballet, but says she has come to incorporate everything from “modern to post-modern to contemporary” styles into her repertoire. She also appreciates the freedom the program has given her to experiment with choreography.
“The emphasis on choreography is important, because most schools don’t have it,” she says. “We have a leg up going into graduate school, because we have a portfolio of our work.”
SBC dance professor Mark Magruder has watched Skeen’s approach to dance evolve. “Betty came in with a lot of ballet technique, and she’s expanded her understanding of how dance can be used,” he said.
He also points to her minor in creative writing. “She’s starting to blend some of that into the way she’s dancing.”
For more information, call (434) 381-6228.
– By
Katie Beth Ryan,
’08
