Two Loyola Marymount University performers won the top prize at the American College Dance Festival in Washington D.C., the Oscars of college modern dance.
Graduating seniors Charles Roy and Paul Vickers were named best performers at the 2012 festival, which is held every other year at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The two dance majors will split the $1,000 prize. Roy is from Corpus Christi, Tex., and Vickers is from Lake Villa, Ill.
“The festival is the national showcase of the best college programs in the country,” said Damon Rago, associate professor in the Department of Theatre Arts and Dance, director of dance at LMU.
In announcing the winners the panel of judges said: “Charles Roy and Paul Vickers(Unscripted/Riptide Into Me) will share the Outstanding Student Performer award based on their engaging performance quality. They both had a raw, open and vulnerable stage presence. They demonstrated excellent partnering skills with clear dynamic changes, plus complicated timing and weight shifts.”
The competition took place May 24-27. The festival gives two awards, one for outstanding student performer and another for outstanding student choreography.
“This is huge,” said Diane DeFries, executive director of the American College Dance Festival Association. “The panelists watched 30 dances and there were close to 200 performers at the festival from around the country.”
The LMU dancers earned the Washington appearance with a standout performance at the dance festival association’s Baja Regional Dance Festival this spring at Cal State Dominguez Hills, where dance troupes from more than 48 schools performed.
Rago called the award “well deserved. I have seen the piece over a dozen times in both rehearsals and performances. Their performance was exquisite.”
The national festival is more than a competition. The association events are a celebration of dance, where young performers get to meet, share and perform for their peers, he said. It is also an opportunity for young artists to participate in daily classes and workshops that are a key part of the annual regional events and the biannual national festival.
Keith Johnson, guest artist at LMU, choreographed the piece. The Department of Theatre Arts and Dance is part of the College of Communication and Fine Arts. Barbara J. Busse is dean of the college.