Jacinta Cobb 2nd to the left
Save the Last Dance!
Of the thousands of students at USC, only about 20 are dance majors. Last fall, the dance department officially declared the opportunity to obtain a Bachelor of Arts in Dance independently (it used to be a B.A. in Theatre, Speech, and Dance). A recreation building, for music and dance only, is currently being constructed next to the Blatt P.E. Center and is to be finished by the end of 2007. The dance department’s impact at USC has been going unnoticed by several students, faculty, and community friends for many years, but it is now coming to the forefront. Although the dance department has made a tremendous effort in the exposure of their department, many people are still unclear about the requirements of the major.
When questioning a few USC students about their knowledge on the dance major, several students did not know that there was a dance major, and some would downplay the academic part of it. Psychology Junior, Jermaine Roseman stated, “I don’t know much about the dance major but I’m sure they still have to work hard and it probably is physically challenging. However; I don’t think the academic side of it is as strenuous as other majors.” Jennifer Jackson a Junior Public Relations major said, “I actually have a few friends who are in the dance department, and I feel that they have just as much of a work load because not only are they mentally and emotionally challenged everyday but they also have to concentrate on the physical aspect.” Students at USC clearly have mixed emotions about the dance major and are unclear of the requirements in the field.
So what does it take to be a dance major? A look into the life of Senior dance major, Jacinta Cobb may paint a clearer picture for the curious. Jacinta actually did not start dancing until her freshman year of college. She group up focusing on cheerleading and running track and initially thought she would end up majoring in athletic training or sports medicine. After taking a few dance classes out of curiosity, she noticed she would get the same passionate feeling dancing that she’d experienced cheering at games/competitions or track meets. After clever contemplation of the idea, she came to a conclusion that dance was something that she wanted to pursue. She explained, “To get into the dance program here (which mainly focuses on classical ballet…and ironically, I cannot stand ballet) one usually has to audition. In my case I did not formally audition like the other students did. I was at California State University, through the National Student Exchange program, and spoke to the artistic director of the dance program here; I told her when I come back to South Carolina I planned on transferring to USC and asked how the dance program was. When I did come back they asked if I was interested in being a counselor for their summer camp program, and I could audition then. I accepted and started Fall 2005 as a junior at USC majoring in Dance performance/choreography!”
Jacinta made it clear that being a dance major is nowhere near what most people would assume. She stated, “I started realizing it is probably one of the most personal/interactive majors ever existed.” She went on to explain how critical the major can be. The teacher hounds the dancer if a class is missed because the classes are small and they know all of the students very well. Sometimes teachers pick favorites and give certain students lead roles in performances based on how well they know them—rather than on how talented the student is. It gets frustrating for the students. They also have deal with frustrating attitudes, people getting offended, and cattiness always lurking around. Sometimes the dance instructors act like dance is the only thing students do and get upset if they have to leave a rehearsal/class early (or miss it altogether) because of their academic classes. The dancers that also have jobs on the side, rarely have any free time. Jacinta stated, “It is already hard enough making time to study and dance to begin with, but without a job most of us would not be able to pay rent, tuition, bills, and so forth. If we were getting paid to dance, that would be a whole different story!”
Jacinta also made a point about the knowledge of the dance program amongst other students with different majors on campus. “Aside from the stress of dance teachers and classes/rehearsals, dance majors get overlooked more than anyone else, in my humble opinion. Many times when I tell people I’m a dance major I get a “you can major in dance???” look from them and it gets old, fast. Thankfully, the dance department has been getting a lot more exposure in the Gamecock, and through putting on several performances at the Koger Center each year.” Performances at the Koger center also bring in revenue through the dance department and they attract mass audiences from the local metro area as well as outside cities.
She went on to explain how passionate she is about dance and how it has impacted her life. She stated, “Now when I talk about dance I feel somewhat better about being a part of the program. The biased teacher stuff still gets on my nerves and there are definitely a lot of other things I would change about the department if I could, but dance is something I love so I just the bite the bullet and channel my negative feelings into my movements. Majoring in dance has its downsides but on the contrary it feels good to be able to do what you love and get credit for it! My next goal is to get paid doing what I love after I graduate.” Jacinta plans to become a choreographer or teach in a dance studio in Georgia, Florida, or North Carolina; eventually taking her to Los Angeles where the big opportunity and money lies. Her best advice to students who may be interested in the major is to make sure it is something in their heart and something that they are passionate about because it is a very mentally, emotionally, and physically challenging major. And for those students who think the dance major at USC is a piece of cake, think again!
Natasha Martin
