OU Repertory Dance Company to present ‘Bailamos’ on March 21

The Oakland University Repertory Dance Company will present Bailamos on Friday, March 21 in the atrium of the Engineering Center on the campus of Oakland University.

“Last July, I had the honor and privilege of taking a handful of students to Costa Rica to perform last year’s Engineering Building choreography for the Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica,” Thayer Jonutz, associate professor of dance and director of the Repertory Dance Company. “I created a new dance titled Bailamos, which means ‘we dance,’ based on sights, sounds, tastes and other experiences I had during that Costa Rican adventure.”

Jonutz has been the director of the Repertory Dance Company since 2009 and in 2018 decided to add a performance that would give the dancers an opportunity to perform in a non-traditional theatre, as well as give them experience performing a full show that has a theme.

“This show has since become a mainstay in our season calendar and is something that the Repertory Dance Company and our community looks forward to annually,” he said.

This year’s show will mark the sixth time the Repertory Dance Company has performed inside the OU Engineering Building.

“It is not ideal, but that's what makes it unique for both the performers and the audience members,” Jonutz said. “Dancers usually perform on a sprung floor to protect their body from the impact of a hard floor. A dance audience usually sits in a tiered seating scenario. In the Engineering Building, all of this is challenged in a refreshing way. One of my favorite parts of this show is that I get to have a conversation with the audience and offer clues on meaning to the dances. This does not typically happen in a traditional theatre.”

The OU Repertory Dance Company will be joined by students from Oxford High School’s Dance Conservatory during the March 21 performance.

“We have a great relationship with Oxford High School's dance conservatory and share performances every year,” Jonutz said. “Last year I had an idea to collaborate with their dancers. It was an ambitious undertaking in that we combined Oxford High School dancers with Repertory Dance Company dancers in a brand new dance. I created a dance in about three hours that was performed the same evening. It was such a huge success that both myself and the Oxford director wanted to do it again this year.”

Admission to Bailamos is free, but “pay as you wish” donations will be accepted with proceeds being put toward the Repertory Dance Company’s summer tour in Costa Rica.

For more information about this and other upcoming performances, visit www.oakland.edu/smtd/performances-and-events.