American College Dance Association presents the 2023 National College Dance Festival

For the first time in its 42-year history, the American College Dance Association’s National College Dance Festival will be held on the West Coast. The Festival Gala Concerts offer audiences an opportunity to view the next generation of dancers and choreographers in three different programs, featuring some of the finest dance works selected from colleges and universities throughout the country. Each program showcases 11 dances, with a total of 33 schools participating in the Festival.

The choreography in each program represents a breadth of styles and themes created by guest artists, faculty, and graduate and undergraduate students. Highlighting the ongoing American tradition of dance as a medium to investigate a wide range of aesthetic, emotional and social issues, dances in the Festival delve into the nature of human relationships and interactions, explore the joy and beauty of pure movement or powerfully reflect the current political and social climate. Exciting and varied choreography and ferocious dancing by emerging artists—the Festival reflects the vitality of dance across the country.

For ticket related questions or to request ADA seating for this event, please contact the Carpenter Performing Arts Center ticket office: cpac@csulb.edu or 562.985.7000

Participating schools and programs will be announced in mid-April.

Campus parking is $15. Neither the Carpenter Center nor ACDA receives any portion of the collected parking fees.

All ticket purchases will incur an Online Processing Fee of $3.75

National Festival Selections to Perform in the Festival Gala Concerts:
(programs listed in alphabetical order)

Program A: Friday, May 26 at 7:30 p.m.

• California State University, Fullerton (CA), Lavanertia, Leila Massoudi & Sophia Bernardo (Undergraduate Students)
• St. Olaf College (MN), We, The Beatitude, Tyreis Hunte (Undergraduate Student)
• University of Maryland, College Park (MD), silent room echoing still, Gerson Lanza, Christina Collins and Javier Padilla (Graduate Students)
• University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (MN), Swan Song, Elayna Waxse with the dancers (Guest Artist)
• University of New Mexico (NM), Las Horas Contadas, Marco Flores (Guest Artist)
• University of South Florida (FL), Woman’s Search for Meaning, Shelby Russ (Undergraduate Student)
• University of the Arts (PA), Ballads of Perceptive Fallacies, Zoe Miller with performers (Undergraduate Students)
• University of Vermont (VT), The Undertaker Waltzes In , Paul Besaw (Faculty)
• University of Wyoming (WY), The Making of Me, Aaron M. Wood (Faculty)
• Webster University (MO), Reflecting Walls, Haley Rhiney (Undergraduate Student)
• Western Michigan University (MI), Family of Jazz (excerpts), Kimberly Cooper (Guest Artist)

Program B: Saturday, May 27 at 7:30 p.m.

• Alabama State University (AL), Dilemma, Jerome Nuney Stigler (Faculty)
• California State University, Long Beach (CA), Hapa, Tori Cone (Undergraduate Student)
• George Mason University (VA), War Children, Shaun D’Arcy (Faculty) in collaboration with cast (Faculty)
• Jacksonville University (FL), What is Lost?, April Henehan (Graduate Student)
• Ohio State University (OH), CANNONBALL, Abby Zbikowski in collaboration with dancers (Faculty)
• Riverside City College (CA, femmeboi, Rosa Frazier (Faculty)
• Salem State University (MA), Petri Dish, Sarah Soares (Undergraduate Student)
• San Diego State University (CA), Because You Move Me, Jess Humphrey (Faculty)
• SUNY Brockport (NY), Intersections, Kaley Pruitt (Faculty)
• University of Michigan (MI), Рапсодия на прелюдию к сжиганию цветов керосином
• (Rhapsody on a Prelude to burning flowers with Kerosene), Jack Randel (Undergraduate Student)
• University of Texas at Austin (TX), No Shoes Allowed, Ryan Johnson (Graduate Student)
• Utah Valley University (UT), rove.gaze. , Holly Perkins and the dancers (Undergraduate Students)

Program C: Sunday, May 28 at 6:00p.m.

• Arizona State University (AZ), Emotion in Movement, Richard Bullard (Undergraduate Student)
• Emory University (GA), Tlalli, Julio Medina (Faculty)
• Gustavus Adolphus College (MN), Veneer, Jill Patterson (Faculty)
• Modesto Junior College (CA), Within the Fault Line, Kim T. Davis (Faculty)
• Montclair State University (NJ), se Va, Miguel Miranda (Undergraduate Student)
• Orange Coast College (CA), Strategy, Mike Esperanza (Guest Artist)
• Sam Houston State University (TX), Tower, Andy Noble (Faculty) in collaboration with Laura Harrell (Faculty)
• University of North Carolina at Greensboro (NC), Aria’s Narrative, Dasia Amos, Morgan Burgess, Emily Dumonceaux, Grayson Kelsh, Clara Kennedy, Laniya Smith (Undergraduate Students)
• University of Oklahoma (OK), Crickets, Maggie Schoenfeld & Randi Tucker (Undergraduate Students)
• University of Utah (UT), The Rate We Change, Kellie St. Pierre (Graduate Student)Washington University in St. Louis (MO), Maragatha Manimaya, Amarnath Ghosh (Graduate Student