DanceWorks provides both creative outlet and friendship

When social psychology freshman Hillary Benjamin came to Syracuse University, she knew she wanted to get involved with a dance troupe. Dance has been a large part of her life since she was a little girl.

So she attended a workshop held by DanceWorks, where she got to meet some of the student choreographers and see the dances they would be performing that semester.

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“I fell in love with some of the choreographers’ dances, and I just knew I had to do it,” Benjamin said.

Benjamin is now one of the 110 members of DanceWorks, which traditionally has been the largest dance troupe on campus. It still has the distinction of being the largest dance troupe on campus that requires auditions. But Orange Pulse surpasses it in numbers with 127 members this year, Angie Petrie, assistant director of recreation services at SU, said in an email.

Auditions take place around the second week of October, said SU marketing and finance senior Emily Ralph, one of the co-directors of the club. The auditions are for dances of various styles, including hip hop, jazz, and musical theater, and students try out for specific routines. The choreographers then choose the students they want for each of their pieces, and the students in turn rank the dances in order of preference.

It is a selective process, as only around 37 percent of the students who auditioned this year were selected, Ralph said. But for those like Benjamin who did get accepted, the club allows them to express themselves in a unique way.

Said Benjamin: “It’s a therapy session.”