Senior BFA and BA Candidates 2022 Dance Concert

Hello everyone! Our names are Evie Sondag, Halley Stein, Ramona Orion, and Sam Schenkein. As we head into our senior year at Webster University as dance majors, we are in the process of preparing for our Bachelor of Fine Arts Choreographic Concert. This concert acts as our senior capstone project, which is meant to be a culmination of our time here at Webster, not just as students but as artists and dancers.

Each of us have been spending our Summer researching and journaling in preparation for this final presentation of our creative works before entering the professional artistic world. Once the semester begins, we will be holding an audition to cast dancers for our various pieces, followed by five weeks of intensive rehearsals and showings. Our BFA candidates are responsible for creating three different works, including a solo on themselves, a duet/trio, and a group piece. Our BA candidate will be creating a solo on themselves on top of also writing a separate thesis for their BA capstone.

Not only will we be working as choreographers and directors, but we are also responsible for finding and/or designing costumes, creating sound scores, helping to design lighting, along with any other theatrical aspects and/or challenges that arise throughout the process. As you can imagine, the cost of balancing all of these elements does begin to add up, and while each candidate is allotted $50 to support us, anything we spend past that comes directly out of our pockets. We are hoping that with your help and support, we will have more room to create the best product we can make! In an effort to be as transparent as possible, we have included a budget overview so you may have an idea of exactly where your donations are going!

$1500 total

$400: Costuming and props (3 group pieces, 3 duets/trios, and 4 solos for an estimated 25 costumes)

$400: Photographer for promotional photos (paying a photographer to shoot and edit the photos used for our promotional flyers, social media promotions, and concert program)

$300: Videographer and photographer for concert (paying a videographer for filming/editing videos of the concert and a photographer for taking/editing photos of the concert

$250: Cast gifts (to buy each of our casted dancers a gift to show appreciation for their hard work and dedication, as they are not paid for their time)

$100: Mentor gifts (to buy our mentors gifts to show appreciation for their support and guidance)

$75: Stage manager and tech crew gifts (to buy our stage manager and tech crew gifts to thank them for their hard work and essential role in our concert)

$25: Research (to attend other performances and workshops that will influence and inspire our work)

We truly appreciate each and every dollar we raise as it brings us that much closer to creating the concert we’ve been preparing for and dreaming of for the last three years. We also understand as college students that money can be tight, and if you are unable to donate money at this time, you can still support us by coming to one of our performances on Oct. 6-8!

Lastly, we would greatly appreciate if you would include your name in your donation, if you feel comfortable doing so, so that we may recognize and thank you in our show program. This show wouldn’t be possible without all of you!