USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance

Learn about some of the ballet faculty working with the Class of 2024 this semester, including lecturer Gillian Finley, Assistant Professor of Practice Bruce McCormick and Artist in Residence Jermaine Spivey.

Artist Francesca Harper joins the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance as a guest choreographer this semester. Harper promotes work rooted in artistic expression, empowerment and social justice. She brings this awareness to her work with USC Kaufman seniors.

The USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance has appointed Jackie Kopcsak as Assistant Dean of Faculty. In this position, she will be involved in faculty assignments, mentoring, merit reviews, promotions and hiring, among other responsibilities.

Zackery Torres (BFA ‘21) tackles topics of gender and inclusivity in their new book An Evolving Conversation on Gender: Dance Edition. The book seeks to break down the complexities of gender and provides information to start conversations in various dance communities.

Due to COVID-19, USC Kaufman BFA students and dance students around the world are currently taking classes remotely. As people dance in spaces in which they are not used to, conducting a quick spatial assessment can ensure dancers have the ability to move to the fullest capacity.

Bret Easterling, USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance lecturer, had a summer full of Gaga. Now, he is ready to take on a full semester of teaching it to BFA and elective students alike. This movement language, developed by Ohad Naharin, focuses on guided improvisation through the exploration of physical sensations and available movement options.

Nigel Lythgoe, a member of the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance’s Board of Councilors, hosted a virtual conversation with the school’s BFA students and alumni. The event focused on his career journey, advice to aspiring professional dancers and the evolution of the dance field.

Many of the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance BFA students have kept themselves very busy with summer projects. They have embarked on various initiatives in and around the dance world.

Looking for a way to stay active and get creative this fall? Shannon Grayson, USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance lecturer, will be teaching a variety of elective dance courses this semester. These include ballet, hip-hop, jazz, tap and Horton Technique, a modern dance style class that is new to USC Kaufman this year.

As part of University of Southern California’s Welcome Experience, USC Kaufman will host a series of virtual events for students. Its six week schedule of programs intends to support students as they acclimate to the new year.

USC Kaufman’s newest group of BFA freshmen will become the school’s sixth cohort of dance majors. The Class of 2024, with 26 students total, will begin courses mid-August. Learn more about each dancer.

COVID-19 has paused life in many ways. However, Saleemah E. Knight, Adjunct Assistant Professor of Dance at the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance, has had an action-packed summer. Knight plans to bring the same energy to her classes at USC Kaufman this fall.

The reality of COVID-19 has granted ample time to explore hobbies both old and new. This fall, Achinta S. McDaniel, USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance lecturer, will be teaching three dance elective courses for students looking for a creative outlet. These include Bollywood, Choreography for the Stage and Screen, and Kathak, a style new to USC Kaufman.

Four USC Kaufman Board of Councilors members, Robert Braun, Bryn DeBeikes, Ellie Kitta and Brad Tabach-Bank, have agreed to pool their support and match up to $40,000 for every dollar raised to support scholarship before the start of the fall semester.

The USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance completed a year-long process to craft its first, formal Strategic Plan. Its goal was to clarify and solidify a vision and commitment to move forward in alignment with the schools’s collective ideals.

USC Kaufman moved its operations online in March for the remainder of the Spring 2020 semester, but students across the many schools at USC continued to thrive in their virtual dance classes.

At the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance, we strive to create an environment of authentic belonging, but we know that many of our Black students, alumni, faculty and staff have felt unseen and neglected. As an organization that claims to uphold the value of equity, we must take immediate action to address these concerns and create meaningful change within our school.

On June 10, USC Kaufman BFA students, alumni, faculty and staff gathered for a virtual Town Hall and Collective Call to Action in response to the murders of Black people at the hands of police.

Our country is in mourning after the murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Nina Pop, Tony McDade, Dreasjon Reed and the countless other Black lives at the hands of police. We grieve for those who have died and for those who continue to be brutalized by this ongoing issue.

Admitted students for the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance’s Class of 2024 recently attended a virtual panel with several of the School’s alumni. The speakers included Stephanie Dai, Satori Folkes-Stone, Paulo Hernandez-Farella and Jackie Schiffner from the Class of 2019.

The new USC Kaufman Maymester, DANC 339: Dance Capitals of the World, planned to take place in Berlin, Germany. Due to COVID-19, the course moved online for its three week session and adapted its syllabus accordingly.

On Friday, May 15, 2020, the University of Southern California hosted its first-ever online conferring of degrees. Following the ceremony, USC Kaufman hosted a virtual celebration for its graduating seniors.

The USC Kaufman Class of 2020 senior projects covered a wide range of subjects and exhibited their hard work. The projects allowed BFA’s to explore their academic and personal interests with their background in dance.

In recent months, the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance’s community engagement initiative, Kaufman Connections, has found a new life online. Both USC Kaufman and its partner in this program, 32nd Street Elementary School, shifted to remote learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance student Adam Vesperman (BFA ‘20) chose to explore the advantages of occupational therapy screenings with BFA students for his senior project. He planned to implement yearly check-ins for dancers to address their unique needs, both mental and physical.

USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance student Rachel Harris (BFA ‘20) chose to research the intersection of dance and technology for her senior project. She created a prototype brace that detects motion and turns it into thermal energy.

From their homes all across the country, students, staff and faculty sent in video submissions to share what makes the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance special to them.

USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance student Amaria Stern (BFA ‘20) drew inspiration for her senior project from a longstanding passion. She chose to pursue the spectrum of Black dance as it relates to her studies thus far.

Backyards and living rooms have become dance studios. Kitchen counters and dining room chairs are now ballet barres. This is the new normal for students and faculty at the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance.

In their culminating senior projects, a few BFA students at the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance chose to highlight philanthropy as it relates to dance and other areas of study.