BFA Students rehearse Rhoden's "RED/The Force" | Photo by Heather Toner

While the bulk of USC Kaufman student performances take place on campus, each semester also presents new opportunities for BFA students to perform off-campus at special events, in commercial work and more. This year is no different, though the first off-campus performance may hold the distinction of being the furthest away from the USC grounds that the Kaufman crew have ventured. Next week, a handful of our junior and sophomore class will make the long trip to Japan to perform a selection of works at the USC Global Conference in Tokyo.

BFA Students Satori Folkes-Stone and Rebecca Troyak rehearse Rhoden’s “Gone.” | photo by Heather Toner

“This is truly a fantastic opportunity for our students,” said Vice Dean and Director Jodie Gates, who will also attend the conference. “Not only does this give them the chance to perform in a new place, for a range of people from all walks of life, it will provide them an unforgettable cultural experience.”

The Global Conference is USC’s marquee international event held every other year in Asia. This biennial event brings together business, government, and academic leaders from across the Pacific Rim — as well as USC faculty, staff, and alumni — to discuss critical issues, developments, and opportunities facing the region and the world. It brings together representatives from the sciences, humanities, engineering, medicine, entrepreneurship, the arts and entertainment, all with the purpose of exploring how to improve and enhance lives worldwide.

BFA Students Joseph Hetzer and Jackie Schiffner rehearse “Le Corsaire.” | Photo by Heather Toner

BFA Students Juan Posada Penagos, Trevor Daw, Jake Tribus and Paulo Hernandez-Farella rehearse Jiří Kylián’s “Sarabande” | Photo by Heather Toner

USC Kaufman students will perform excerpts from George Balanchine’s Who Cares?, Dwight Rhoden’s RED/The Force, and Gone, a pas de deux from Le Corsaire, as well as an excerpt from Jiří Kylián’s Sarabande. Having only been back in school for a few weeks, rehearsals began right away, and the students have been working extra hard to prepare.

BFA Students Rebecca Troyak, Satori Folkes-Stone and Lenai Wilkerson rehearse Rhoden’s “Gone” | Photo by Heather Toner

BFA Students attending the Tokyo Global Conference rehearse Rhoden’s “RED/The Force” | Photo by Heather Toner

Sophomore Jake Tribus will share snaps from the road on the @usckaufman Instagram and Snapchat accounts, so follow along to join the students on this exciting performance journey.

By Heather Toner