From pirouettes to runway walks, Danceworks showed us that dancing talks. This semester’s performance, held on January 9th and 10th, was full of dramatic and emotion-provoking pieces choreographed by students and guest artists alike. Culminating a semester’s worth of work, the Danceworks performance was truly a testament to the extraordinary effort of MDC’s dancers and choreographers.
CRLS’s newest dance teacher, Alyssa Cesario, kicked off her MDC career strong, choreographing an exciting medley to open up the show. Featuring a flutter of movement, In Passing was fun and creative. But as many of the dance company’s pieces are, the true meaning was left up to interpretation.
Four smaller pieces were riddled throughout the show, featuring CRLS’s advanced dance class. Whatever’s Still to Come, Looking Back on Tomorrow, Lovin, and No Place Like… all combined deeper works with more technical movements. Choreographed completely by the students, the dances showcased the school’s robust dance program.
A couple crowd favorites were Disco Fever! choreographed by Katie Adams ’26 and Just Let Go choreographed by Lula Taylor ’26. The first of the two was electric, choreographed to You Should Be Dancing by Bee Gees with a shocking transition into the slower song, Memorizing by DJDELACROIX. Just Let Go featured the song Green Light by Lorde, and spearheaded by a cast of MDC veterans, was very powerful.
A heartfelt tribute to recently-retired CRLS Dance teacher Dr. Mila Thigpen was brought together by the company’s two captains, Ella Colgan ’26 and Julia Tierney ’26, and Dance teacher Ms. D. It featured sequences taken from three pieces that Dr. Thigpen choreographed over her 25 year career at CRLS, ending with a gracious goodbye from the dancers and roaring applause from the audience.
The two captains also led work of their own with Lady In Red and One More Moment, choreographed by Tierney and Colgan respectively. The prior was a vibrant interpretation of Abracadabra by Lady Gaga opening up the show again after intermission, and the latter a touching piece choreographed for Colgan’s father.
The guest artists showed out in the second half. Brianna Smith, a guest choreographer from the Boston Conservatory assembled a machine of dancers in a dramatic storytelling masterclass to the experimental tune of “Nu” by Ori Lichtik.
Guest artist Joh Camara, who has choreographed for MDC in the past, returned with an African dance piece titled Kuku for the performance’s final drum roll. This dance not only brought unparalleled energy and enthusiasm, but also vibrant color through its costume design.
This winter’s Danceworks performance was one of the strongest ones we’ve seen from MDC in recent years. Every dance, even those unmentioned, had something extra special about it—whether that be musical arrangement, costuming, or choreography. So CRLS, get excited, and look out for Dancework’s spring performance, scheduled for May 8th and 9th.
This article also appears in our January 2026 print edition.
