Two Kennesaw State alumni were featured in Dance Magazine’s 2022 “25 to Watch” list.
Still dancing for Hubbard Street Dance Company in Chicago, Simone Stevens’ December debut in Dance Magazine came as a surprise after not hearing back from a prior interview. She heard the news of her feature from a colleague at Hubbard.
“It’s nice to have the recognition that you’re headed in a direction that other people are noticing,” Stevens said.
She hopes that accepting a position with Hubbard will open more opportunities, furthering her dance techniques and aspirations. In the future, Stevens wants to continue her dance journey and become a mentor for others joining the industry.
Stevens was offered the Emerson Scholarship for the Advancement of International Education, where students study dance in Israel with artists from the Batsheva Dance Company in Tel Aviv. After graduating in 2017, she worked as a freelancer in the Atlanta suburbs and has been able to accomplish a multitude of personal goals. However, her “greatest accomplishment” was when she auditioned and accepted a position at Hubbard on Zoom due to COVID-19.
“I remember I cleared out my whole living room space just to make room to do ballet… then to have them propped up on my computer so they could see me,” Stevens said, “That whole process was wild.”
Darvensky Louis describes his feelings after hearing the news about his feature as “surreal.”
Dance Magazine described Louis’s talent as “multilayered and arresting.” During his time at KSU and after graduating in 2020, Louis landed roles with well-known dance companies including Staibdance, Fly on a Wall and Terminus Modern Ballet Theatre. In 2018, Darvensky was also offered to study dance abroad in Israel with the Batsheva Dance Company.
“I started dancing at such a late age I never thought I would be even considered for something like ‘Top 25,'” Louis said. “I am humbled, honored and blessed. All the glory goes to God.”
In addition to all of Louis’s achievements, he founded Sequence Once, a company to better help college dance alumni fulfill their dance dreams and potential.
“My mission and vision is to inspire many future undergraduate creatives by bringing concert dance internationally through the collaboration of college alumni,” Louis said.
Following the achievements of the two dancers, the KSU dance department extended their program to contain a Bachelor of Arts in Dance as well as a dance minor. The number of students enrolled with dance majors has increased by about 33% over the past few years according to KSU.
