Kennesaw State Dance Department Students perform at annual Choreolab. September 21st, 2025. Photo Credit: Molly Pollock
On Sept. 21, 2025, Kennesaw State University’s Dance Department held its annual Choreolab.
This innovative event gives students the opportunity to choreograph their own pieces and curate an hour of fresh, experimental dance for their department and community.
Student dancers auditioned, rehearsed and performed Choreolab in a single weekend, Friday to Sunday, with two shows free for the public.
With over 50 students involved in its production, the event was almost exclusively student-led.
This was largely thanks to the efforts of the Dance Department’s three Registered Student Organizations: Dance Honors Society (also known as the Student Dance Collective), Dance Company and Dance Production, the department’s newest group.
This year’s theme was “World of Tomorrow.”
Student choreographers were encouraged to explore this theme through their work, creating pieces ranging from dystopian scenes to dream worlds.
Each performance’s theme hinged on “what comes next.”
With the creation of new technologies and the increasing intensity of social issues, the world is changing. Student choreographers used dance to traverse this fact and shed light on what matters to them.
Pieces like “Disconnected?” by Faith Smith, “A Paradox of Progress” by Sarah Esserwein, “Let’s Learn!” by Jayla Alberti and “Techno Solitude” by Sydney Walker examined the thin line between humanity and technology in the new era of Artificial Intelligence.
The works “Via Dolorasa” by John Mobley and “These People” by Sophia Hibbs called out social injustices, arguing for the safety and well-being of all human beings.
“Day Dream” by Milany Easterwood, “Fragile Armor” by Lelahbrooke White and “Before, After, & Then” by Nia Bellinger focus more on the intimate connections between people and the world around them.
Regardless of content, each piece discussed the nuances of the “World of Tomorrow” through innovative and dynamic choreography.
Unlike a typical dance performance, none of the pieces were done on a stage or in a formal location. Instead, they were performed in classrooms, offices and the spaces in between.
For example, the dance “Day Dream” was located in an enclosed meeting room, and the audience watched through lobby windows on two sides.
This allowed the dancers, along with choreographer Milany Easterwood, to really play around in the unlikely space, using the table, chairs and windows themselves as props to explore the performance’s underlying themes.
This was the case for many of the pieces featured in this year’s Choreolab. Student choreographers and dancers alike were given the chance to explore the possibilities and play with the meaning of performance.
Through dance, these students were able to curate a showcase of their talents and beliefs, displaying their own “World of Tomorrow.”
