Department of Dance

Department at a Glance

Chair:	Prof. Miriam Osei-Bonsu
Founded:	1951
Enrollment:	~138 students
Full-time faculty:	14
Degrees:	BFA, MFA
Studios:	5 (+ 1 sprung-floor)
Home building:	Hargrove Dance Center
Phone:	(802) 555-0174
Email:	dance@acapa.edu

The Department of Dance at ACAPA offers rigorous conservatory-style training within a broader arts and liberal arts curriculum. Established in 1951 as one of ACAPA's founding academic units, the department has grown to become one of the most respected dance programs in New England. We prepare students for professional careers as performers, choreographers, educators, and scholars.

The department offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Dance and a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Dance, with concentrations in Ballet, Modern Dance, Choreography, and Dance Studies. Students perform in departmental productions every semester and have access to state-of-the-art facilities in the Hargrove Dance Center, completed in 1994 and renovated in 2019.

Degree Programs

Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Dance

The four-year BFA program (128 credits) combines intensive studio training with academic coursework in dance history, kinesiology, music for dancers, and the liberal arts. All students complete a common core in their first two years — daily technique classes in both ballet and modern, composition, anatomy, and performance — before selecting a concentration in the junior year.

128 total credits; 90 in dance, 38 in liberal arts and general education
Mandatory jury review at end of sophomore year for concentration placement
Senior capstone: self-produced choreographic or performance project
Minimum grade of C in all required dance courses; two semesters below C may result in academic review
Typical studio load: 18–22 contact hours per week
Three mainstage production slots per academic year

Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Dance

The MFA is a two-year, 60-credit terminal degree for established dance artists seeking advanced creative research. The program centers on individualized mentorship, choreographic thesis development, and pedagogy. All MFA students teach one undergraduate technique section per semester under faculty supervision, building teaching credentials alongside their creative practice.

60 credits over four semesters; full-time residential
Admits 6–8 students per cohort
Thesis: evening-length choreographic work (30–50 min.) plus 40-page written component
Teaching assistantship available; covers 50% tuition plus $12,400 annual stipend
Secondary emphasis options: dance science, pedagogy, dance film, or critical theory

Concentrations (BFA)

Students declare a concentration at the start of the junior year, subject to faculty approval following the sophomore jury. All concentrations share a common technique core.

Concentration	Focus	Typical Enrollment
Ballet	Classical and neoclassical technique, pointe/variations, pas de deux, ballet pedagogy	~28
Modern Dance	Graham, Limon, release technique, contemporary forms, somatic practices	~42
Choreography	Composition methods, site-specific work, multimedia collaboration, production	~31
Dance Studies	Dance history, ethnography, critical theory, arts policy; reduced studio hours	~17

Calloway Dance Scholarship

The Calloway Dance Scholarship was established through a $4.2 million endowment gift from Patricia Calloway (BFA Dance, 1981), a former principal dancer with the Boston Ballet and later founding artistic director of the Calloway Dance Project in New York City. The scholarship provides two full-tuition awards annually to incoming BFA Dance students who demonstrate exceptional artistic merit and financial need.

Recipients are selected by a faculty committee during the spring audition process. The award is renewable for all four years contingent on satisfactory academic and artistic progress. Since the endowment was activated in 2004, the scholarship has supported 42 students.

Full Calloway Scholarship information ›

Faculty

The department employs 14 full-time faculty. Adjunct instructors and guest artists supplement the curriculum each semester.

Name	Title / Specialty
Miriam Osei-Bonsu	Professor & Chair; Modern Dance, West African forms
Kenji Nakamura	Professor; Ballet, Repetiteur (Balanchine repertory)
Sylvie Delacroix	Associate Professor; Ballet, Pointe and Variations
James Throckmorton	Associate Professor; Choreography, Site-Specific Work
Nkechi Abara	Associate Professor; Graham Technique, Somatic Practices
Lars Vandermeer	Associate Professor; Limon Technique, Improvisation
Setsuko Hiraoka	Assistant Professor; Dance History, Asian Performance Traditions
Bridget McAllister	Assistant Professor; Contemporary Dance, Contact Improvisation
Carlos Romero	Assistant Professor; Pas de Deux, Men's Technique
Anya Petrov	Assistant Professor; Dance Film, Digital Choreography
Darnell Washington	Assistant Professor; Hip-Hop Vernacular, Pedagogy
Ingrid Holm	Lecturer; Kinesiology, Functional Anatomy, Dance Medicine
Emmanuel Okafor	Lecturer; Music for Dancers, Percussion
Dorothy Finch	Artist-in-Residence; Ballet, Former Principal, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre

Full faculty profiles and office hours ›

Sample Course Offerings

The following is a representative selection of courses. See the full course catalog for descriptions, prerequisites, and credit hours.

Course #	Title	Credits	Level
DNC 101	Ballet Technique I	2	BFA Year 1
DNC 102	Modern Technique I: Graham Foundation	2	BFA Year 1
DNC 110	Anatomy for Dancers	3	BFA Year 1
DNC 115	Music Fundamentals for Dancers	2	BFA Year 1
DNC 121	Dance Composition I: Spatial and Rhythmic Design	3	BFA Year 1–2
DNC 201	Ballet Technique III: Pointe and Variations	2	BFA Year 2
DNC 205	Modern Technique III: Limon and Release	2	BFA Year 2
DNC 220	Dance History I: Origins through Romanticism	3	BFA Year 2
DNC 222	Dance History II: 20th Century to Present	3	BFA Year 2–3
DNC 230	Improvisation and Embodied Research	2	BFA Year 2
DNC 301	Advanced Ballet: Pas de Deux	2	BFA Year 3 (Ballet conc.)
DNC 315	Choreographic Methods: Site and Space	3	BFA Year 3 (Choreo. conc.)
DNC 320	Dance Ethnography and Cultural Theory	3	BFA Year 3 (Studies conc.)
DNC 330	Somatic Practices: Alexander Technique & Gyrokinesis	2	BFA Year 2–4
DNC 340	Dance Film and Digital Choreography	3	BFA Year 3–4
DNC 401	Senior Capstone: Solo/Group Work	4	BFA Year 4
DNC 402	Senior Seminar: Professional Practice	2	BFA Year 4
DNC 510	Graduate Studio: Advanced Practice	4	MFA
DNC 520	Choreographic Research and Process	3	MFA
DNC 540	Dance Pedagogy in Higher Education	3	MFA
DNC 599	MFA Thesis: Choreographic Project	6	MFA Year 2

View complete course catalog ›

Facilities

All dance instruction and rehearsal takes place in the Hargrove Dance Center (48,000 sq. ft.), a purpose-built facility opened in 1994 and comprehensively renovated in 2019.

Studio A (Calloway Studio) — 2,800 sq. ft., sprung-maple floor, full-length mirrors, Pilates reformers; named for Patricia Calloway BFA ’81
Studio B (Hargrove Main) — 3,200 sq. ft., black marley floor, integrated sound and lighting grid; primary performance rehearsal space
Studio C (Ballet) — 1,800 sq. ft., sprung floor, barres on all walls, pianist alcove
Studio D (Modern/Composition) — 1,600 sq. ft., wood-sprung floor, flexible seating, projection system
Studio E (Film/Digital) — 900 sq. ft., chroma-key wall, motion-capture markers, editing workstations
Kinesiology Lab — anatomy models, video analysis stations, foam roll/rehab equipment
Recital Hall — 180-seat proscenium; used for departmental showcases and MFA thesis concerts

Physical therapy services are available to enrolled dance students through the ACAPA Wellness Center, with a dance-medicine specialist on-site twice weekly.

Audition Requirements

BFA Dance Audition

Auditions are required for admission to the BFA program. ACAPA conducts in-person auditions on campus on four dates each January and February, as well as a limited number of virtual audition slots in December. Walk-in auditions are not accepted.

In-Person Audition Components:

Ballet class (60 min.): Barre and center work; taught by department faculty at an advanced level. Pointe shoes required for women.
Modern class (60 min.): Graham and/or release-based combinations; taught by department faculty.
Solo or excerpt (90 sec. max.): Any style, self-choreographed or set; introduced by applicant.
Interview (10–15 min.): One-on-one with two faculty members; artistic background, goals, influences.

Applicants should also submit:

Video prescreening (required before scheduling in-person slot): 5–8 min. unedited class footage
Two letters of recommendation from dance teachers or directors
Artistic statement (500 words max.)

Scholarship consideration (including the Calloway Scholarship) is automatic for all BFA applicants who complete the audition; no separate application is required.

Detailed audition guidelines and 2026 dates ›

MFA Dance Audition

MFA applications are reviewed on a rolling basis with a priority deadline of January 15 for fall admission. Applicants submit a portfolio including:

15–20 min. video documentation of recent choreographic or performance work
Artist statement (800–1,200 words)
CV/résumé
Three letters of recommendation
Writing sample (critical essay or program notes, 5–10 pages)

Finalists are invited to an on-campus interview weekend in February or March.

MFA application portal and requirements ›

Productions and Ensembles

The department presents three public concerts each academic year:

Fall Faculty Concert (November) — works by faculty and invited guest choreographers; all BFA Year 2–4 students eligible to perform
Undergraduate Choreographers’ Concert (March) — adjudicated concert featuring original works by junior and senior BFA students
MFA Thesis Concert (April) — evening-length works by graduating MFA candidates

The department also fields the ACAPA Dance Company, a student performance ensemble that tours regionally and participates annually in the American College Dance Association (ACDA) Northeast Regional Conference.

Notable Alumni

Patricia Calloway (BFA ’81) — Principal Dancer, Boston Ballet; Founding Director, Calloway Dance Project, NYC; endowed the Calloway Dance Scholarship
Marcus Feld (BFA ’93) — Choreographer; works performed by Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and Paul Taylor Dance Company
Sun-Yi Park (BFA ’99, MFA ’02) — Professor and Chair of Dance, University of Wisconsin–Madison
Elena Marchetti (BFA ’06) — Corps de ballet, Paris Opéra Ballet
Devon Okafor (BFA ’12) — Broadway: Hamilton national tour, Hadestown
Rosamund Tyre (MFA ’17) — Artistic Director, Green Mountain Dance Collective, Burlington, VT