Senior Arroya Karian hopes to express how she gained inner strength through her struggles and overcame the obstacles in her life. With the help of her senior thesis, she is able to do just that.
“In reality, we all face hardships, and we all have to learn to overcome them,” Karian said. “It’s just part of life. That’s really what I wanted to get across to them.”
Karian always knew she would pursue dancing and studied to be a music theater major at Elon University. As an Honors Fellow, she had to do a senior thesis encompassing her major. She chose to produce and choreograph an expressive dance concert.
Karian fell in love with dancing at an early age. In high school, she participated in musicals and choreographed modern dances. She continued her study of dance throughout her four years at Elon. She has taken several dance classes both on and off campus to expand her knowledge as much as possible.
According to Karian, she hoped to merge the inspiration she felt after watching seniors before her perform with the emotions of her past to create an “Arroya-style” in her concert.
“But when I went to write my proposal, I didn’t want a show that was like (the past seniors’), I wanted something unique,” Karian said. “So I ended up creating a dance show.”
Linda Sabo, associate professor of performing arts and Karian’s mentor since sophomore year, helped Karian brainstorm initial ideas.
Karian’s first proposal to the honors program was rejected, but she said she is happy she had the chance to think it over.
“I knew I wanted to be artistic but I didn’t have a very clear view of what it was going to be,” Karian said.
The honors program wanted specifics, and Karian didn’t have them nailed down quite yet.
When her second proposal was accepted, Karian dove into the project. She said it became a very personal experience because she had been working with the same major for four years by the time she proposed the project.
As a music theater major, Karian could make a musical, a dance, a play or something else entirely.
The honors program also provides resources and support for its seniors as they work through their theses. Karian began serious research during her junior year after taking a literary journalism class. Her professor instructed the class to write a paper on any topic that interested them. Karian chose to study the effects medical leave can have on students who must take a hiatus from school.
Karian’s topic choice was based on past experience. A deep depression paired with lifelong panic disorder forced Karian to leave Elon in the spring of her sophomore year. After therapy and a long, hard recovery, she returned to campus in the fall with more knowledge about herself and the afflictions she had been battling for several years.
After further research on panic disorder and depression, Karian started choreography of the dance. The end product was split into seven pieces. Karian said these portions represented specific moments or memories in her life that she wanted to use to inspire others.
Freshman Cody Schmidt served as stage manager for the show. He said working with Karian was an enlightening process. He said he enjoyed working with somebody so upbeat and passionate.
“Arroya’s choreography has an amazing effect on people,” Schmidt said. “Even having seen the dances dozens of times, I see something different each time, with the performers, but also with myself.”
Monologues and projections were also included in the concert. Karian was artistically inspired through the foreign arts and conceptually inspired by her classes and teachers.
“(Music theater majors) have a way of making art from lots of different artistic venues, so I really wanted to incorporate as many artistic elements as possible into this show,” Karian said. “There’s only so many things you can do and stay sane.”
All of the music, dancing and projected images were related to Karian in some way, even if it was not a direct comparison.
“Yes, I used my own personal experiences to inspire these dances, but I wanted to create them in a general form that would be applicable to as many people as possible,” Karian said.
Sophomore music theater major Patrick Clanton came to the show Thursday night, the first of three performances from March 1-3. He said he loved the show and thought it was wonderfully done.
“She’s great. She’s such a nice person to be around and such a great friend,” Clanton said. “I’m really proud of the work she’s done. I thought it was absolutely amazing.”