Imagine being 84 and more active then most people younger than you. That’s the case for James Williams Evans, better known as Bill Evans. Evans is an American choreographer, performer and teacher. He took a week long guest artist residency at Colorado Mesa University (CMU) to choreograph a piece for the upcoming “Fall for Dance” performance. Assistant Professor of Dance Kathy Diehl, a student of his, was excited to see her mentor and friend.
Diehl teaches contemporary-modern dance and ballet at CMU as well as Moving Anatomy and Wellness. She has personally worked alongside Evans for a long time.
“I met Bill when I was getting my MFA [Master of Fine Arts]. He was one of my professors, and then he invited me to be in his company […] I performed with his company for quite a few years, and then [became] a certified Evans teacher […] so I continued to pass on his teaching […] through my teaching,” said Diehl.
During his residency, Evans taught classes to students within the dance program. Additionally, he was responsible for choreographing various peiece, including one with 16 dancers, which will be performed during the “Fall for Dance” concert.
One of the biggest takeaways Diehl has learned from Evans is the ability ncorporates in her teachings, the idea of being able to embrace individuality.
“I think one of the biggest things is to honor personal uniqueness in each individual. Dance can sometimes be a thing where everyone’s trying to look like everybody else, and so not really owning and honoring how you move in a very unique way,” said Diehl.
Diehl is also a promoter of the community aspect of dance.
“As a dancer and also as a teacher, dance really can be about community rather than competition […] It’s about the curiosity of learning from a living, moving body,” Diehl said.
Diehl has high praise for Evans.
“Bill’s 84 years old. He’s probably more active than other 84 year olds. He’s more active than me… He’s created an amazing community of people that will learn with him and with from each other,” said Diehl
For a chance to see the number choreographed by Evans, students can attend the “Fall for Dance” concert which runs for three performances from Nov. 8-9 at the Asteria Theatre.
