Contemporary Dance Juxtaposed with Ballroom Waltz

Eight months after becoming a mother, Heather Hutt Iyer waltzed across the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage on February 6.   She was a member of the Sinclair Dance performance, Kaleidoscope of Tuts.

How did it feel to dance after having a baby? Heather shared, “I have a new body and had to get used to moving it in space. I am so grateful for muscle memory. My 15 years of ballet helped keep me from having to start all over. My arms knew what to do and I sent the energy through my fingertips.”

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Heather loved, “swirling around the dance floor” in the waltz. She explained, “Waltz is the ballet of ballroom. Keeping the waltz attitude and dancing with such an accomplished dancer was like a dream. Being a perfectionist, there were many things that I would have liked to have done better.”  Her performance was beautiful!

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Heather comes by her natural dance ability genetically. Her mother is a National Fox Trot Champion. Her aunt and grandmother are dance teachers. She began her ballet training while in preschool. What does her family think of her dancing?  “My family thinks that I am beautiful and are big supporters and encouragers. Their support means the world to me. My husband loved seeing me dance again,” said Heather.

Kaleidoscope of Tuts  was created and choreographed by Heather’s ballroom teacher, Sinclair O’gaga Emoghene, for the Millennium Stage. The piece is predominantly modern dance choreography punctuated by a  ballroom opening sequence. Heather called upon her extensive dance experience to express the contemporary vocabulary. Sinclair’s choreography symbolized his emigration and immigration struggles from his native Nigeria to the USA.

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Sinclair is an Assistant Profession of Dance at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, where his research strives to broaden cultural knowledge through performance.  He has a residency at The Reach, the new collaboration and experimental portion of Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage.  He reached out to Heather to dance the opening sequence of his dance program.

Millennium Stage of the Kennedy Center is the free performance venue in the Grand Foyer. It is part of Kennedy Center’s “Performing Arts for Everyone” imitative. Artists from local to international renown present programs there. To perform there can be a dream come true.

“To dance in this prestigious  place is  amazing.  I am so grateful to the Kennedy Center for having this beautiful performance space,” said Heather. Her participation in this performance has invigorated her desire to dance and compete again. Dancing brings great joy and freedom to her spirit.