Thank you for talking with me, Miss Reed. To begin, what inspired you to pursue dance as a major at UL, and then how did you first become interested in this field?

I always knew that I wanted to dance as a profession, even when I was younger. I never really could see myself doing anything else but dance. In Louisiana, it's really hard to find colleges and universities that have programs that help you expand on your technique with dance. I just got really lucky with finding UL, and finding it just in time. After meeting Ms. Marie [Broussard] over the summer and meeting all the professors and seeing how kind and warm they are, it made me say, yeah, this is where I want to continue my training. 

Did you find the dance program through a college fair or online?

Actually, I found out about UL through one of my friends. He was coming here as an architecture major, and he told me that UL has an art program, but he didn't know if they had dance as a part of their arts program. I researched UL and I saw that they did. I didn't even know UL was a school at first until I heard about it through my friend.

Where are you from originally? 

I’m from Shreveport—it's about three hours from here. 

How has being a dance major at UL helped you develop as a performer and artist? What techniques have you learned that have been particularly useful? 

One of the modern techniques that we learn is Horton techniques, and I learned that with Ms. Kristi [Carr]. I learned it when I was younger, but as I got into high school, we kind of drifted away from it. The Horton technique definitely builds muscle and strength. As performers, we need stamina and strength because our dances can be a minimum of five minutes. Anything past five minutes is a long time to be dancing nonstop, especially at the level and capacity that they expect us to do it in. 

Gotcha--that's interesting! Can you tell me about a memorable performance that you've done during your time here at UL, and what made it special for you?

The performance that is probably the most standout for me would be the solo I did this past semester. It was called “Pure.” It was a personal journey for me that gave me a chance to reflect on myself as a dancer, and in life as well. The solo shows my technique and my strength, but it also shows me as Eriel, just Eriel, and not as Eriel the performer.

“Pure” is the same solo that you are performing at the Hilliard’s Summer 2023 Reception! Perfect. How do you hope to use your skills and training as a dancer to make a difference in the world?

Well, I personally believe that dance definitely impacts society. For one, it can bring all types of people together. I mean, anytime you go to a party, people are dancing, and it's just a fun way to bring people together. For me personally, I want to use my technique to bring in my faith and what I believe in to spread the gospel. I am Christian, and I believe in God and Jesus Christ, so I believe dance is a beautiful way to spread that and really touch people's hearts because dance brings out a lot of emotion.

Oh, I love that. What advice would you give to someone who is considering pursuing dance as a major at UL? What do you think are some of the important qualities for success for a new student?

I would definitely say be nice to yourself because when you come into college, it will be a different world. You'll have to be more responsible. That just takes time because when you're at home you have your parents to help you. You're not just juggling dance anymore, you also have to juggle your outside life.  It's okay to be nice to yourself, but you should also stay on top of yourself with discipline. If you know that you need extra work in like a technique or a certain class, make time outside of class for that if that's what you feel you need.

To that point, how has your dance major connected you to other students and faculty? Because, like you said, you're from Shreveport, so I'm sure you didn't know a lot of people here. How did the dance community here help you network and collaborate with others?

UL's dance program is a big family. Everyone is really nice. They're very welcoming and homey. When you come in, it won't be very hostile. You won't feel like someone thinks they're better than you. Everybody comes in, and they all want the same thing. They all want to help each other. I've not once felt like somebody was trying to go against me here. Everybody has been very uplifting and helpful the whole time.

As we get closer to your performance at the Hilliard, what does it mean for you to be the Prima dancer, the solo performer? What do you think your performance means for the dance program and for the community?

For one, I just want to thank everyone that thought of me for this opportunity because I didn't even know that they did this, and for them to think of me is just a very big honor. It will definitely help the dance program because I know there's a lot of people that didn't know there was a dance major, and they may not know what we do. I feel like this will shed a good light on us and all the hard work we put in. It will be an open hand for others that might feel like this is something they want to do, and that they can give it a try. We are working to do more community work with Chi Tau, it's a dance fraternity. Dance is something good to do, so I just want to use this opportunity to the best of my ability. I want to represent the dance program in a good way.

Well, awesome. Thank you, Eriel. It was such a pleasure talking with you, and we look forward to your dance at our Summer 2023 Opening reception, and to seeing where you go in the future.