MWDC performs on Founder’s Day
Cheers could be heard from the crowd across campus as the Missouri Western Dance Company completed their routine at the Founder’s Day event on Tuesday, September 29.
The Missouri Western Dance Company, also known as MWDC, was founded on Oct. 2, and spends the week every year celebrating their Founder’s Day. The dance company is the first co-ed performing arts organization at Missouri Western that performs multiple styles of dance.
Ariana and Briana Reed are co-captions of the team for this season and both have many responsibilities, as well as reasons they love being a part MWDC.
“Every year, since 2018, MWDC has held a week of events the week of October 2 in honor of the day we were founded,” Briana Reed said. “So this year our Founder’s Day events were the week of September 28 through October 2. Though others did not get to participate, on our actual Founder’s Day this year on October 2, 2020 MWDC members along with some of the founders of the team got together to celebrate MWDC’s fourth year and counting of being a student organization.”
Ariana Reed also enjoys dance and having the opportunity to dance, despite the fact COVID-19 has limited their chance to dance.
“Our most recent event was a performance with an interactive component where the crowd copied dance moves we did on stage,” Ariana Reed said. “I really loved being able to perform for an audience again because it has been a while. The current pandemic has put a lot of things on hold, but one of our goals for that event was to introduce ourselves to new students and bring back the MWDC flavor to campus life.”
Briana Ward is a second year member of the MWDC, who also enjoyed having the opportunity to dance again during the Founder’s Day performance.“My favorite part about MWDC is learning and experiencing the different types of dances that I’ve never really got to learn about,” Ward said. “I also love meeting new people apart of dance because I create new bonds with them. My favorite part about the Founder’s Day event was being able to perform in front of others again because it gives me an exciting and amazing feeling.”
Many members feel that if Missouri Western students are interested in joining a new activity on campus and enjoy dance, MWDC might be a great fit.
“The dance company practices twice a week on Mondays and Tuesdays. We encourage ALL students who are interested in being a part of the team to email us at mowestdanceco@gmail.com. They will fill out an audition form and submit a video to us after they learn the audition material,” Ariana Reed said.
Being a part of MWDC is a great way to make friends, which Briana Reed has firsthand experience at.
“My favorite part about MWDC is the bonds that I’ve created. People always talk about the lifetime friends you make when you go to college. If it had not been for the founding of MWDC, I would not have stayed at Missouri Western. Not because Western isn’t a good school, but because my passion for dance runs deeper and I could not imagine not dancing my way through college,” Brianna said.
Follow the MWDC on Facebook and Instagram for information on upcoming performances.