Dance and bob at the Pioneer Hop. Students at Brigham Young University got to show off their hoedown and square dancing skills. For the first time at BYU’s Education in Zion exhibit, pioneer dance lessons were offered free of charge.
Gallery Educator Supervisor Jacob Bromley explains why a Nauvoo Dance Night was the perfect match for their exhibit.
“We are a historically based gallery, and we have a lot of Church history,” Bromley said. “We wanted to have something that would be fun and bring lots of people to the gallery but that was also related to what we display.”
With the help of Colleen West, head of the world dance division at BYU, many students had the chance to learn and experience what dancing was like in Nauvoo. With whirling and twirling and do-si-doing, the simple dance moves were wildly displayed at Friday night’s Nauvoo Dance.
Dance major Thomas Collin expressed why dancing is intrinsic to our humanity.
“Everybody can dance; it is something we as humans can do,” Collin said. “Babies bop before they even walk.”
Collin says even if one thinks they can’t bust a move, walking is all that’s needed for these types of dances.
The purpose behind the exhibit’s event was to attract publicity for its programs. Twice a month the exhibit offers Family Home Evening programs in addition to many others. The Nauvoo Dance Night was the first of many bi-monthly date night events to come.
Bromley says they plan for all their programs to be interesting, interactive and fun.
