Courtesy of Sean Elliot
Student Andrew Solomon (‘27) takes us through his personal journey, where he combines culture, passion, music and movement, cultivated through his experiences at Connecticut College.
From a culturally rich African-American family in Chicago, Solomon has been in touch with his talents in the arts from his upbringing — so, when he enrolled in Connecticut College as a full-scholarship student in association with the Posse Foundation, Solomon knew that he wanted to use his education further expand upon his interests in the Arts.
However, Solomon entered college as an Environmental Science student, with no formal dance experience and no expectations to pursue dance as an academic. As Solomon settles into his 3rd year, now majoring in Environmental Science and Dance, he reflected on his collegiate journey — “I knew I always wanted to dance, I just didn’t know it would become an every day thing.”
“My first dance class was great because there were a lot of people who were similar to me, whether it’s culturally or experience wise,” he said. This first class in hip-hop led him to take another hiphop class the following semester.
While Solomon is known within the Connecticut College community for his amazing overall movement quality and technique, it’s particularly seen within his contemporary and modern pieces. However, his introduction to the world of contemporary movement wasn’t as seamless as it might seem.
“At first I hated it, I really don’t enjoy competition contemporary, like those videos you see with the kids on social media — but I think that’s just what’s showing online, and contemporary is way different in person.” he explained. He credits his work with professor and dance professional David Dorfman for exposing him to this genre.
Today, he has been recognized on a collegiate and professional level, awarded excellence in the Arts overall from the Connecticut College African Students Association, to most notably being recognized by the American Collegiate Dance Association his sophomore year, when he performed a choreographed solo that was picked as an alternate for their National Washington DC conference. Here, he shared his work and got to watch the performances of other similarly talented dancers from across the country.
Reflecting on his ACDA experience and recognition, Solomon prepares for the next semester and season of dance for him this year. “Even though I do wish they would push us more to challenge ourselves, they do challenge us to be creative. I think it doesn’t really matter how good of a dancer you are if you can’t be creative, so I try to take that time to be.”
In preparation for his ACDA performance submission, he explained “It’s going to be another solo. I’m thinking something dramatic, but less in a physical way, because I feel like I rely a lot on big energy and stuff. So I want to try to play with not being so energetic, and more so making movement decisions without trying to portray a specific story.”
When he isn’t at the studio, he enjoys taking singing lessons and finding new music, working in the Office of Sexual Prevention and Advocacy as Lead Fellow, working on his skills in graphic design or taking long nature walks.
