“The show must go on” is a showbiz truism, and it’s one that Chicago’s Gus Giordano Dance Studio (GUS) took to heart in a whole new way this spring. Faced with the dangers and limitations imposed by COVID-19, Executive Director Amy Giordano (NC ’84) took the show on the road, or rather, the Internet, shifting the studio’s annual performance to a virtual event this May 16.
When COVID-19 closed the studio to in-person classes, Giordano and her staff of dance teachers initially began filming routines and sending them out to students for practice. The students in turn filmed themselves performing the routines and sent them back. It was a method she quickly discarded in favor of live lessons via Zoom. “These kids were so isolated from their peers. We wanted to show them that we care for them and are interested in them as people and support them emotionally.”
From there, plans were hatched to perform the annual show live by Zoom as well. For anyone who has experienced the routine human errors of Zoom meetings, it’s clear that bringing together nearly 500 dancers to perform with artistry, grace and precision virtually is a task that is daunting — at the very least. But it was a resounding success. “People were blown away. A couple of parents said that it felt like the world was normal and right for a day” says Giordano. (Readers can see a clip of
the performance.)
That seamless presentation required hours of behind-the-scenes work. Giordano helped students with sorting out lighting, select a space to perform, troubleshoot their routers — she even set up a socially distanced costume pick-up with individualized “goody bags” for each dancer. And she put a lot of thought into how best to highlight the dancers in a virtual environment. “I told them to come close to the camera to show the joy on their faces. You may not always see their feet, which is a different way of thinking about dance. But the joy made them look more cohesive,” she says.
For Giordano it comes down to a philosophy of adapting to manage the unexpected. A dancer herself, she was in a serious car accident shortly before coming to Tulane. “Tulane was a huge part of teaching me how to adapt. I loved everything about Tulane because it was creative and encouraging, different and accepting, and, with that, [it gave me] the ability to adapt and change.”
Her commitment to creatively responding to change continues to this day. Giordano is quick to point to the unexpected gains for her community of dancers. Far-flung family members were able to see great-grandchildren, nieces and cousins perform for the first time. She raves, “[The annual performance] was unforgettable. Families were watching from Australia, Germany, San Francisco, New York.” The Zoom training involved offers dancers a competitive edge, too, giving them extensive practice performing on camera, a valuable skill in the professional circuit.
As the fall approaches,
Gus Giordano Dance Studio is continuing to dance in time to COVID-19’s ever-changing tune, offering all classes both in person (within taped-out boxes to maintain social distance) and virtually. “You work with what you have and you add what you need,” Giordano says. “As a mentor, you always have to be looking for a better solution. Don’t just say it can’t happen.”
Knowing that many fellow alumni are facing their own coronavirus-induced challenges, Giordano encouraged them to draw strength from their own time at Tulane. “Remember that ‘we can do it’ spirit that we all felt when we were on the Tulane campus? Even if things look negative, you can turn it into a positive. Because of your Tulane background you have the skills to do it.”