Through dance and movement, emerging choreographers creatively explore the systems around them in “Rules of Play,” the UC Davis Spring Dance Concert for 2025. Featuring more than 25 dancers, the program is curated by Doria E. Charlson, visiting professor of theatre and dance, and showcases new works developed and performed by undergraduate students. 

“The ‘rules of play’ outline how, and in what ways, people engage with the structures and systems around us,” Charlson said. “At their best, rules provide a clear framework that equalizes the playing field through transparency and enough structure such that all players have the potential to win."

The performances will navigate these "rules" as choreographers and dancers present work aimed at helping audiences reflect on which rules benefit society and which may need to be revised or upended.

"Rules can effectively create order and calm, such that it is clear to all players what to expect," Charlson said. "Too often, though, is it unclear how the game is played. Unspoken rules, conventions, biases and forms of gatekeeping prevent and obstruct success for so many people.” 

Presented by the Department of Theatre and Dance, the concert will feature new choreography created by recent alum Eva Anderson (’24) and undergraduate students Kasey Basya, Naomi Duncan, Daniela Durkin, Leslie Figueroa-Borja, Mikayla Freeman, Eliza Gilligan, Diyansha Magesh, Sia Puri, Sam Qiao and Gabriel Wahid. 

Performances will be May 15 - 17 and May 22 - 24 in the Main Theatre at Wright Hall. Members of MK Modern, a dance team that focuses on open style choreography and hip-hop styles, will appear as guest performers at the May 15, 16 and 17 shows.

Charlson’s research and scholarship is deeply informed by her decades of practice as a dancer. She has trained with ODC/Dance, the Mark Morris Dance Group, the Alvin Ailey School, the Joffrey Ballet School, L’école Supérieure de Danse Rosella Hightower, and at Stanford University. Her writing and scholarship can be found in The Drama Review, Women & Performance, and Dance Research Journal, as well as the 2019 anthology African American Arts: Activism, Aesthetics, and Futurity.

Performance schedule 

All performances of "Rules of Play" are in the Main Theatre at Wright Hall, 1 Hutchison Dr. in Davis.

Weekend one:

• 7 p.m. Thursday, May 15
• 7 p.m. Friday, May 16
• 2 p.m. Saturday, May 17

Weekend two:

• 7 p.m. Thursday, May 22
• 7 p.m. Friday, May 23
• 2 p.m. Saturday, May 24

Adult tickets are $12, faculty/staff tickets are $10, and student/senior tickets are $5. Tickets may be purchased at the UC Davis Ticket Office, located on the north side of Aggie Stadium, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, by phone 530-752-2471 during the same hours, or online. 

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