Date posted: 10-11-04

Editors: You are encouraged to use this story in your publication. Please credit the author and DeKalb News Service as shown. And, please send two tearsheets to: Jim Killam, Department of Communication, Watson Hall, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115.

For source-contact information, contact Jim Killam at jkillam@niu.edu or 815-753-4239.

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NIU's Dictator of Dance: Randy Newsom's students learn to appreciate his no-nonsense approach.

By Kristin Cavarretta
DeKalb News Service

DEKALB - At the start of every semester, echoes of Beethoven's Funeral March haunt Gabel Hall.

Randy Newsom pounds the piano keys in Gabel 113 with a sly grin, playing the bleak melody to set the mood of the ballet class that is about to follow. Or, the semester that is to follow.

"I love that tune," he says, laughing.

On a daily basis, Newsom, Northern Illinois University's dance department coordinator, bellows to his dancers at 11 a.m. sharp to get the barres out.

To the dancers, that means they scurry to find a place on the barre and strip down to a leotard, tights and ballet slippers, Newsom's class-attire requirement.

"No garbage!" he frequently roars.

Garbage, meaning t-shirts, sweatshirts, legwarmers, ballet skirts and any other "junk" that might hinder Newsom from poking at a jiggling thigh or jabbing at a mushy stomach.

As Newsom clicks his heels together to give the first combination, anyone in the hallways outside the ballet studio could easily hear him hollering instructions.

"He's nuts," said Meg Snider, with a smile.

Snider, a 2002 B.F.A. graduate, spent four years training under Newsom, who started his teaching career at NIU in 1979.

After 25 years, the 6-foot-3 former Irish National Ballet Dancer knows his size and loud voice can set new students into a panic.

"I was very, very intimidated," said Jessica Kelpsch, a fourth-year dance major. "But that was normal for new students."

When Brian Grant, a senior dance major, took his first class with Newsom, he would have guessed Newsom was 30 years old based on how much energy he had.

Newsom, who describes himself to be at an age where he has started shrinking, recalls a time years back when a couple of his male students would break out in hives when they attended his class.

"I think it is the funniest thing," he said, laughing. "I think I'm funny."

Since he started his teaching career, Newsom said he has found himself to be a bit more "dictatorial," but that doesn't mean he leaves the fun out of class. Because ballet is so emotionally and physically draining, Newsom said he tries to put a sense of humor into his class so students enjoy it.

Playing the funeral march before certain classes is one way, although the tune serves to intensify the class atmosphere of class just as it functions to lighten it.

"It lets them know," he politely says, "we are going to have a hard class today."

Newsom's students, though, are thankful for his sense of humor and enthusiasm, even the "funny" times when Newsom lets his "dictatorial" tendencies unleash.

Kelpsch said once you get accustomed to his unique sense of humor, it really helps you get through class; meaning, once you get used to being yelled at "18 million times" for something, she said, with a smile.

It's routine for Newsom to stroll around the 85-degree studio and screams that his students "aren't sweating."

"You could be literally dripping puddles on the floor, and he'll tell you that you aren't sweating," she said. "It's never enough for Randy. But that's his way of telling someone they need to work harder."

And in the hour-and-a-half Newsom has his students in custody, forcing people to work harder is part of his mission to work toward perfection.

Grant chose NIU's dance program over joining a company because of Newsom and the training he offers. At a professional company, Grant said, they don't break down the steps and teach you to use muscles correctly. Newsom, however, is particular about this and constantly emphasizes, "approximate dancing" is not enough.

He often stresses the importance of being exact by comparing a dancer to a surgeon, saying that it isn't good enough if surgeons can "almost" make a good incision on a patient. It isn't good enough if dancers can "almost" do a clean pirouette, he says.

"He's probably one of the most meticulous people I have ever met," Grant said. "If you have a bad habit, Randy will let you know."

In order to get to the root of a step and tackle habits, Newsom said he teaches the same class for two weeks, which is different from most professional ballet companies. By repeating combinations for days at time, Newsom can identify problem areas and take care of them.

"I really try to nail it then and there," Newsom said. "I catch 'em on it."

By the end of the two weeks, Newsom said he sees massive improvements. In order to get this type of progress, Newsom has to be hard on his dancers, but they know the reason.

"He's there to make people into professionals," Grant said.

Plenty of evidence supports this. Over the years, Newsom's dancers have joined companies such as the Koresh Dance Company in Philadelphia, Louisville Ballet, Nashville Ballet, Chicago Ballet, Georgia Ballet, Charleston Ballet Theatre, and the Maryland Ballet Theatre.

Not only that, but dancers also have gone on to dance with Disney World, Las Vegas, cruise lines, Myrtle Beach and plenty of other modern and contemporary companies.

"If you are technically strong and disciplined, you will get a job," Newsom said.

Photos of former dancers decorate his office, including a photo of his 2001 graduating dance majors. He can point to each dancer in the photo and easily name what each did after graduation. Almost all went to professional dance careers. Less than a month ago, some dancers whom he pointed to in the picture were back to take class with him, preparing to return to their professional companies.

For students like Kelpsh and Grant who have been at NIU for four years, training under someone with such a strong drive to produce good dancers has boosted not only on their technique, but also their motivation.

When she started, Kelpsch had a feeling Newsom would turn whomever was in class into the best ballerina they could be, as long as they are willing to put the effort in.

"He gave me the motivation to work," she said. "I have improved so much since I came here-my technique, my performing, everything."

Perfecting ballerinas, however, is not the extent of Newsom's knowledge. Although a master of ballet, he quietly confessed he enjoys teaching modern dance quite a bit…perhaps even more than ballet. Although his curriculum is limited to ballet and pointe right now, Newsom will start teaching modern next semester. And that doesn't even begin to point out his versatility.

Hundreds of books clutter the walls of Newsom's Gabel Hall office, and the wide variety of subjects supports his expertise not only in different forms of dance, but also music and Benesh notation. Newsom's two music degrees and background as a school music teacher explain the shelves lined with thick binders stuffed with full-length piano scores, not to mention the ease at which he sits at the piano and plays classics like the Funeral March.

With such a vast knowledge of music and dance, it is no surprise he is a specialist in the Benesh Notation Movement System and a member of the Benesh Institute in London. By looking at different symbols that indicate placement of the leg, arm or head, Newsom is able to reconstruct ballets from notated scores.

Although Newsom's students appreciate of the time and effort he puts forth, his work does not go unrecognized in the public eye. NIU awarded him the Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching award in 1987-88. More recently, the Chicago Dance and Music Alliance honored Newsom with the 2003 Lifetime Achievement for Service to the Field award.

Perhaps some of the greatest recognition, though, is from people nearby who take notice of his dancers' talent. While sitting in his office, a woman cutting through Gabel Hall to get to the Bowling Green football game peeks in with an inquiry.

"When are your ballerinas going to perform at halftime?" she said. "I'd much rather see them."

She continues with her proposition, saying she would much rather watch "real" dancers perform the halftime show than watch the Silverettes, NIU's dance team. Newsom chats with her for a moment, appearing by the casual conversation to know her, but he does not.

It's hard to tell if he seriously considers putting his dancers on a football field in satin pointe shoes and red and black tutus, but it is clear he appreciates the praise the woman his given him and his dancers.

Editor's note: Reporter Kristin Cavarretta is a student in Randy Newsom's ballet class.

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