Interview with choreographer Whitney Stone

  With great exposure to color guard in her life, Whitney Stone is kicking up dust at Austin Community College with her flag! Growing up as a dancer in western North Carolina, color guard was no stranger to her high school life and even years after. Her early guard career was not shy to the ever-growing worlds of Winter Guard International and Drum Corps International. This included summers at Carolina Crown as well as winters at Pride of Cincinnati, and Zydeco!
After teaching nearly every guard in the Indianapolis Metropolitan area for 10 years, Whitney moved her life with her wife to Austin, Texas. A great choice to
escape from the snow and build their careers even more in the arts. Now after making themselves a home in Austin, Whitney and Heather both teach at several high schools in and around Travis County. Not to mention Independent Open Class Winter Guard, Origins, whose season was cut short due to the spread of Covid-19.
Whitney is one of ACC’s talented choreographers participating in ACC’s choreographers' showcase this Spring semester. She has worked the last month to create her original piece in the showcase, “Flow”. Though a style couldn't be determined for Flow, Whitney is typically influenced by ballet, modern, and contemporary movements. While watching, viewers will not be limited to only movement of the body from the performer, but a blend between body as well as equipment. Giving one a taste of true beauty of the art with tosses and other technical values to look forward to!
With all classes transitioning online to further support social distancing, many dance students were faced with obstacles to create their piece. Covid-19 has kept Whitney looking towards the future by taking life day by day and looking forward to the next. “It hasn’t been hard, but it’s just not what I was expecting to do”, she said when asked about the effects of the virus while choreographing her solo. She hopes to finish her collegiate career at The University of Texas with a Physical Therapy degree, “but who knows now!”.
This virus has proved difficult times for some, but it is how we prevail that matters to the future. Will you sink or swim? Let’s grab a flag and dance to the top!