August 7, 2015

SAAS Spotlight: Testimonial from Kristalyn Gill

Gill4_SAAS_Grant.pngKristalyn Gill, EC Scholar, junior, dance performance and public relations double major

After applying and receiving the SAAS grant, I was thrilled to learn that the Honors College would provide me with $100 to support my passion for dance.

When I created my creative project, I combined pain research and theories provided to me by Dr. Daniel Goldberg in my freshman EC Scholars seminar with my passions for writing spoken word poetry and choreographing dance works. My project centered on the universality yet individuality of chronic pain. I created different characters enduring this element of pain in different situations and forms. A major theme of the work itself involved the cyclic phases of the moon, ever repeating and showing its same face – representing chronic pain.

Gill3_SAAS_Grant.pngWith this project and the aid provided by the SAAS grant, I was able to present my piece at the ECU Intersection of the Arts and Sciences event and for Undergraduate Day during Research and Creative Achievement Week. Also, I put on a ticketed performance of my piece in the blackbox theatre within the ECU School of Theatre and Dance Building. Many friends and faculty members from a variety of fields and backgrounds came to support my work, completely entering into the story my dancers and I created.

Having the opportunity to create this project that has deeply impacted East Carolina University and its surrounding community is something I will cherish, and to think that this all began with $100…