From the very first second of the opening piece, Nohow, the stage revealed a surreal and captivating image: dancer and creator Charly Santagado lay at the center on a folding bed, a kind of old fashioned lawnchair, surrounded by a circle of light. Throughout the performance, she used this object in fascinating ways: at one moment it was a railing, then wings, then a small protective fence behind which she hid.

There was perfect synchronicity between her and the object. At some point, she abandoned it and danced on her own. A text by Samuel Beckett, recorded in her own voice, accompanied her, adding to the surreal theatricality and to the alignment between movement, object, and text. I didn’t recognize the text’s origin, and no further information was provided in the program. It left the impression that it was entirely hers. The performance ended with the phrase: Breathe that void. We breathed, she, the audience, and I, into the emptiness.

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Charly Santagado. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Charly below.

Orlando native Charly Santagado has had a passion for choreography ever since she was 5 years old. She often finds herself watching old home videos of her and her sister choreographing duets when they were young with absolute joy and imagination. Charly grew up as a competition dancer and began to slowly immerse herself in the world of contemporary and concert dance. Her passion, artistic integrity and experiences has led her to where she is today.

What attracted you to Rutgers University and the Honors/Scholars Program?

I first heard about Rutgers University when I was offered a full athletic scholarship from the gymnastics team during my junior year of high school. This opportunity led me to learn about the school's academic programs. I was excited about the existence of an Honors program as well as the high rankings of the philosophy department and the arts school. It seemed like Rutgers best programs were the very ones I was interested in.

Charly Santagado graduated from Rutgers in 2017. She was a staple in the bars and floor lineups and competed every event at least once for the Scarlet Knights. Her strength was floor, where she scored a career-high 9.875 during her freshman season. She was part of the 2014 Rutgers team that competed at the Athens regional. Santagado’s sister, Eriel, will be a senior at Rutgers in 2019. The pair have a dance company, Mignolo Dance, and are currently actively performing.