If U Say So
choreographed & directed by
Mallory Rowell and Michelle Herman
in collaboration with
Tracey Adams
Jennifer Johnson
Lindsey Johnston
Natalia Nekrasova
Dena Pierog
Danielle Schoon
Tawny Sit
Lindsay Weaver
Lizzie Williams
Mia Wu
“If U Say So” was created in relation & response to Herman’s 2025 memoir-in-essays If You Say So. It was first performed at Columbus Dance Theatre in spring 2025.
Music: La Bayadère, Act III: 45. “Variation – 2nd Soloist Shade” by Ludwig Minkus in a version by Anna-Marie Holmes. Arranged and conducted by Kevin Galiè. Performed by The Evergreen Symphony Orchestra. “Best Friend” performed by Saweetie and Doja Cat. Written by Diamonté Harper, Amala Dlamini, Asia Smith, Kaine, Lukasz Gottwald, Rocco Valdes, and Theron Thomas.
Cast
Michelle Herman’s previous books include the essay collections/memoirs Like A Song, Stories We Tell Ourselves, and The Middle of Everything, as well as the novels Close-Up, Devotion, Dog, and Missing; the novella collection A New and Glorious Life; and a book for children, A Girl’s Guide to Life. Her advice appears on Slate every Sunday—her favorite day of the week, as it’s when she gets to take four classes in a row at Flux Flow, the studio where she took her first ballet class in 2017. She is Academy Professor Emerita at Ohio State, where she taught for over three decades and was a founder of the MFA program in creative writing and also founded and was the longtime director of an interdisciplinary graduate program in the arts.
Mallory Rowell is an RN who currently works in health research. She started dancing as an adult at Flux Flow and enjoys learning from and integrating a variety of teachings and techniques, approaching dance as an embodied exploration and expression of her feelings, eschewing objectivity, “correctness,” and identity. The best thing dance offers her, she says, “is the opportunity to be, not to do.”
Tracey Adams is a former French linguist working in data science. She grew up dancing and performing with her sisters and started dancing at Flux Flow when she moved to Ohio with her cat, Bowie, in 2022.
Jennifer Johnson is a professor of astronomy at Ohio State. She rediscovered ballet as an adult and credits dance for keeping her sane while contemplating the heat death of the universe. Persuaded by her friend Judith Schwartzbaum to try a “dance karaoke” class at Flux Flow, she has been taking classes at the studio ever since. Her favorite roles include “Wheel of Fortune” contestant in “abcdefu” and “Cheerleader” in “Girlfriend.”
Lindsey Johnston is a licensed mental health counselor working at Concord Counseling services. She started taking ballet lessons at age four and never looked back. When not at the studio, you can find her obsessing over her cats or hosting friends for game nights.
Natasha Nekrasova (not dancing in the performances at Urban Arts Space) is a scientific information specialist with the American Chemical Society. She is passionate about the natural world and dedicates her time to local conservation projects. She loves to work on creative DIY projects, from home improvement to video editing, pottery, and puppetry. She has danced with Flux Flow since 2019.
Dena Pierog is a digital analyst from Akron. A lifelong dance enthusiast, she took jazz classes as a child and contemporary classes in college before stepping away from dance. In 2023, she returned with a beginner ballet class at Flux Flow (thinking it would be easy!) andnow takes ballet, modern, and contemporary classes there. Dena credits her support system: her husband, Jason, and their cat, Rita.
Danielle Schoon (not dancing in the performance on June 20) is a cultural anthropologist, a professor of teaching in the sociology department at Ohio State, and an aspiring writer. She has been dancing for as long as she can remember. She came to Flux Flow in 2017 and sometimes teaches belly dance there. (She will teach a free, open-to-the-public belly dance class—no experience needed—for all ages and bodies in this space on July 12.)
Tawny Sit is a PhD student in astronomy at Ohio State. After retiring from elite rhythmic gymnastics, in high school Tawny danced and performed with a local Chinese community center, and in college with the dance team and ballet clubs (and choreographed two solos!). Tawny started dancing at Flux Flow in 2022 after moving to Columbus for graduate school and now gets grumpy if they miss their weekly Bartenieff warm-up in modern class.
Lindsay Weaver (not dancing in the performance on July 12) is a public health professional who specializes in health equity. Her childhood dance career included jazz, tap, and ballet. She returned to dance after a community event at Flux Flow in 2022 (for which she is eternally grateful to Russell, Fili, and the Flowers), which reinvigorated her love for ballet. When outside the studio, she can be found crafting and talking about the studio with her partner, Wabi.
Lizzie Williams is a school psychologist. She hails from Baltimore and has been a dancer all her life—in dance studios, at parties, in front of her bathroom mirror, and now at Flux Flow. She has an affinity for stone fruit, poetry, and her dog, Cali. Mia Wu is a research scientist with a background in mechanical engineering and computer science. She began ballet at 28 and it has since become her favorite dance form. Mia aspires to perform in professional ballet productions, such as playing the role of a "steady tree" in a ticket-required performance
—
Special thanks to Flux Flow and its founders/owners/lead teachers/visionaries/life-changers, Fili Pelacchi and Russell Lepley, as well as all our other teachers at Flux Flow: Cherelle Brown, Leiland Charles, Jeffrey Clark, Mara Frazier, Alicia Hann, Kelly Hurlburt, Candice Igeleke, Elyse Kassa, Brianna Smith, Alyssa Stover, and Caitlin Valentine (plus a shout-out to Sean Rollofson).
Flux Flow Dance Center, located in Clintonville at 200 Crestview Road, is an inclusive and joyful space for movement, founded on the conviction that all dancing bodies are beautiful, regardless of age, race, size, gender expression, and dis/ability. For information about classes, performance opportunities, and dance retreats, visit www.flux-flow.com.