Dance can mean more than just complicated body movements.

Sometimes it tells a story, while at other times it conveys a strong message.

Nishant Shrestha, who has been dancing for over three years, said that dance made him a disciplined human being.

It inspired him to work hard and never give up.

Shrestha, a junior music major performed in the annual Fall Fusion last week.

Like the name suggests, the event featured a mixture of various dance styles like ballet, jazz and hip-hop.

“It is hard, especially for a non-trained dancer like me, but my dance professors have been great teachers and have influenced my dancing life here at ULM,” Shrestha said.

All the performances were choreographed by Tina Mullone and Robin Stephens.

Shrestha and his teammates spent around eight hours each week in practice for the event since the beginning of the semester.

Their hard work was clear in the spectacular performance.

The event started off with ULM’s Repertory Ensemble’s performance of “Fuoco Fatuo” by Nobert Oldrini.

Some dancers imitated fire, while others imitated smoke or tried to catch the fire.

For Shrestha, the performance revolved around life.

“I think fire destroys and creates at the same time. We were dancing as skeletons at times and at times we were fire itself,” Shrestha said.

The audience was guaranteed a show worth their money with the first performance itself.

“The dance was very unusual for me and my friends. We haven’t seen such intense music and dance steps being performed,” said Suraj Poudel, a freshman computer science major.

Ethan Dennis shared that the first performance was one of his favorites.

“The choreography was really intricate and when combined with the dramatic music, it left no room for mistakes,” said Dennis, a sophomore pre-pharmacy major.

“It made me work hard to produce movement that incited intrigue in the audience, which is one of the reasons I love dancing.”

Some attended the event to be part of the annual dance tradition on campus, while others like Katie Wright attended to cheer on the dancers as they tapped their way through the stage.

“I loved dancing, ever since I was a little kid. I came here to support my friends and see what they are up to, promoting dance on campus,” said Katie Wright, a first-year pharmacy student.

Wright’s favorite performance was “Put on a Happy Face” from the famous musical “Bye Bye Birdie.”

The last dance to feature on the show was “For Baba,” which was a dedication to Baba Chuck Davis.

This was an African dance with a modern touch that consisted of high energy, body isolations and undulations.

Before the dance started, everyone in the theatre repeated the words, “Peace, love and respect for you and everyone.”

For those who missed out on this event, the ULM Spring Fusion is set to take place on May 4 next semester.