When she spins, her shawl flaring into a burst of color, senior Maddie Ocampo does more than embody the butterfly her dance represents; she represents the act of returning, reclaiming, and carrying forward a tradition that once felt distant, but now feels like home.
For the first time on a public stage, Ocampo performed Fancy Shawl, an upbeat Native American dance from the Ho-Chunk Nation, as an act in V-Show when it opened on Feb. 18. Known for its vibrant regalia and athletic movements filled with jumps and spins, the dance fit seamlessly into this year’s V-Show theme, “Kaleidoscope”, she explained.
“The act is me growing into my identity and learning about this part of myself that I definitely haven’t known about and haven’t talked about or experienced a lot,” Ocampo said.
Ocampo first encountered this type of dance at pow-wows as a young child, traveling to Wisconsin with her grandfather and attending these gatherings which center around music, food, and community. Her journey to the stage began last summer after borrowing a shawl from her grandfather and mimicking his moves.
Following her curiosity, Ocampo decided to continue her training of the native dances and techniques.
“I’m mostly self-taught,” Ocampo said. “I watch videos on YouTube, see how other people dance, and try to build my own set of moves to fit my skill level.”
During the audition process in January, Robby Shellard, V-Show Co-Director, was struck by Ocampo’s courage, being that she is performing the act alone, a rarity for the V-Show, he explained. Shellard noted that in his decades of experience, he cannot recall a Native American act as part of the production. Ocampo’s neon blue attire in motion is the perfect em-
bodiment of the show’s “Kaleidoscope” theme, Shellard said.
“You get this kaleidoscope of colors, but also a kaleidoscope of culture,” Shellard said. “My hope is that by seeing Maddie shine, other students know they can do the same, even if it’s somethingwe’ve never seen on the stage before.”
At its heart, Ocampo’s act is not just a performance, it’s an invitation to show others her cultural identity, Ocampo said.
“I’m proud of my heritage,” Ocampo said. “I’m proud of who I am and who I’m becoming.”
