1. Jazz beats meet modern dance at newly
designed ’14 Winter Cotillion
By Krista Shaw
Contributing Writer
Photos by Elizabeth Kerin and Anthony Garnier
This year’s Winter Cotillion was attended by over 400 students on Saturday. Student
Programming at the University of Dallas (SPUD) decided to blend new traditions with
the old at this year’s dance, and it proved to be a success. Traditional dancing, complete
with dance cards; modern dancing to the music of DJ Matt Wise; and new decorations
all contributed to the enjoyable night.
Dave Washburn’s Three Quarters Fast Jazz
Band opened up the night with a lively
mixture of swing, ballroom and the group’s
specialty, traditional New Orleans style jazz
music.
This year, the dance had a different vibe and
appearance than the past several years. The
dance floor was moved from the main dining
area to the front dining area, and the entire
cafeteria was darkened and lit by pale blue
and purple lights.
Senior Maria Jose Herrera, the SPUD socials
coordinator who organized the event, applauded the band’s energy and style.
“I think that the fact that the crowd asked for an encore from the band shows that they
were greatly pleased with their performance,” Herrera said. “Their New Orleans vibe
kept everyone on their feet.”
At Winter Moonlight, the jazz band set the
mood with a classic for a classic cotillion.

2. Herrera also mentioned that the band’s leader, Dave Washburn, was astonished by the
enthusiasm of UD students who attended.
“Dave commented that he had never seen, while preforming, so many people dancing
for such an extended amount of time,” Herrera said.
Freshmen students attending Winter Cotillion for the first time were introduced to the
exceptional UD tradition of swing dancing.
Freshman Mary Brule said she enjoyed her first experience at Winter Cotillion.
“I really didn’t hear anything specific [about the dance] other than it’s really fun and you
get to dress up,” she said. “The jazz band played a lot longer than I expected but was
extremely charming and unique from (sic) any dance I’ve been to before. It’s one of
those things that’s ‘very UD.’”
At around 10:30 p.m., senior DJ Matt Wise seamlessly took
over with more modern music and classic hits.
“Matt Wise did a spectacular job transitioning from one style
of music and dancing to the next. The dance floor was
completely bursting with singing and dancing,” Herrera said.
“In my opinion having something for everyone was a key
factor for the success of the dance.”
Brule agreed that Wise’s performance made the night
enjoyable.
“The DJ was great! I just kicked off my shoes and danced with
all my friends,” she said. “I had a good time especially at the end
when the music started picking up.”
The modern music and the beer and wine cash bar may have been factors in the larger
crowd at Winter Cotillion, Herrera said.
“Everybody had something to look forward to,” she said.
Junior Tommy Joseph, who went to Winter Cotillion for the first time this year, said he
was impressed by the event.
“I had never been and it definitely surpassed my expectations,” he said. “I had never
seen the cafeteria look that good and the music was great. It was a great time dancing
and having fun with my friends.”
The event proved a great time for students to let off the pre-finals steam and enjoy a fun
night of dancing with their friends.
DJs Matt Wise and Amanda
Nguyen change the pace of the
evening.

3. “The dancing never stopped! There was music playing for four hours straight and the
dance floor was always full and filled with energy,” Herrera said.
Though previous reports led the student
body to believe there would be no ice
sculpture at Winter Cotillion, the
sculpture was delivered, only to
mysteriously disappear at the end of the
night.

4. .
To learn more about the UD Student Life, visit:
UDALLAS.EDU
Office of Undergraduate Admission
udallas.edu/admiss | 972-721-5266 | crusader@udallas.edu