A group of teenage dancers from studios in Brockton and Middleboro will share the Zeiterion stage with one of modern dance's most celebrated touring companies next week, opening for Parsons Dance on Nov. 7 in a performance organized by a former company member who now teaches just across town. The students, ranging in age from 13 to 19, are being coached by Steven Vaughn, a Mattapoisett native who spent years performing and teaching with Parsons Dance before settling on the SouthCoast.
Vaughn now owns SoCo Movement Arts, a dance studio on Pope's Island, according to 1420 WBSM. He is producing the student performance that will precede the Parsons Dance show at the Zeiterion Performing Arts Center in New Bedford, per the same report. The outlet describes the student piece as a tribute to Parsons, meant to bridge the gap between young dancers and the professionals they'll be sharing a stage with.
From Rochester Dance Classes to a World Tour
Vaughn's own path to Parsons Dance began locally. He moved to Mattapoisett at about age 11, the station reports, and it was at the Kathy Medina School of Dance in Rochester that he was first introduced to modern dance. From there he went on to an arts college in Pennsylvania, where, according to WBSM's account, he became a Parsons Dance apprentice during his senior year and joined the company full time the following year.
His biography on SoCo Movement Arts fills in more detail: Vaughn graduated with honors from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, earning a BFA in Modern Dance with a focus on choreography. He later earned an MFA in Dance from Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia, in 2017. While dancing under founding director David Parsons, Vaughn toured and performed both domestically and internationally, including stops in Italy, China, Brazil and Russia, per SoCo Movement Arts.
WBSM reports that Vaughn toured the world with the company for roughly a decade and has said he enjoyed both performing and teaching during those touring years. He told the station that the students he now coaches are doing an amazing job and are dedicated to learning dance, and that he hopes the Nov. 7 performances will inspire the next generation of modern dancers on the SouthCoast.
A Company With Deep Roots and a New Bedford Connection
Parsons Dance was founded in 1985 by David Parsons and Howell Binkley, according to The New Bedford Light. The Zeiterion's own program notes describe the company as having distinguished itself for more than three decades through a fusion of athleticism, artistry, musicality and exuberance, part of a Mainstage series that spans dance, music, theatre, comedy, lectures and film each season, per The Zeiterion.
The company's ties to the SouthCoast run deeper than a single tour stop. Parsons Dance has previously performed at SoCo Movement Arts' own Black Box Theater on Popes Island, with tickets priced at $50 and a post-performance Q&A and meet-and-greet with the dancers, The New Bedford Light reported. The Zeiterion separately advertised a master class taught by David Parsons himself, designed for intermediate and advanced dancers and featuring live drumming by Nate Goncalo, according to the venue.
A Growing Local Dance Scene
SoCo Movement Arts has been building out its own programming beyond the studio walls. The venue's Black Box Theater hosts small-scale dance, music and theatrical productions, including professional performances and community outreach, the studio says on its site. Its 2026 Dance Festival, held Aug. 14 to 16 across New Bedford and South Dartmouth, included a contemporary dance program performed by longtime friends and former Parsons Dance company members, The New Bedford Light reported, with tickets ranging from $10 for a DanceFilm screening to $30 for a Yurt Series performance.
Vaughn has also used the New Bedford Art Museum as inspiration for his own choreography, presenting works including a solo titled “In a Landscape” that responded to museum exhibitions, according to SoCo Movement Arts. Tickets for the Nov. 7 performance at the Zeiterion, located at 684 Purchase Street in New Bedford, are available at zeiterion.org, per WBSM.
