Even before they stepped into their first class as Denison students, Fair Smelko and Danielle Baglieri bonded over mastering African dance moves, overcoming sleep deficits, and perfecting the fine art of climbing The Hill in flip-flops.
Smelko and Baglieri, who hail from LeRoy, West Virginia, and Haddonville, New Jersey, respectively, met 18 months ago at Denison’s Summer TUTTI Camp, an eight-day experience for high-achieving high school students who want to deepen their performing arts skills, explore new ways of making art, and collaborate with professional artists and ensembles.
Today, the pair are roommates living in Crawford Hall on the First-Year Quad.
“If I told myself before I went, ‘You’re going to really like it, you’re gonna find your roommate,’ I think I would have smacked myself,” Baglieri said.
“I think we bonded over being sleep deprived and having to walk up the stairs every day,” Smelko said.
Smelko and Baglieri at Summer TUTTI camp (above) and the 2025 Fall Dance Festival.
TUTTI campers hone their art while collaborating on music, dance, theatre, and music theatre projects with Denison faculty and guest artists. For Smelko and Baglieri, that meant days of practice with Assistant Professor Marion Ramírez.
They learned about African Diaspora culture, put in hours of hard work, and became better dancers.
“I definitely went outside of my comfort zone,” Baglieri said.
Now that they both are attending Denison, they are happy to learn from Ramírez again.
“She is super knowledgeable,” Baglieri said, with Smelko adding that Ramírez’ extensive dance experience makes her a great instructor.
At Summer TUTTI, Smelko and Baglieri also connected with Denison students who serve in roles similar to camp counselors, including Music Composition major Wyatt Fabyanske ‘27.
Those connections help high school students build mental bridges to college.
“When you’re in high school, you think that you’re alone and no one can relate to you,” Fabyanske said. “A counselor who’s in college can confidently say, ‘I went through the stuff you went through when I was in high school.’”
Smelko and Baglieri said that connections they made at TUTTI, like those with Ramírez and Fabyanske, were the biggest factor in their decision to come to Denison. “You get really close with people, bonding over this experience together,” Baglieri said.
The pair has remained close since the beginning of their first year.
“It was really comforting on Move-In Day because I already knew someone,” Smelko said.
“We were each other’s home base in a lot of situations, like after Parents Weekend when our parents left,” she said. “We both just cried — just having someone who knows you is nice.”
As dance minors, Smelko and Baglieri continue to stretch their muscles and elevate their skills. The roommates performed a duet in the 2025 Fall Dance Festival, and they will be in a senior research project this spring.
“It’s wicked to see my campers attend Denison,” Fabyanske said. “I get to say, ‘I knew them way back,’ and it’s super cool.
“It’s inspiring to be part of their future in the arts.”
Denison Summer TUTTI Performing Arts Camp offers talented high school dancers, musicians, and theatre-makers a chance to deepen their skills while collaborating with professional artists and ensembles and peers from across the country, such as Available Light Theatre, ETHEL, and Third Coast Percussion. Applications now open.
