Open Dance Studios In The Sf Bay Area; Dance In The Academic Curriculum In Colorado; Dearborn, Mi Dance Festival Highlight National Dance Week, April 20-29, 2001

From an Open House at Art/Dance Academy, Oceanside, CA; to New York's Mohawk Valley, where Watson Williams Magnet School will host UTICA'S LONGEST TAP LINE for the fifth year in a row, and students from Watson Williams will also be featured in the Leatherstocking Ballet's production of CINDERELLA; to Wheeling, West Virginia where Oglebay Institute will offer free standard classes; NATIONAL DANCE WEEK (NDW) is celebrated in 42 states this year from April 20-29, 2001.

The event builds new audiences for dance -- introducing communities across the nation to dance in its myriad forms, while at the same time promoting the work of companies, dancers, and choreographers.

The week kicks off at 12 noon on April 20 in the gardens of San Francisco's Yerba Buena Center for the Arts -- with a public parade featuring hundreds of Bay Area dancers and musicians, along with giant puppets and stilt walkers. Under the theme of Xtreme Dance, San Francisco will celebrate NDW with more than 300 planned performances by over 125 dance companies, including San Francisco Ballet; Joe Goode Performance Group; Alonzo King's Lines Ballet; and Liss Fain Dance.

Concurrently at Yerba Buena Center, ODC/San Francisco celebrates its 30th anniversary season, DANCING DOWNTOWN 2001, with five world premieres by ODC's choreographers and six repertory favorites. Season music includes Mozart; Mark O'Connor/Yo-Yo Ma/Edgar Meyer; Zap Mama; legendary blues artist Dr. John; Duke Ellington; Philip Glass; and live performances by the Cypress String Quartet playing a new work by composer Jay Cloidt.

This year Open Dance Studios are central to the 10-day celebration in Northern California. Using the visual arts "Open Studios" model, participating Dance Studios throughout the Bay Area will encourage visitors to observe and take dance classes -- including ballet, modern, jazz, hip-hop, swing, folklorico, bellydance, yoga, pilates, butoh, flamenco and more.

In Pennsylvania, National Dance Week begins in Harrisburg with a kickline at the Capitol, master classes at the Harrisburg Hilton, and performances at Strawberry Square. In York, PA, students of Greater York Center for Dance Education will perform at the Jewish Community Center on April 29 at 6 PM in a DESERT DANCE THEATRE where guests will receive desert and a show for $12.

In Dearborn, Michigan on Saturday, April 28, Dearborn Dance Festival begins with dance workshops for all levels. Professional dance/choreographer/instructors from Michigan include Juliana Pirpinelli, Troy Greenfield, Alison Roller and Diane Mancinelli. In the afternoon, a performance will showcase the dancers participating in the workshop. Colleges with dance programs, and Dance Companies have been invited to perform. Sponsored by Sickle's Dance Company, the Festival also includes a display area where dance studios will offer information on their programs. The event is supported by the City of Detroit Cultural Affairs Department; Michigan Council for the Arts and Cultural Affairs; and Edsel Ford High School.

In Northeastern Colorado, the Denver metro/Boulder school will simultaneously perform YOU CAN DANCE, a dance routine which is part of NDW Regional Director Gwen Bowen's project to incorporate NDW into academic lesson plans. Bowen is also collaborating with Colorado-based composer, Michael Stanwood who is composing a work for the Colorado NDW 2001 campaign and events.

Her project is a part of the NDW Academic Project which encourages teachers of any and all academic subjects to incorporate dance and projects for National Dance Week within their syllabi. The Academic Project aspires both to enrich the curriculum and to raise student and public awareness about dance as an art form.

Sample class-room tested lesson plans -- in which subjects as diverse as mathematics, grammar, science, or literature utilize differing aspects of Dance -- are available. They are adaptable to any grade level and are open to refinement by individual instructors.

This year, the National Dance Week campaign also includes a Mentoring Program which enables aspirants to careers in the dance arts and associated fields to network with working professionals. "Whether the interest is that of a professional dancer or dance therapist, dance journalist or costumer, there are working professionals who are willing to provide guidance, advice and counseling to those who would like to either investigate the field or enter it," says the program, which works to establish mentoring connections for applying mentees in all aspects of dance -- including Dancer; Choreographer; Producer; Director; Educator; Agent; Sound Technician; Trainer; Recreation Director; Dance Photographer; Dance Historian; Lighting Technician; and Stage Design.

On April 29, Dance Week will conclude in Northern California with the annual PLANETARY DANCE led by octogenarian choreographer Anna Halprin and her Planetary Dance Community. Performed on six continents simultaneously and open free to one and all, the dance begins at 11 AM at Santos Meadows on Mt. Tamalpais in Marin County.

"The importance of National Dance Week to both dancers and nondancers alike is to raise the awareness of dance and the arts and their great value to our society, Lori Garling, NDW Pennsylvania State Manager told Arts Wire. "The arts can truly take you away from everyday troubles -- to a place of peace, inspiration and great reward! This is a joy that should be shared with everyone. Certainly those who already love dance will be enthused about dance, but we also want to reach those who haven't yet found the excitement that we who are celebrating feel!"

Sources/resources:

The NATIONAL DANCE WEEK WEBSITE -- http://www.nationaldanceweek.org -- features a calendar of NDW events across the country and contact information for each event Information about the NDW ACADEMIC AND MENTORING PROJECTS are available from NDW Executive Director, Patricia Goulding, at PGould1724@aol.com

DANCE MAGAZINE features coverage of NDW on its website at http://www.dancemagazine.com/
The Current issue also includes "Dancing with Dollars in the Millennium", a supplement by John Munger, director of research and information for Dance/USA, which evaluates how dance fared in the 1990's

VOICE OF THE DANCE -- http://www.voiceofdance.com -- features coverage of the Bay Area celebration at http://www.voiceofdance.com/ndw

YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS -- http://www.yerbabuenaarts.org/

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