A year-long holistic dance program for 3rd – 5th grader
This program is full for the 2023/24 school year. If you would like to be placed on the waitlist please contact us.
Wednesdays, 3:45 – 5:15pm
In addition to these weekly classes, students will participate in monthly gatherings on Saturday afternoons with all four of the classes that make up Awesome Art in Motion (AAIM). From late February – May, students will have small group rehearsals from 5:15 – 6:15 (directly after dance class) every other week. And the week of our spring performance, students should plan to participate in several extra afternoon rehearsals, along with a Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon performance. Finally, students in this class will have the opportunity to join the Dancing Potatoes class to participate in several Thursday afternoon classes with guest dance teachers, as well as field trips to local professional dance performances.
Monthly AAIM gatherings will take place on the following dates:
Sept 23rd, 1 – 3pm
Oct 21st, 1 – 3pm
November 4th, 1 – 3. Outdoor performance at 2pm
December 16th, family dance party and performance! Time/location TBA
January 20th, 1 – 3pm
February 10th, 1 – 3pm
March 9th, 1 – 3pm
April 13th, 1 – 3pm
and May 18th 1 – 3pm
Tentative dates for Performance week at the Shea Theater!
Technical rehearsal, Tuesday May 28th, 3:30 – 6:30pm
Technical rehearsal, Wednesday May 29th, 3:30 – 5:00pm
Dress rehearsal, Thursday May 30th, 3:30 – 6:30pm
Performance, Saturday June 1st, 7:00pm
Dress rehearsal and performance, Sunday June 2nd, 10:00am – 4:30pm
There will be no classes the following dates: December 27th, January 3rd, January 10th, February 21st and April 17th.
Program description
This is a great class for returning students looking to challenge themselves as dancers and dance makers, as well as new students who are passionate about dancing and eager to jump in.
Awesome Art in Motion is a place for kids to come together to be themselves and to learn to love and care for themselves and each other; with dance and the body as central to what we do together. This year the program includes four different classes for students ages 6 – 14. In addition to meeting weekly in their individual classes, students in Awesome Art in Motion come together as a full group once a month, building a very sweet, mixed-age creative community.
The Awesome Art in Motion curriculum weaves together improvisational dance, concert dance techniques, social dance, somatic movement, mindfulness, and student-led art making.
The curriculum is divided into the following units:
- How do YOU dance? What is Dance and Where do we Locate Ourselves?
- Dancing from the Inside Out: Mindful Movement and Somatic Body Education
- Dancing in Community, Dancing Together: Social Dance Practices
- Concert Dance Techniques and Dance Making
Each unit includes a creative project (often student choreography), and an opportunity to share that project with the wider community. This fall students will have the choice to participate in an outdoor, site specific performance in November. In December, after the conclusion of our social dance unit, we will gather will family and friends for a family dance party, along with a chance for students to share what they have been working on. In the winter months we will focus on concert dance technique and dance making skills, and starting in late February, each student will have the opportunity to dream up and direct their own dance for the stage; designing everything from the movement to the costumes, lighting and music.
Each class will include:
- An Opening and Closing Circle: in which each student is acknowledged, welcomed, oriented to the class and appreciated.
- A Warm Up: a vigorous set up movements to wake up the brain and increase range of motion in the body.
- Content sharing: a time for Anna to share new content based on the unit we are in and the focus of the day. Content will be shared through picture books, conversation, collage or video
- Dance Explorations: exercises in which students are asked to improvise or freestyle based on the content shared.
- Skills Building: learning and practicing new skills related to content.
- Dance Creation: students share dance movements generated from dance explorations and skills building.
Payment
The cost for the full year of this program is a sliding scale of $70 – $200/month or (700 – $2000/year). Payments may be made monthly, seasonally or in full.
1 full Scholarship spot is reserved for this class. If you are interested in a scholarship, please proceed with the registration process and indicate you would like a scholarship on the registration form. Barter options may also be available.
