Dance Advantage » community

Give The Gift Of Dance In Your Community

Stacey Pepper Schwartz — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 13:30:08 +0000

As March rolls on, many dance schools are preparing for their end-of-year performances. Routines. Costumes. Dates. Through all the practice and preparation, what can get lost in the shuffle for young dancers is the purpose.

Sharing an experience together, performer and audience member alike, is quite a gift. Dance brings communities together, young and old, people of different cultures, occupations and life experiences.

Teach your students that they have the ability, through dance, to affect and reach others in a positive way. It is not about executing a perfect leap but leaping forward to connect through the art of dance.

Bring the Show on The Road!

Before your big performance day (and after) add some informal performances to your schedule. Bring your students to senior citizen centers, nursing homes, hospitals or community centers. Have your dancers participate in Earth Day celebrations in your area by performing outside. Create an assembly program for a local nursery school. Perform for a local girl scout troupe. Keep an eye out for any possible performance opportunities in your town. Share the talent of your dancers and create an opportunity to bring the community together.

More reasons to add performances to your already busy schedule:

Practice, practice, practice. The more students perform the better they get at it. They will be polished and ready to go for the big end-of-year show.
It is a great, low-cost way to advertise! Having a presence in your community is the best way to spread the word about your school. Invite a journalist from the local paper to come and take pictures of your performance at a community center. The local paper is always looking for town stories and it is free advertising.
It is fun! Your students will have a great time because they are getting to do what they love, and you will too!
The audience will also have a great time. Especially if you perform for groups that usually do not get to see dance. People at senior centers, nursing homes and hospitals do not usually have the ability to go out to see live shows. And some don’t get a chance to interact with young people.
It’s a challenge. Different spaces have different dimensions. The spaces will not have wings. Your students’ spatial awareness will be tested.
It feels different. Since local community groups don’t have fancy stage lights and curtains your students will be able to see the audience’s faces. As daunting as this can be for your young dancers, it can also be exhilarating for them. When they bow they will able to see the audience smiling back at them. They will be able to experience an immediate connection with the audience and feel first-hand the power of performance.
Dance is about giving of oneself. There is no better way of teaching this then by giving free performances and traveling to places where people are in need of connections with others.

Delegate, you have enough on your plate!

If you do not have time to find local performing opportunities, schedule performance dates, or organize rides for your dancers, ask for parent volunteers to act as a “performance coordinators.” Have them obtain important information about the performance space:

How big is the space?
Is the space carpeted, tile, wood?
Do they have a sound system/CD player or do you need to bring your own?
How many people does the space accommodate?
Is there a backstage space like an empty classroom, staff lounge, etc. to change into costumes?
Can the dancers come an hour before the performance to change and run through their dances?
Get permission to take pictures.
Ask if you can get feedback from the audience after the show. Get some quotes from the audience and the director of the community based center in which you performed.

Remember, this is informal. It is not supposed to be a fully produced show.

You might choose for your students to wear leotards and tights instead of costumes. You might decide to do only sections of particular dances. Experiment with what works best.

The dancers will have to learn how to compromise, make slight changes and deal with some unknowns. This is a wonderful opportunity for your students to learn about the many obstacles and challenges dancers face when they take the show on the road!

Share your experience with others

At your end-of-year show or recital, list in the program some places you’ve performed. Add quotes from your community audiences and some pictures as well.

Set up a poster display with pictures, quotes and any newspaper articles. Let parents and friends arriving for the big show learn what your dancers are doing in the community.

Ask for volunteers to help find new community spaces for next year. You are not only creating strong community bonds but your school/studio community will in turn become stronger as well. You are all coming together to dance and share dance with others! Bravo!

Photo by Wasson Photography

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Unifying Women and Mothers Through Dance

Guest Contributors — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 12:20:44 +0000

The following guest post is from a loyal reader, Camille. I asked her to write this account for Dance Advantage because I appreciated her passionate support of dance and its role in community. I knew also that she was employed as a dance teacher in Scotland, doing a job very much the same yet also very different from that of many dance instructors. She will tell you more about this work in her own words but I feel it speaks to the affect dance and movement can have on the soul and on a group of people. Occasionally, I like to step away from the technical, instructional, business, and material side of dance to remind myself and those reading of the unifying and universal power of dance. As Camille will reiterate, I hope this reminder will encourage those of us who hold keys to find their own unique ways of unlocking this potential in dance.

As I walk to work with my son Soren, the sky is very dark, though it’s only just before six in the evening. I’m glad I have this time to spend with him and that while I work he is nearby in a room, where childcare is provided, just down the hall from where I teach. It’s cold, like many Scottish nights, and I’m glad we’ll be indoors soon. The warmth I feel at work is doubled by the many beautiful and dedicated women I work with. Tonight I am greeted by Karen Gordon, a group member and professional photographer who does volunteer work with the women in the group (you can see her great work of the women and children dancing below). I then bring Soren to the childcare and see Saba. She preforms with the women and is dropping off her son at the creche as well. He has just arrived from Africa and Saba is very happy that they are together now. We hug and I meet and hug her son. He is beautiful and practices his English with the caregivers in the childcare. It is the perfect way to start my evening.

About mIN

Photo by Karen Gordon

I am a dancer, and teach dance at the Maryhill Integration Network (mIN). It is an organization for families (primarily women and their children) who have relocated to Glasgow due to dangers and unrest in their own countries. War, political unrest, violence towards women, and religious persecution are just a few of the reasons refugees are forced or choose to leave their homes and seek another. Their families are in danger, they fear for their lives, and they want a safer life for their children and for themselves. The women and children come to the network to make friends, participate in artistic collaborations, cook, share stories and, most importantly, integrate into their new homes. In many ways this job is a dream come true. Not only am I teaching dance and doing what I love but I can also bring my children and be a part of something even greater than (dare i say) dance: the cause for women, freedom and humanity.

Movement and dance are main ingredients for moving mIN forward as a community voice and performance group. I’ve had the opportunity to work with the women for the 16 Days of action for violence against women campaign and share my choreography with the city, as well as teach weekly classes with the children.

Leading with Love

Remzije (Rema) center

The leading woman behind this network Remzije Sheriffe is someone that I respect more than my words are able to express and I sat down to interview her to give readers some insight into her beginnings, hopes, struggles and triumphs as a artistic facilitator and coordinator for mIN. I also hope that her effort will encourage other organizations to provide such positive environments for women and children as well as unite cultures through dance.

We meet just before work and, because Remzije was a journalist in Kosova before coming to Glasgow, I’m a bit nervous, though I know this isn’t necessary given her unconditional love for all who take part in the organization.

Language of the Body

After arriving in Glasgow, Rema (as friends and coworkers call Remzije) began a project called Kelpian Castle which involved the performance of Kosavoan and Glaswegian stories, combined and enacted by children for their community. This was volunteer work yet very telling of where her life and career would unfold. From the beginning of her stay in Glasgow she knew the importance of integration and had a keen sense for how to do it. Language barriers are usually a struggle when a new refugee arrives at the network. Rema knew that, through dance and movement, those involved could make friends and support each other despite their difficulty to communicate with spoken word. She understands greatly the power of movement and body language.

Photo by Karen Gordon

When Rema began her work with the Maryhill Integration Network she was well prepared to take it to new heights because of her volunteer work and her strong public relations as a journalist. Performances have multiplied as the women involved learn the beauty of sharing their life experiences on stage through poetry, contemporary dance, music, and theatre. Dancing and its choreographed lifting, supporting and embracing – I’ve found these very themes translate into real life as deep friendships are made.

Work as a Calling

Photo by Karen Gordon

Rema faces the challenges that come head on. How the women will all arrive at rehearsals, dress rehearsals and performances, where there children will be during all of this, involving the children who are ready to perform, getting funding, costumes, choreographers (like Natasha Gilmore, deserving of her own post for sure), musicians, publicity…. this list goes on. During all of this she is also working with practical matters of English class, helping with forms, and encouraging those around her to have a public voice and feel of worth in their new surroundings. It’s lovely to see how her practical work parallels her artistic endeavors and that the women involved experience integration happening at many levels. Rema has great women to help but these are the demands of her job. She views her work as a calling in life.

On Women and Mothers and Dancing

Through all of this, Rema knows that family is first. This allows for mothers to feel the safety of coming and knowing that they are understood. This allows me, a dancer and a mother, to work there. This is why I love my job. All of it!

The editor asks: Where are the keyholes in your community and how will you use dance to unlock them?

© Guest Contributors for Dance Advantage, 2010. | Permalink | Category: Beyond the Bubble, Blog, Dance Companies, Interviews | Who's talking about this article?

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Exclusively Ours — Anthony LoCascio Talks About Danceregister

Nichelle (admin) — Tue, 26 May 2009 19:10:40 +0000

In case you haven’t noticed, social networks are all the rage. Since 2002, when MySpace emerged as one of the Internet’s earliest leaders in social networking, interaction online has been focused upon building communities within this vast realm.

One such community focused entirely on dance is Danceregister.com. Though you may not have heard of it yet, the site has been around since 2007. According to Anthony LoCascio, the master teacher and Tap Dogs alum who helms the community, “Danceregister seeks to unify the dance world and to increase the strength of present dance-related entities for a more prolific future of dance in the physical, mental, and digital world.” Based in the Silicon Valley, Danceregister is in an excellent geographic position to investigate, explore, and test online technologies and ideas before they are widely exposed to the public. Therefore, Danceregister is ever-evolving, making use of these new technologies to further their mission, which is to create a positive legacy that represents and makes available, all aspects of the dance studio community in one safe, helpful, user-friendly, positive, like-minded network.

Anthony took some time to talk with me about social networks, Danceregister, and the online dance community.

Dance Advantage: In 2007 you launched Danceregister.com, a “gated social networking community.” Who is Danceregister for?

Anthony LoCascio: Though it was originally created for the safety of dancers, Danceregister ultimately became useful to each individual demographic of the dance industry. Our community is utilized by studio owners, teachers, students, parents, merchants, services, and even other dance-related web sites. It is exclusively ours, exclusively dance!

Photo by William Hook

DA: I understand that parents are notified when their child applies to join Danceregister. That’s a great way to keep parents in the loop about their child’s activity online.

AL: We do send an email to the parent, as well as verification letters to dance studios. We monitor the site personally and have a volunteer “crew” to report anything suspicious in the community. In two years we have had a perfect record when it comes to the safety of our members.

DA: A gated community implies that there are additional security measures that ensure student safety. Are there ways you make certain that only members of the dance community are gathering at Danceregister?

AL: Because nothing in the world is perfect, we use a few methods which act as a checks and balances system. Some we make public and others we keep private. All of this is because of our main goal – safety. No other dance website can claim they are as safe as us.

DA: You are extremely passionate about the subject of online safety and I know that Danceregister was born in part from your concerns about students’ security on MySpace and other networks. What are some of the dangers related to the use of social networking sites?

AL: The idea is not to scare anyone but to educate them on the facts, both good and bad. In addition to personal safety concerns on Myspace and Facebook, there are issues that may result in damage to your computer, the spread of viruses, unauthorized access to accounts, and spam.

Teachers are also quickly learning that by using social networks they expose themselves to a “business mixing with personal life” scenario. Just because they don’t think to search out students online, doesn’t mean students are not searching for them. Plus assistant teachers may not be mature enough to see the damage one posted photo or video can do to a business. Look at Vanessa Hugeness (Disney), past American Idol contestants (Fox) or previous pageant winners (Trump Enterprises). Ask them what one mistake on the net can do to a person or how it can hurt a product or business. Also, studios are their own living, evolving worlds that can contain drama. Danceregister deters drama where a site like Bebo, Myspace, Youtube, or Facebook can easily fuel drama.

DA: So, in your opinion, should dance studios stay away from these larger networks altogether?

AL: When used properly, these sites can be useful. It would be wise to have a studio profile on all Facebook and Linkedin-type sites. These profiles should be used as marketing tools. They should include limited but clear contact info or links to your own studio web site. They should be seen as a way to direct traffic to your own web pages, not to “friend” students and parents. Studios should use these sites primarily for marketing and directing business. Danceregister, with its security measures, is better suited for personal networking and in-studio communication.

Image by AnnDerground

DA: Danceregister is free to join, will this always be the case?

AL: With the community currently small enough to control, we will continue to be free of charge. However, with provision of safety, technology, time and exposure comes growth and additional costs. In the future we may charge a nominal fee for a lifetime membership. This is to guarantee each and every parent has knowledge of their younger dancer’s presence in our network. As membership requests become more dense, this fee will help support the site and provide a faster even more efficient verification process. We can project the fee won’t be applied until late 2009 to mid 2010 and that it will be a minimum of $8.95 and not exceed $14.95 plus tax. The goal is to have the least expensive fee for a lifetime so there is no hassle associated with reoccurring fees.

One goal, which is firmly in place and will continue to be a focus, is to charge no fees for studio owners/teachers. However, to keep the site at certain standards, there will be fees for merchants & services in the future. I do not want Danceregister to become inundated with advertisements. We are not a vehicle which plans to rely on advertising. Danceregister has a personal, friendly, positive relationship with its users and represents itself and not other corporations. Any adverts will be limited in quantity and location.

DA: What are some of the things a parent, for instance, might do at Danceregister?

AL: There’s so much to do there. They could check out our forums, get or give advice, write reviews of conventions or competitions, post video, photos, quizzes, polls, and more all in a safe environment. They could consult with master teachers, visit my live chat (which occurs Mondays and Wednesdays from 3:30 to 4:30 PST), post questions to adjudicators of competitions, share or obtain knowledge of the dance world by reading live news and updates, and develop personal relationships within the global dance community. They could also look up their home studio’s information (each studio is divided into “mini-communities” or subsets), chat live via IM or audio/video with other parents, or have a meeting with a teacher — fewer trips into the studio!

And all of this applies for everyone, not just parents!

DA: In addition to running Danceregister, you are also a teacher. Do you think technology is changing the way we teach or the way students learn?

AL: Dance websites and exposure to individuals and ideas has been excellent for the dance community, as has accessibility and the ability to download instructional videos. I have a Dance4teachers subscriber who takes my tap DVD’s, uploads them to her Mac, and puts them on her ipod touch. Now she can reference them during class right in the palm of her hand. That is a big leap (pun intended) from less than 10 years ago when I was still sending people VHS tapes!

DA: What are some of your favorite resources for dancers and dance educators online?

AL: Early in 1999, when I started my first web site, just4tap.com, dance had a very limited online presence – mostly on forums. Therefore, there is great history on a forum site like dance.net. With blogs gaining recognition over the past few years, they have become the personal voices of the dance community. Tapdanceman, and Danceadvantage are blogs I personally frequent. Danceregister even has a public blog for people who are not part of the private community.

For investigating or developing professional dance gigs, there are sites like sceneinteractive, exploretalent, and many others. For music editing or cutting songs for a performance, there is www.musiceditingonline.com. Plus every dance media outlet now has web representation.

DA: Dance has certainly exploded online recently. How have you seen the Danceregister community grow and change since it began?

AL: When I started Danceregister, I had about 125 members and they were all from my local classes. The major focus of Danceregister was safety and due to the safety issues on MySpace, I chose not to advertise Danceregister directly to the public. Year one was all about working on the best ways to cost effectively provide an environment where it was safe to post videos and photos and chat about dance in a like-minded positive setting. I only used word of mouth to expose the community. That said, we had just over 350 members by the end of the first year.

Now confident in the verification system we had implemented since day one, year two’s focus has included content and exposure. We hit over 1000 members just before our two-year mark and have a great deal of content now on the site. It is time to let people know about Danceregister. Students are having fun, parents have peace of mind, and studios are starting to catch on to the communication benefits of the network. After all this hard work I am determined to get the word out!

DA: Well, I love to point my readers to dance resources online so, I’m happy to help with that part. Can you tell us more about what’s on the horizon for Danceregister?

AL: I am planning a video blog on Danceregister in September. These videos will follow me on an upcoming tour as I return to the stage with Tap Dogs. We are planning a contest also for September. Just a few of the prizes are iPods, Danceregister swag, iTunes®/Napster/Rhapsody gift cards valued from $25 to $50, DVD classes provided by Dance4students, and more. The top prize will be a gift certificate for two concert tickets of your choice. I personally will be present at the Rhee Gold Teacher conference this summer. If you are at the event please feel free to stop by and say hello. Danceregister will have a table in the Exhibit Hall.

© Nichelle Strzepek for Dance Advantage, 2009. | Permalink | Category: Blog, Dance Media, Dancethropology | Who's talking about this article?

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12 Steps to a More Eco-Friendly Dance Studio

Nichelle (admin) — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 14:30:04 +0000

Photo by Woodley Wonder Works

12 Ideas for Reducing, Reusing, and Recycling in the Dance Studio Environment

1. Collect and Recycle

Many of us recycle at home but forget about our workplace. Collect plastic, aluminum, glass, paper, and cardboard if you can. If there is no collection for your area or facility, check into possible drop-off sites and mobilize teachers, parents, and students to see that it gets there.

Consider recycling CDs and cases, as well! With music going completely digital there are probably a lot of these lying around the studio, not to mention all of the burned CDs that get made and tossed. Check this article for ideas about Where to Recycle CD and DVD Cases or try http://www.cdrecyclingcenter.com.

2. Turn Off Lights and Office Machines

Encourage students and staff to turn off lights whenever the studios, bathrooms, or offices are not in use. If your space has the option, try using only half of the lights available or installing dimmer switches. And, replace bulbs,as they burn out with energy-efficient ones.

Also, shut down computers and other office equipment when not in use, purchasing Energy Star labeled devices when you can.

3. Avoid Air Conditioning

Embrace the sweat and resist the urge to immediately snap on the A/C on hot days. Check out this article in Dance Teacher about Choosing the Right Temperature for Your Studio. And, don’t forget to remind students to stay hydrated!

4. Reduce Water Bottle Waste

Speaking of hydration, I know that some of you probably sell bottled water at your studio. However, it’s a no-brainer that all that waste is a real downside. Consider providing filtered water and/or encouraging students to bring a refillable from home. Perhaps you could sell containers with the studio logo to make up for not selling bottled water.

5. Reduce Water Use

Consider installing low-flow toilets or using the ol’ brick-in-the-tank method. Plus, do your best to keep up with maintenance of dripping faucets.

6. Go Paperless

Photo by David Mellis

In this age of technology, going paperless isn’t as difficult as it seems. Studios are beginning to move newsletters and other communications online. From increased communication through a studio blog to interacting with customers on your studio’s Facebook page or group, technology is making it much easier to go paperless. In fact, the free teleseminar that I am involved with at DanceStudioOwner.com will include discussion about how to transition your registration and billing systems online. This event begins TODAY with yours truly kicking things off. The topics are so timely, please don’t miss it. Update: Obviously this teleseminar is over but all the interviews and discussions are still available to members at DanceStudioOwner.com. In addition, the download of my interview with Suzanne on how a studio blog can boost your business is free to download when you subscribe to Dance Advantage.

7. Print Wisely

When you must print, use both sides of the paper whenever possible, use the back sides of old documents for faxes, drafts, etc, use the draft setting on your printer when you can, and consider recycling your ink cartridges or toner.

8. Carpool

Start a carpool network. We live in a fast-paced world but students are very conscious of environmental issues. Consider tapping this resource and challenge your students to come up with a plan for organizing the car pool (or to brainstorm more green ideas for the studio). You might be surprised at their willingness to embrace your efforts in this area. However, if you want to go that extra mile, consider offering some incentive with a discount or coupons to those who participate in an organized carpool.

9. Set Up a Gently Used Consignment or Trading List

Young dancers grow out of dancewear and shoes constantly and prices for brand new stuff can get expensive. Again, mobilize your customer base and work together to create a system in which students/parents can offer used items for resale or trade. Frugal parents will thank you.

10. Community Clean-Up

Adopt a highway or join other community clean-up efforts. This is great for your city and the environment. Additionally, showing an interest in your local region is good for business.

11. Buy Organic, Recycled, and Eco-Friendly Products

From the snacks you offer, to the paper towels you use, to the cleaning products you put on your floors, there are plenty of options for going green. Check TheGreenOffice.com or Amazon Green for electronics, lighting, and cleaning supplies (not to mention digital music and now books).

Speaking of Amazon, you might be interested in knowing that they also offer a trade-in program for DVDs, video games, electronics, and for you college students, text books. I’ve not tried this myself as we have a local business that buys back media. If you don’t, or if you are upgrading to blu-ray, Amazon may be an option.

Photo by CarbonNYC

12. Say No to Faux

Nothing brightens up a space like real, growing things. Consider bringing live plants into your studio environment to cool, humidify, and refresh the air.

What are some ways your studio is “going green?”

What are the pros and cons of the above 12 steps?

I’m looking forward to your thoughts and input!

© Nichelle Strzepek for Dance Advantage, 2009. | Permalink | Category: Blog, Dance Library, Studio Admin, Teaching | Who's talking about this article?

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Featuring… Yours Truly

Nichelle (admin) — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 22:02:01 +0000

For those of you that don’t know, bloggers are pretty social creatures. Not only do we tend to communicate and “hang out” with others who blog about our subject, we have ample opportunity to meet (usually in a virtual sense) bloggers covering a wide variety of topics and representing regions all over the world. In fact, bloggers seek out these opportunities through reading and commenting on other blogs and through various social networking sites. We know that encouraging others strengthens this growing community and, in turn, strengthens our own place or role within that community.

A result of relationships formed online is getting the chance to interact with people and investigate subjects that you might not normally. And some bloggers take it upon themselves to facilitate this by occasionally opening their blogging home to others with guest posts, interviews, or features. I’ve recently been fortunate to share the spotlight at two different sites. You won’t find much about dance or dance classes at either blog, but you’ll find some interesting stuff there! Both are more personal in nature than Dance Advantage, filled with stories and reflections on the everyday and extraordinary aspects of life.

Below, you’ll find a little more about each blog and how I’ve come to appear there.

Citystreams

Citystreams is Cindy’s blogging home. After two years of medical school she dropped out and went on to become a high school teacher. She is also mother to a sweet little girl and the wife of a police officer. She writes about all of these things on her blog, which she says is “cheaper than therapy, easier than scrapbooking and helps me remember the millions of moments, that I would surely forget if I didn’t write them down.” I was first drawn to Cindy’s blog because of her obvious dedication to teaching and because her daughter is around the same age as my son. Recently, she invited other “Blogistas” to answer a few questions about themselves as if they were talking to an old friend they hadn’t seen since high school and I took the bait. It was a fun exercise and may give you a peek inside my life outside of Dance Advantage. Click on the image below to be swept downstream to Citystreams.

Middle Zone Musings

Middle Zone Musings is the blogging home of Robert, a fellow Houstonian whose last name is almost as difficult to spell as my own. Robert has an interesting life story with lots of twists and tuns, ups and downs. His posts are usually his own musings and life lessons delivered in a “down-home” writing style. Each month he hosts a group writing project called What I Learned From…, to which others can submit their own life lessons on a particular subject. As a project for the new year, Robert created a variation of What I Learned – a Blogapalooza, or blogging event that gives others a chance to reflect on their growth in the past year. Participants were to select one post from each month of 2008 and express what it is that they learned from each post/month. This year there are over 100 contributors with their very own guest spot on Middle Zone Musings (and there’s still time to participate). Again, I felt this was a fun exercise and a great opportunity to look back at my first year (well, eight months) of blogging. You can join me in the Middle Zone by clicking on the image below. Be sure to check out what others learned from 2008!

Your Turn?

I hope you enjoy these little diversions featuring yours truly. They were fun to do! In fact, even if you don’t have a blog, both of the exercises above offer great writing exercises for your journal or just because. Perhaps you could answer Cindy’s questions yourself or write your own mini-autobiography in a conversational style. Or, look back at 2008 and decide what you learned from each month in dance, or otherwise. It will teach you a lot about how much you’ve grown and changed over the years or over this past year.

I hope you are enjoying 2009! Thanks for spending a bit of here with me at Dance Advantage!

© Nichelle Strzepek for Dance Advantage, 2009. | Permalink | Category: Beyond the Bubble, Blog, Interviews | Who's talking about this article?

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