Company
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Company Auditions
September 14, 2010 5:00-6:00PM
Center for Performing Arts, 3754 Pleasant Ave. S.
We have openings for dancers ages 7-18. Previous dance experience not necessary. To register or for more information contact us at 612-423-3064 or info@youngdance.org
What to expect at auditions
Come prepared to move and have fun! All you need is your bare feet and comfortable clothes. If you've never danced before, don't worry. Auditions are very relaxed (like taking a dance class) and are structured for students of all ages and abilities. Even if you don't have a dance background, we encourage you to come learn about Young Dance. Some of our dancers start young, but others join us as middle or high schoolers. We'll provide information about schedules, classes, rehearsals, tuition and financial aid.
About The Company
The Company is made up of 25 to 30 young artists, ages 7 to 18. We rarely turn away anyone due to lack of training. Our unique approach to dance is designed to help young artists develop physically, emotionally, and intellectually. Young Dance teaches modern dance technique, but more importantly, we teach our dancers how to be thinking artists. Many dancers join our artistic family in the 2nd or 3rd grade, and stay through high school, though we welcome new dancers at any age. Some go on to dance in college and beyond.
The Young Dance Experience
Young Dance, founded in 1987, is currently composed of 30 boys and girls, aged seven to eighteen. Company members come from throughout the Twin Cities: south, southwest, southeast and north Minneapolis, St. Paul, and several western suburbs.
Young people who are interested in joining the Company are asked to attend an audition so the Artistic Director can assess their level of interest. Auditions also give families an opportunity to learn about the Company, to see if our mission aligns with the needs of their children. In order to provide a rich artistic and creative experience, Company members are expected to attend classes and rehearsals for a full year.
Each year, Young Dance chooses a different project to broaden dancers' involvement in their art form. Next year's project is Origins and Destinations, a season of residencies with local artists who will teach global dance forms. Dancers will learn West African Dance, Persian Dance, and Hungarian Dance. They will also create their own choreography, and discover how their personal movement style reflects their own cultural values.
Young Dance is a unique arts organization that not only trains young dancers in a wide variety of dance forms, including modern, jazz, ballet, and improvisation, but also places equal value on developing the choreographic voice of each individual company member.
Young Dancers join the company because they are interested in creative expression and in letting their unique voice be heard. They love to be challenged physically and are excited when they are introduced to new possibilities of movement.
Commitment
Dancers meet twice a week for a total of four hours. During the school week, they meet in age-specific groups, so the faculty can fully focus on developing specific technical and choreographic skills at an appropriate level. On Saturdays, when the entire company comes together, unique relationships are formed across the age groups. Dancers learn to recognize the qualities of expression that others bring to their artistic work. Layers of mentoring take place as the entire company works together.
Company Schedule
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Company members attend one dance class per week, and Saturday rehearsal.Aldrich Avenue Presbyterian Church: 3501 Aldrich Avenue S., Minneapolis
Level Ones
Class: Tuesday, 4:30-5:30, Center for Performing Arts
Rehearsal: Saturday, 11:00-12:30, Aldrich Avenue Presbyterian Church
Middles
Class: Tuesday, 5:00-7:00, Center for Performing Arts Rehearsal: Saturday, 11:00-1:30, Aldrich Avenue Presbyterian Church
High School
Class: Thursday, 6:30-8:30, Barton Open School Rehearsal: Saturday, 11:00-1:30, Aldrich Avenue Presbyterian Church
Tuition
Tuition includes both class and rehearsal, and is priced for the year, September-May.
Level I (grades 2 to 4)-- $600
Middles and High School students (grades 5 and up)-- $925
Young Dance is committed to making dance accessible to interested and motivated students. No child will be discriminated against because of race, gender, national origin, religion, or disability. Students will not be refused because of an inability to pay. For more information about need-based scholarships, please call 612-423-3064.
Young Dance Calendar 2009-2010
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Past Projects: Integrating Dance and the Arts
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In past years, our artistic directors have opened up the young dancer's perspectives through season-long workshops in other art forms such as improvisational theater, puppetry, creative writing and visual arts. As a result, Young Dance develops dancers who are thinking artists.
In 2001, in collaboration with Andrew Kim of the Heart of the Beast Theater, dancers created masks that were used as the basis for character development in an original dance performance. In 2002, the dancers studied with writer Sheila O'Connor, creating poetry, short essays and memoirs which inspired the dances they choreographed. 2007-2008's project, Sounds and Silences, focused on strengthening the connection between dance and music.
The dancers have been able to focus on their own concerns: thoughtful dance responses to September 11 and Hurricane Katrina, a tribute to Tyesha Edwards, playful interpretations of the Star Tribune's Mindworks questions, and early experiments in jazz and blues music.
Performance Opportunities and Community Presence
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In the past two years, Young Dance has been expanding our performance venues. Our annual spring show is the culmination of a year of dancing, but during the year, Young Dance has performed at the Dances at the Lakes Festival in Minneapolis and Prior Lake, at the Minnesota Sesquecentennial, and the May Day Festival. We curate the Youth Dance Cabaret held at Patrick's Cabaret twice a year, and have performed at 9x22, A Dance Lab at the Bryant-Lake Bowl. Our Park Tour takes company members to Minneapolis parks on school release days. All these opportunities bring dance to diverse audiences and venues.