BRATTLEBORO — From May 17 through 19, the Brattleboro School of Dance will present four performances of “Collide-A-Scape,” our 40th annual Spring Show.
“Collide-A-Scape” features dancers aged 7 to 70 participating in a true community endeavor that's fun, imaginative, and professional. It is not your ordinary dance recital. It's a high-quality dance performance of original works.
I'll be doing some of the choreography, along with some renowned staff members, plus two guest artists from New York City with ties to the Brattleboro area - Angie Moon, artistic director of Angie Moon Dance Theatre, and Michael DiFilippo, ballroom choreographer, dancer, and sound engineer for the well-known political news show, Democracy Now.
This 40th annual show marks another year of artistry and meaningful expression through live performance.
* * *
Our school has a legacy of being the voice of the community through artistic projects and educational opportunities.
Currently, we offer classes in ballet, Pilates, hip hop, tap, ballet, Dunham Technique, and modern and creative dance for kids fills the seasonal curriculum, with children's summer camps and advanced intensive summer programs offered for their unique opportunities of creative group work and technique improvement, respectively.
With its roots established in the mid-1970s by founder Kathleen Keller, our school has been a hub of artistic excellence and exploration for more than four decades.
In the words of Bethany Wanvig, a former student and now a visual artist who lives in Minneapolis, “I spent most of my formative years at BSD. While I didn't go on to dance professionally, the lessons learned in classes and in the community here carry over into all walks of life.
“The strength and grace, of body and mind, one learns through dance are extraordinary. Learning at the BSD is a unique experience; there is no pressure to compete, there are no expensive costumes to buy, performing is not required. It is a truly wonderful place to just dance, make friends, and become part of a lifelong community.”
* * *
The proceeds from “Collide-A-Scape” will, as always, go entirely toward funding future scholarships for dancers of all ages to pursue their love of movement, regardless of cost.
In 2013, BSD, under the ownership of Jennifer Moyse, began raising funds to provide much-needed financial assistance to qualifying families, fulfilling its mission to keep youth and adults dancing regardless of finances.
To date, Company of Muses - a nonprofit scholarship organization formed to fund scholarships or live performances at Brattleboro School of Dance - has granted more than $40,000 in scholarships to BSD students on the basis of need.
Now, students may find themselves qualified to receive two other merit-based scholarships.
The Colleen McCloskey-Meyer Memorial Scholarship honors the memory of one of our previous students. It will be awarded to a serious ballet student.
“This memorial scholarship was established to honor Colleen's love of ballet through supporting ballet education at the school that felt like a second home to her,” the Company of Muses website explains.
This year, Ellery Witman, Willow Norkun, Piper Norkun, and Gilbert Komuves are the recipients from each 2019 semester.
The Kathleen Keller Higher Education Scholarship additionally is awarded to a deserving senior who plans to pursue a career in dance performance or other dance-related field.
* * *
The longstanding tradition of providing comprehensive dance training to local and regional youth and adults culminates this year in “Collide-A-Scape.”
“My two friends from work were astounded by the level of professionalism and artistry in last year's show,” says Serenity Wolf, a former student whose two sons are dancing in the show.
Wolf joins them in performing in the show herself this year.
“I think people expect the show to be a bunch of kids in tutus and sparkles,” she said, “but it is something much different and much more substantive.”
Through widely diverse dance selections, Collide-A-Scape offers audiences a creative window into a world in pieces trying to find equilibrium.
“Collide-A-Scape” is full of topsy-turvy dances that reflect the upside-down world in which we live and, in the process, impart beauty, humanity, and truth to our community.
The show will bring you on a kaleidoscopic journey through a landscape of quirky twists and turns where everyone is delirious, disoriented, and dizzy with information.
Join BSD as we find footing in this nonsensical climate - a sense of coordination among the discord, a sense of movement and momentum among moments of pandemonium, and a return of love and peace.