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Bollywood – Dances of India

Bollywood films are world-famous for their incredible dance numbers, a fusion of traditional Indian dance with jazz inuence and modern technique. With DanceXStudio and choreographer Jayshree Srikanth, students will learn timing, rhythm, energy and expressive movements. The students will learn more about Indian culture, geography, history and dance’s ever important role. Central Jersey Only Program […]

Assembly: Dancing Ourselves

Critically acclaimed Heidi Latsky Dance is passionately dedicated to reflecting the true diverse nature of the world we live in through accessible, thought-provoking, dynamic and rigorous dance works. We promote active/complete inclusion and challenging preconceived notions of who are generally accepted as dancers as a metaphor for life. During the assembly, we share our core […]

Rhythm: The Lost Language

Students will learn the language of rhythm from acclaimed tap dancer and choreographer Maurice Chestnut. Each session begins with a rhythm stretch and a percussive call and response warm-up. Learners will begin their journey in Africa with djembe rhythms, then move through New Orleans and New York where Africans and Irish step dancers created the […]

Speak Up! Assembly

Speak Up! uses the percussive dance styles of tap dance, stepping, and body percussion to narrate iconic moments of John Lewis’ legacy. The program highlights the life of John Lewis, the 1960 Lunch Counter Sit-ins, the 1961 Freedom Riders, and the 1965 Selma to Montgomery March. This educational performance assists in preserving Black History and […]

Joy Resides Here: An Interactive Justice Journey of Oral History/Telling and Diasporic African Drum and Dance Traditions

Uncover how Diasporic African Polyrhythms from Africa, Brazil and America create mechanisms for place-making. Experience a Porch Choreo-Story from a Historically Black Neighborhood while learning about the Great Migration. Oral History/telling practices allow us to document our own stories, and speak for ourselves. Using dance as text, students will dance a friendship quality in the […]

Afro-Puerto Rican Folkloric Music: la Bomba y la Plena

Segunda Quimbamba is a cultural gem based in Jersey City. Led by Master Drummer Juan Cartagena and Master Dancer Nanette Hernández, the band performs and teaches Afro-Puerto Rican folkloric music La Bomba and La Plena, honoring their ancestors and heritage through practicing this preservation. The call-and-response music creates a collaborative artistic space in Bomba for […]

Rock Out with The AL’s

Jump, clap, play air guitar and sing along to super fun songs from Baby Shark to The Jackson 5 to Happy by Pharrell. Students will be treated to drums, bass, acoustic guitar, ukulele and a big double bass performed by Award winning singer songwriter Alice Leon and music educator and Broadway musician Al Greene. They […]

Music & Movement Where Muslims Live

Experience the music and movement traditions of Islamic communities. Karim Nagi guides students in a participatory experience of music and dance from different Muslim communities around the world. Karim shares art from communities in both the Near and Far East, demonstrating percussion instruments, uses of the voice, and detailed folkloric steps with audience participation. This […]