National Dance Day in Orlando

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The 6th Annual National Dance Day was held at various locations around Orlando like the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, Studio K Orlando, and ME Dance. The multi day event offered free educational classes, professional showcases and community participation.

Free performances and classes, in ballet, modern, improvisational movement, Afro-Latin and other genres, took place all day Saturday. Classes are available for different levels of skill. I went  to Emotions Dance Company (111 North Longwood Street, Longwood, FL, 32750). I  sketched while dancers stretched and warmed up. With everyone constantly moving the sketch was a challenge to say the least.

I then sat in on a Latin Dance class. I finished this second sketch quickly because I decided to give the dance moves a try. There is a whole lot of fancy footwork in Latin Dance and I was just trying to keep up.

I have a new respect for dancers who can keep up that pace. The Dizzy Feet Foundation established the day to improve and increase
access to dance education in the United States. As part of its support,
the foundation produces and distributes instructional videos featuring
dance routines for the public to learn for fun.

Other cities that participate in National Dance Day include Los Angeles,
where activities take place at the downtown Music Center; and
Washington, D.C., where events are hosted by the Kennedy Center for the
Performing Arts.

National Dance Day

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I went to Emotions Dance Studio (111 N Longwood Street #201, Longwood, FL 32750) on National Dance Day. Emotions Dance was founded in 2007 by Artistic Director and Choreographer Larissa Humiston.
Emotions Dance consists of a professional contemporary dance company
that focuses on social and environmental awareness through the art of
dance, dance education training at the organization’s state of the art
dance studio, and programs that enrich the local community. The
organization emphasizes strong technical training and education combined
with passionate artistry.  Through inspiring performances,
arts-education programs, and active community outreach the company
touches thousands of people of all ages, races, and economic
backgrounds.

For National Dance Day there was a series of performances followed by classes which were free for anyone who wanted to try. When I was done sketching, I joined in and tied some Salsa Dancing.

The next chance to  see Emotions Dance in action will be at The Shift on September 14 and 15, 2018. The
Shift is an annual production that showcases work from professional
companies and up and coming choreographers in the Central Florida area.
The goal of The Shift is to showcase new works to the Central Florida
Community in the spirit of collaboration and exploration of dance as an
art form.

Showcasing work from the following professional companies/individuals:

  • Aretuza’s Ballerina Project
  • Florida Dance Theatre
  • Emotions Dance Inc
  • Ellie Vie Co
  • Crawford Jazz Project
  • Marshall Ellis Dance
  • Still Moving Dance
  • Vincent Sanrocco Dance
  • Inez Patricia School of Dance
  • Tori Sarau
  • CG and Dancers
  • Thomas Wilkins

Tickets go on sale August 10, 2018.

Presale (Until Sept 5)- $18 GA   $14 Students/Seniors (65+)

National Dance Day at the Orlando Ballet Central Campus.

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The National Dance Day free morning dance sessions consisted of creative movement in the Orlando Ballet Central Campus. Dancers lined up at the barres to warm up and stretch. Besides this main room, there were many smaller dance studios in the same building. By lunch time the place was packed. There was seating along one wall of the dance studio, and many of the sketch crawlers sat there along with the stage moms.

Some artists did gestural studies of individual dancers while others, like myself, focused on the overall scene. Dancers stretched not only on the dance floor, but in the hallways as well. The room cleared a bit when lunch time rolled around, but I kept throwing watercolor washes on the page until the afternoon sessions began.

A Day Devoted to Dance.

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Holly Harris, a talented local choreographer and dancer helped bring National Dance Day to Orlando.  National Dance Day celebrates dance by offering a whole day of free dance instruction to anyone who attends. This incredible event just happened to fall on the same day as the 48th International Sketch Crawl, so I contacted Holly, a she agreed to allow artists to sketch the entire day’s activities.

This year’s event encouraged families and friends to begin the morning of July 25 at the National Dance Day Orlando (NDDO) Community Celebration, located at Orlando Cultural Park, (the lawn in front of the Loch Haven Neighborhood Center) to participate in exercises, dance routines, and performances by Central Florida dance professionals.

Within walking distance of the park is the Orlando Ballet Central Campus where 30 free specialized dance classes will be offered throughout the day to ages 3-100, including special needs movement classes. Central Florida dance company directors, choreographers, and fitness instructors will share different styles of dance through body conditioning, dance technique, and choreography at beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels.

National Dance Day Orlando desires to bring educational, community-driven dance opportunities to non-dancers and dancers alike! About six artists came out to sketch for the day.

The day began at 8:30am with  Stretches and Cardio

9:00am – 1st National Dance Day Routine

9:30am – Performances by Professional Central Florida Dance Companies

10:00am – 2nd National Dance Day Routine

10:30am – Performances by Professional Central Florida Dance Companies

National Dance Day with a Hip Hop flair.

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At National Dance Day, most of my sketches were done in the main rehearsal hall in the Orlando Ballet Central Campus. The room was always packed. Local artist and arts organizer Cole Nesmith was in the back row trying on the hip hop moves for size. The instructor slowly taught a entire dance routine by giving the participants new moves that built onto what they already had learned. I had already sketched an establishing shot that showed | entire rehearsal space, and now [ was loosening up and trying l catch the energy of the dancers gestures.

The woman right in front of me was having g blast learning the moves. She not only we learning the routine, but she gave it her own personal flair. This is what separates great dancers from goo dancers. They demand attention because they are loving an at they do. I’m sure that. true of any art form. In these looser sketches, I switched to using a pencil which gave the lines more life_

National Dance Day does Improvisation

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National Dance Day was a full day of free dance courses. The day began at Cultural  Park (lawn in front of the Loch Haven Neighborhood Center) y and then moved into the Orlando Ballet Rehearsal halls. Participants were encouraged to participate in exercises, dance routines, and performances by Central Florida dance professionals. In the Orlando Ballet Central Campus 30 free specialized dance classes were offered throughout the day to ages 3-100,  including special needs movement classes.  Central Florida dance company directors, choreographers, and fitness instructors shared different styles of dance through body conditioning, dance technique, and choreography at beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels.  NDDO strove to bring educational, community-driven dance opportunities to non-dancers and dancers alike!

This sketch was done in the Improvisational Dance Class. After stretches and warm ups, participants were encouraged to move freely and abstractly. No one moved the same way. Some of the exercises simply involved moving from one side of the room to the other. It looked like z whole lot of fun since the re were no fancy moves to memorize. This was one of the last classes of the day, so people were already warmed up, limber and ready for anything.

I was hosting a sketch crawl. There were about 6 artists to start, but by the en of the day, there were just four of us left. Being able to sit in and sketch so many dance classes meant that we got limbered up and loose by sketching so many gestures all day

National Dance Day was bigger than ever.

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National Dance Day fell on the same day as the World Wide Sketch Crawl.  I contacted Dance Day organizer Holly Harris and she was gracious enough to let host the Orlando Sketch Crawl, conjunction with National Dance Day. About 5 or 6 artists joined me and we documented the all day event with our sketches. This sketch was done in one of the Orlando Ballet dance studios. This free dance class was all about Latin Dance moves and the drummer set the heated beat. I’m certain the many of the people taking the class had never moved like the before. The instructor would demonstrate a move and then each dancer would had to follow his moves in turn. It was a hot and passionate class.

A few dancers relaxed while leaning against the mirrored wall but most dancers lined the room and were constantly on the move. I had filled a sketchpad already and so this sketch wheat on the back of a sketch page. This was a great day of catch in dance gestures, but I also insisted on completing finished compositions. It was fun to see how different artists captured the non stop action.

National Dance Day brought out a huge crowd.

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On July 26th of 2014, National Dance Day hit Orlando. It was held at the Orlando Ballet Central Campus (2201 McRae Avenue Orlando FL). The Free event featured 15 classes with 13 styles of dance in 3 dance studios. This was the second annual
celebration that aimed to educate, inspire, and promote the Orlando dance
community. This event was specially designed to promote
progressive development of dancers, celebrate the diversity of Central
Florida’s dance professionals, and further connect the Orlando dance
community. This year’s event encouraged dancers and non dancers
alike to participate in a variety of 15 free dance workshops. These
classes were taught by local Orlando dance company directors,
choreographers and fitness instructors who lead participants
through body conditioning, dance technique and choreography at beginner,
intermediate, and advanced levels. National Dance Day Orlando brought opportunities
to those who love the art of dance by encouraging ongoing education.

I parked in the Theater parking lots on Princeton and walked towards the dance studios. I’ve never been inside this dance space before, so I didn’t know what to expect as I approached.  The dance studios are in a large building right next to the railroad tracks. There were a few dancers standing outside the entrance chatting. I was amazed when I entered. The entry hall was packed with dancers taking a break between classes. Holly Harris who was instrumental in organizing the event, welcomed me. She gave me a quick tour showing me the 3 huge dance studios. Every dance studio was packed. Hundreds of people had showed up to dance. To say that the event was a success would be an understatement.

I settled in, sitting in the back corner of a studio. Sketching a crowded group of dancers, all doing the same dance moves is probably the greatest sketch challenge there is. I contented myself with catching each dancers unique gestures and body proportions. The instructor further complicated the sketch by insisting that dancers in the back rows should move up while the front rows moved back. This allowed everyone a chance to see the dance moves up close and added a sense of panic and chaos to my sketch. I stayed for the duration of the samba class and then packed up my kit. I could have stayed all day capturing dancers but I keep my sketch habit to one a day. Otherwise I’d get lost in the process and never come up for air. Art requires some balance to work its way into becoming a life.

As I was leaving I bumped into Larissa Humiston who is the founder and lead choreographer for Emotions Dance. She was with Taylor Shepherd, who is one of Larissa’s incredibly talented dancers. On stage Taylor is fierce and commands attention. They were about to teach a beginning and intermediate Contemporary dance class. Larissa understands the advantages of collaborating with artists of all kinds. I worked with her doing a series of paintings that were projected before each dance piece for a show titled “Art Evolution“. It was a very rewarding experience.

AADW Weekend Top 6 Picks

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AADW Weekend Top 6 Picks

 Saturday July 27, 2013

10am to 3pm Free National Dance Day Orlando. Main Hall of Orlando Ballet Dance Exhibition Parking: Lake Highland Prep’s student parking lot on Alden Rd. by the softball field. Free dance classes will be held in the Main Hall of Orlando Ballet on July 27. Instructors and performers of professional Orlando-based dance companies will share different styles of dance with the attending dance community throughout the morning and afternoon.

Free Community Dance Classes

10am-11am: Barre and Stretch with Charlotte Stewart

11am-Noon: Contact Improvisation with Rokaya Mikhailenko

Noon- 1pm: Contemporary with Mary Love Ward

1pm-2pm: African Jazz with Samuel Andrade

2pm-3pm: Hip Hop with Clarissa Crox Turner

7pm to 10pm National Dance Day Orlando Exhibition (pay-what-you-wish / $10 suggested donation). Dance Exhibition Parking: Lake Highland Prep’s student parking lot on Alden Rd. by the softball field.

Performing Companies:

Canvas Creative Movement Coalition

Coby Project

DRIP

Emotions Dance Company

Mary Love Dance Projects

ME Dance

Orlando Ballet

Orlando Chapter of USA Dance

Studio K

Valencia Dance Theatre

Voci Dance

3pm to 5pm $10 Sing Along with The Muppet Movie. Heather Henson’s IBEX Puppetry presents Sing Along with The Muppet Movie! Children and adults alike are urged to yell out famous lines, blow bubbles, play with along with a goodie bag full of props, dance in the aisles, and of course sing along with this classic movie from Heather’s father, Jim Henson. Two shows available on Saturday, June 27th only!

3:00pm Hosted by David Schweizer & Sunny Raskin.

7:00pm Hosted by Heather Henson.

Sunday July 28th, 2013

10am to Noonish Super Joy Riders. Eastern entrance of the Lake Eola Farmers’ Market. Participants dress as superheroes and ride en masse around the city as they check off their scavenger hunt-like list of Do Gooder Duties; collecting litter, helping senior citizens cross the road, returning shopping carts, basically performing small acts of kindness for an hour and a half of hilarity and love.

The Super Joy Riders: Do Gooder Bike Ride is an exercise in community organizing and active engagement. We hope to use the ride as an opportunity to show how helping people can be simple, fun, and easy, especially while wearing a cape.

You + Superhero Costume + Bike = Best Sunday Ever.

We are inviting Orlando to come with us on a fun filled bike ride of awesomeness on the last Sunday of the month. Dress like a superhero, hop on a bike, and follow our scavenger hunt list of Good Deeds as we all try to save the world with small acts of kindness. http://www.superjoyriders.com/

Noon to 3pm Donation. Music at the Casa. Casa Feliz, (656 N Park Ave, Winter Park, FL 32789). Classical Guitarist Christopher Belt.

9pm to 10pm Solo Acoustic Spoken Word. Natura Coffee (12078 Collegiate Way Orlando FL). 407 482-5000