La
st Thursday, Atlanta community members of all ages entered our studios for Lunchtime in the Studio. Students, toddlers, parents, and grandparents laughed, chomped down on chips and burritos, and thoroughly engaged in an excerpt of “Human Landscapes,” performed by Core Performance Company. My favorite part of the afternoon was watching the Dance Artists interact with the youngest audience members. It was obvious that we had some future dancers in our studio! I also loved seeing how the piece transformed when it was cut short, and presented in an intimate setting. In the B Complex, I almost felt that I was watching the dance from a distance, but on Thursday, I was up close and could see the chests of the dancers rising and falling as they exerted themselves.
This audience was diverse, and I loved the way that they expressed how they perceived the dance. In the talk-back, one student from Youth Villages was overcome with emotion when they tried to express how they felt about the performance. When they began speaking, I started to feel emotional! It was obvious that everyone in the moved was extremely moved by the dancers and the overall experience. Yolanda Gallman, from the Youth Villages, wrote to us afterwards, saying “Thank you for dance expression that speaks life… You are the real world changers!” This statement really touched me, because I feel the same way about Core Dance. I have only been here since September, but I already feel the influence that this organization has on the community and on the world.
On Friday, all Core Dance staff and Dance Artists participated in a Work Room. A Work Room includes a class in the morning, followed by an entire day of creative process and evaluation. We revisited all of our recent events, including the summer intensive, American Playground performance in Israel, Civil Twilight in Little Rock, Human Landscapes, and Lunchtime in the Studio. It was my first official Work Day, and I loved the process. It felt so amazing to dance and improvise with all the staff and dancers in one studio, and this bonding experience transferred over to the work day. We accomplished a lot, and I am excited to see how our evaluations transfer over to our events in the future. This day made me even more grateful to be working for this unique organization.
Although I love coming to work, I am definitely excited to head home to upstate New York (despite the snow storms), and spend time with my family. As the holidays approach, and you begin looking for ways to give back to your community or arts organizations, we ask you to please consider donating to Core Dance. You can donate directly here to our annual campaign: http://donate.coredance.org/campaigns/4707-support-core-dance. We are also participating in Giving Tuesday, a global event, on November 28th. For more information, please see their website, www.givingtuesday.org.
Thank you for your support of Core Dance. Have a happy and healthy Thanksgiving!