The Essential Question that guided our projects’ focus was:
How is dance understood?
The question of how dance is understood was addressed through educational efforts around three Arts Core Standards:
DA:RE7.3.3b Demonstrate and explain how one dance genre is different from another, or how one cultural movement practice is different from another;
DA:RE7.1.4b Demonstrate and explain how dance styles differ within a genre or within a cultural movement practice; and
DA:RE7.1.5a Find meaning or artistic intent from the patterns of movement in a dance work.
To meet these standards, students in our YouthReach programs connect and interact with visiting professional dance companies that offer specific educational instruction including narration, demonstration, performance, audience participation, and a Q & A with the artists. This took place with the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble, Ballet Fantastique, and Tango Del Cielo.
Our Discover Dance program, presented by our professional staff, is taught in schools as a collaboration with physical education and/or music teachers for 3rd-5th grade students and included instruction in African dance, Jazz, and hip Hop, focusing on dance techniques, cultural history, choreography, and improvisation.
At the conclusion of the project, students responded to questions related to the identified Standards:
DA:RE7.3.3b
Reflecting on Babes in Toyland, one student responded, “Ballet is different from other types of dance movements because they do not talk and are very controlled with their bodies.” Another student, reflecting on the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble (CPRDE) saw dance differently, “What I think is important about dance is that it makes you feel free, you can do anything really. And that’s really important.”
DA:RE7.1.4b
Students didn’t express a response to this standard as well as the others, but still had some important reflections, “Dance is important because it brings together many cultures.” Another responded, “It was exciting and amazing! Dance is meant for anyone and there were dances that showed different cultures.”
DA:RE7.1.5a
In responding to Tango Del Cielo, students were able to identify emotion and intent from the facial expressions and movements of the artists. One student responded, “The dance felt romantic to me because of the way they moved their bodies and the way they looked at each other.” In responding to Ballet Fantastique, another student said, “I could see the story by their body and face. Their face told how they were feeling and their body told the story.”
Impact
In describing the Discover Dance classes, our instructor shared that students became more eager to dance with each class, especially students who, on the front end of classes, seemed shy and quiet. These students really excelled as they found opportunities to overcome their insecurities and became comfortable with new ways of expressing themselves through the increased body and mind coordination that comes from dance. This evolution brought immense joy to our instructor.
Another beautiful outcome came from the cultural exchange between CPRDE and the youth in Lapwai Elementary on the Nez Perce reservation. Following the YouthReach program, six students performed a short tribal dance, allowing the CPRDE members to experience a piece of the native culture from the Nez Perce region. In those moments the roles reversed as the youth became the teachers and our professionals the learners.
Reflection
On the whole, our educational outreach efforts have been successful through the years. However, a few challenges have arisen that have a tremendous impact on our services.
First, coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic, there still are companies that have not returned to touring or have limited their touring. This has made booking quality acts more difficult, and, of course, everything is more expensive as well. We are working to develop new relationships that can broaden our relationship network, increase the diversity of our programming and appeal to our community in ways that will allow us to build our audience specifically and the arts audience in general. Additionally, we need to become better with our fundraising efforts to ensure we obtain the resources necessary to fulfill our mission.
Another challenge we’ve faced is venue availability. Our largest venue, which we’ve used extensively for YouthReach programming in the past, is undergoing a multi-year renovation, and there’s no other venue in the surrounding area that can hold as many people. We’ve made do with smaller facilities, but that has limited our reach.
We may need to explore ways to lengthen residencies so that we can increase our impact by reaching more people. This solution would likely cost more, but I can’t help but wonder if it would be worth it in the long run.
