Dance Festival Masterclasses and Workshops
Dance Festival 2023 Class Sessions (Descriptions Below)
View Instructor Bios Here
10 a.m. - 11:20 a.m. (Session One)
African Dance / Adjetey Klufio / HVPA 115
Contemporary Dance / Amanda Fair / HVPA 110
Improv to Warm Up / Caitlin McAfee / HVPA 145
Classical Ballet / Bonnie Pickard / HVPA Smith Theatre
Hip Hop / Chris Law / HVPA 140
11:30 a.m. - 12:50 p.m. (Session Two)
Contemporary Rep / Amanda Fair / HVPA 115
Commercial Jazz / Katy Love / HVPA 110
Afro Fusion / Ama Law / HVPA 140
Video Dance / Caitlin McAfee & Darion Smith / Site Specific
Contemporary Dance / Adjetey Klufio / HVPA Smith Theatre
1 p.m. - 2:20 p.m. (Session Three)
Hip Hop Repertoire / Project ChArma / HVPA 140
Jazz / Amanda Fair / HVPA 110
Irish Dance / Maureen Berry / HVPA 115
Ballet Repertoire / Bonnie Pickard / HVPA Smith Theatre
Photoshoot for Dancers / Marvin Edwards & Alex J Krebs / RCF Gallery
Class Descriptions
African Dance with Adjetey Klufio
Adjetey’s African dance class will focus on a regional specific African dance with its unique history and culture and vibrant rhythm and movement vocabulary.
Afro-Fusion: Beats in Africa. Beats in America with Ama Law
Sweat, play and explore. This movement workshop dives deep into a fusion of West-African movement with Chicago House Footwork. After a thorough warmup and across-the-floor exercises, students will learn a combination that challenges musicality and endurance!
Ballet Repertoire with Bonnie Pickard
Dancers will learn exciting and dynamic ballet repertoire with a focus of musicality, precision, and expression.
Classical Ballet Technique with Bonnie Pickard
Dancers will focus on refining classical ballet technique with increasing speed, complexity, and clarity. The correct body coordination will be emphasized for all adagio, turning, and jumping movements.
Commercial Jazz with Katy Love
This fusion of modern, jazz, street, hip hop, and contemporary techniques coming together for a dynamic movement class. Dancers will move through space with high energy concentrating on connecting purpose, emotion, and fusion of techniques. Class will culminate in choreography conveying musicality and emotional connection.
Contemporary Movement with Adjetey Klufio
Students will learn technical aspects combined with musical awareness, as well as have the space to move on their own and discover their unique expression through movement. The goal of this class is to allow dancers to make connections between technique and their own movement quality and find the ability to dance with passion.
Contemporary Repertoire with Amanda Fair
Dancers will learn repertory which fuses ballet technique and aesthetics with modern and contemporary elements. Passion and commitment to movement and expression will be the focus.
Contemporary with Amanda Fair
Students will learn contemporary combinations that will allow the dancers to explore and empower their physical and emotional sensibilities. With an emphasis on the core, musicality, and powerful imagery. Dancers will be asked to combine breath, expression and musicality while improving their dance technique.
Hip-Hop Repertoire with Ama and Chris Law
Students will learn high-energy choreography from the Laws’ performance group ChArma. The routines will have you on your toes wanting more!
Hip Hop with Chris Law
Let's groove! Hip-Hop has evolved greatly and is ever-changing but, it all started with the groove. Students will learn old-school and new-school movement in this fun and dynamic class
Improv to Warm-Up
This class dives into the world of Dance Improvisation: the study of generating spontaneous movement in the moment through creative explorations. Using improvisation as a method for waking up the body, mind, and inner artist.
Irish Dance 101 with Maureen Berry
Irish dancing is a high energy dance form that includes both hard and soft-shoe. The class will introduce the dancers to the percussive rhythms of hardshoe as well as the grace and beauty of Irish soft-shoe, comparable to ballet and tap. This class is appropriate for all levels. Please wear Irish hard shoes, tap shoes or character shoes to begin the class and then ballet/jazz/barefeet or Irish soft-shoes for the second half.
Marvin Edwards Photoshoot for Dancers
This special workshop creates the opportunity to learn how to create high quality dance images for your portfolio. Learn how to set up a dance shot and catch the right moment on camera. Dancers will leave with high quality dance images that they can use.
Video Dance with Caitlin McAfee and Darion Smith
Get ready to create a dance film in 80 minutes. We will explore a central theme, movement qualities, use improvisation, and incorporate theatrical expression to build up short dance sequences that will be filmed and edited together. The final edit will premiere at the Student Showcase.