“DANCEFEST” RETURNS IN JANUARY TO THE PALACE THEATRE

Annual Festival of Professional Master Classes for Young Dancers Culminates with Public Performance on Sunday, January 18

Each year in winter, The Palace Theatre showcases some of Fairfield and Westchester Counties’ most committed and promising young dancers on its stage. DanceFest 2015, a Student Festival Performance of original choreography, will take place on Sunday, January 18th at 6 p.m. Leading up to this special night, DanceFest takes over The Palace for two weekends, from January 10 through January 18, for a series of master classes taught by world-renowned professionals. Tickets for DanceFest 2015 are now on sale now.

Now celebrating its 13th anniversary, The Palace’s annual performing arts festival is designed for intermediate and advanced dance students ages 10 through 18 who regularly train at several dance schools in the area. They participate in master classes taught by outstanding professionals in the dance world in six disciplines: ballet, tap, modern, hip hop/jazz/funk, contemporary and musical theater. School directors, teachers and parents are invited to observe the classes at no charge.

Master Class teachers this year include: Guillermo Asca, Kristin Sudeikis, Jermaine Browne, Daniel Ulbricht, Luis Salgado, and Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards. (Bios are below.)

Participating schools in DanceFest 2015 include*:

Fairfield County, CT: Ballet School of Stamford; Bonafide Dance Company (Norwalk); Center Stage Dance Studio (Stamford); Darien Arts Center-Dance; Finelines Theatre Arts Studio (New Milford); Greenwich Dance Studio; Locust Performing Arts Center (Stamford); Neighborhood Studios of Fairfield County (Bridgeport); Performing Arts Center of Connecticut (Trumbull); and Ridgefield Conservatory of Dance;

Westchester County, NY: City Center Dance (White Plains); Coleman School of Dance (New Rochelle); Dance Nyaad (Bedford Hills); East Pointe Dance (Rye Brook); Magical Movements School of Dance (Harrison); Monroe Dance Academy; New York Dance (Harrison); The Pulse Performing Arts Studio (Bedford Hills).

You can read about DanceFest 2014 (last year) in The Stamford Advocate here. 

*Media is welcome to attend master classes and performance.

MASTER CLASS SCHEDULE (weekend of January 10):

Saturday, Jan 10:
Modern: 9:30-11:00am (10-13yrs.); 11:15-12:45pm (Int./Adv., ages 14-18yrs.)
Musical Theatre: 1:00-2:00pm (ages 10-11yrs.); 2:15-3:45pm (Int., ages 12-15yrs.); 4:00-5:30pm (Adv., ages 14-18yrs.)
Tap: 5:45-7:15pm (ages 10-13yrs.); 7:30-9:00pm (Int./Adv., ages 14-18yrs.)

Sunday, Jan 11:
Ballet: 9:30-10:30am (ages 10-11yrs); 10:45-12:15pm (Int., ages 12-15yrs.); 12:30-2:00pm (Adv., ages 14-18yrs.)
Contemporary: 2:15-3:45pm (ages 10-13yrs.); 4:00-5:30pm (Int/Adv., ages 14-18yrs.)
Hip-Hop/Jazz/Funk: 5:45-7:15pm (ages 10-13yrs.); 7:30-9:00pm (Int/Adv., ages 14-18yrs.)

MASTER CLASS TEACHERS:

Modern: Guillermo Asca
Performer, Alvin Ailey American Dance Company, Ailey ll, Director, Ailey/Fordham Student Dancers & Ailey Student Performance Group/Ailey Certificate Program Advisor/Faculty Ailey School

Contemporary: Kristin Sudeikis
Choreographer/Artistic Director & Dancer for TV, Film and Stage/Choreographer for NBC’s hit “30 Rock”, featured dancer for Mariah Carey, guest appearances on “The View”, “Good Morning America” & “The Today Show”

Hip-Hop/Jazz/Funk: Jermaine Browne
Performer/Teacher/Model/Video Choreographer for Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears and J.Lo. EuropeanFashion Shows/ Victoria Secret/MTV Music Awards

Ballet: Daniel Ulbricht
Principal dancer, NYCB, Artistic Advisor of Manhattan Youth Ballet and Associate Artistic Director of New York State Summer School for the Arts in Saratoga Springs, Founder and Director of “Daniel Ulbricht and Friends”, a touring group focusing on high art, education and outreach.

Musical Theatre: Luis Salgado
Dancer/Actor/Teacher/Director/Choreographer, Latin Assistant Choreographer “In The Heights”, B’dwy shows include The Mambo Kings, Fame on 42nd Street, Aida, Rocky and American Dance Machine

Tap: Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards
Performer, Choreographer, Instructor) is known for setting high standards in the world of Tap Dance. Tap coach to the king of pop Michael Jackson over the course of 11 years, she received a Bessie Award for her featured performance in Jason Samuels Smith & Company at the Joyce, and an Astaire Award for Best Female Performer for her featured performance in Broadway’s After Midnight.

ARTISTIC AND PRODUCTION TEAM:

Producer and Director – Carol Bryan

Production Director – Randy Thomas

Production Stage Manager – Lori Rosecrans Wekselblatt

Stage Manager – Dan Stahl

Lighting Designer – Scott Borowka

For more information, please contact Carol Bryan at 203-517-3431 or cbryan@scalive.org

The Palace Announces 6th Annual Emerging Young Artist Scholarship Category; Expands Applications to Westchester County

Deadline for applications has been extended to March 23, 2015.

Last month, we announced the category for our 6th annual Emerging Young Artists Scholarship Award: Playwriting. Tiered scholarships, for which the grand prize is $2,000, will be awarded to Fairfield and Westchester County high school students in grades 9 through 12 for their writing of an original 15-minute, one act play. Works written by these finalists will be professionally produced this spring in our theatre, performed by professional actors. Scholarships will be awarded at our annual gala in May.

According to Americans for the Arts, a national membership and arts advocacy organization, researchers from University of Pennsylvania have shown that a high concentration of arts in cities leads to high civic engagement, more social cohesion, higher child welfare, and lower poverty rates. “A vibrant arts community ensures that young people are not left to be raised solely in a pop culture and tabloid marketplace.”

For several years, The Palace Theatre has been investing in Stamford’s cultural relevance by nurturing its community of aspiring young performers. We uphold are mission to foster an understanding and lifelong appreciation for the arts in young people by offering them intensive education programs in theatre arts: singing, dancing, instrumental music, choreography, acting and playwrighting.

In Stamford Magazine’s most recent issue, 2 students who have participated in our programs, Ashish Ramachandran (Brunswick School) and Matt Sperrazza (Trinity Catholic High School) were profiled in “Generation Next,” a feature story about the magazine’s “Top Ten Teens to Watch.”
A third student, Aaron Bantum (Westhill High School), recently starred in Morgan Freeman’s upcoming film, Last Vegas, and continues to participate in our programs.

The category for these scholarship awards in 2014 was original music composition; in 2013 and 2012, vocals; in 2011 an 2010, instrumental music (jazz piano and violin).

These awards are just a part of the year-round arts education program we offer at 61 Atlantic Street for young adults in our community. Coming up, on Monday, December 15, our Young Playwrights Festival will present “Script to Stage,” a live, staged reading of an original 15-minute one-act play written by 12 students from two local high schools over a 10-week workshop. Last month, we hosted our 4th annual Young Choreographers Festival.