CoEXISTdance: A Glimpse of 2013

CoEXISTdance: 2013 In Review

Guest Artist Review: Leigha Adduci and Hip Hopping!

I am not Jasmine -  I am Aladdin!

On Monday, February 17^th, CoEXISTdance was thrilled to have Ms. Leigha Adduci teach our very frist HIP HOP master class! Leigha has a Bachelor of Arts in dance from DeSales University; she is the marketing coordinator and hip hop instructor at the Institute of Dance Artistry.

The dancers benefitted from a very thorough two-hour class with Leigha. The class warmed up with an intense round of jumping jacks, push ups, crunches, jumping rope, and planking. Needless to say, the room heated up quickly! Leigha then led dancers across the floor, focusing on fast, intricate footwork, body circles, and turns. The dancers loved the upbeat music! They were challenged to pick up new material and reverse traveling combinations to the left side with very little time.

Next came every dancer’s favorite part: learning center combinations. The class learned not just one big combination, but two! The first combination was fast, fun, and sassy! Leigha challenged the dancers to blend sharp staccato movements with smooth body rolls and suspensions. The dancers also loved the part where they got to dance like Beyonce in “All the Single Ladies”! 

The second combination, choreographed to Nicki Minaj’s “Roman Revenge” was surely a challenge. Each movement was brilliantly choreographed to a specific word in the song, making the combination beyond fast and detailed! The combination was fun and edgy. Dancers looked like they were actually singing, or portraying, the song based on the mirrored movements to the words.

One of our Jr. CoEXISTdancers had great things to say about her experience…

“This was all new for me since I have never taken Hip Hop before.  I really enjoyed it!  It was challenging for me when the Hip Hop Combinations got faster. I was inspired by my friends supporting me on trying something new and helping me out.” – Abigail Miller

We cannot wait to have Leigha back again!

2014: The Year of the Blog Makeover!

Happy 2014 to our CoEXISTdance Family and Friends! One of our New Years Resolutions this year: blog, blog, blog!!! Our blog will be broken down into four major categories:

 Take 5! : This section will feature thoughts and reflections from our professional company. The CoEXISTdancers "take 5!" at rehearsal to check in with themselves, their dancing, and life!

Guest Artist Reflections (GAR) : Here we will feature our monthly Master Class teachers and guest artists. Each month, CoEXISTdance hosts a different genre of a master class for the Jr. Dance Company. In GAR we will recap the entire class experience and collect feedback from the Jr. Dancers. 

 Review: Our Review section will include audience reflections, critiques, and feedback of our performances. At our larger performances, audience members will receive a brief worksheet and/or prompt to fill out. We will use our review section to organize that information and to use it to grow artistically and professionally. 

Dancer of the Month: Each month, CoEXISTdance will highlight one Jr. CoEXISTdancer who is doing an exceptional job. The Dancer of the Month will be chosen based on rehearsal and master class attendance, taking initiative, professionalism, and clear improvement. We will publish a brief interview and picture each month of our featured dancer. 

We are so excited for all of these changes and we hope to expand our following as these four sections start to publish. We welcome any comments, likes, sharing, or feedback at any time! You will see blogs from us weekly so keep checking back often! 

While I am writing, I also wanted to let everyone know about our ...
Upcoming Spring Events!

1. World Dance Day: Sunday, April 27th 

@ The Piazza at Schmidt's in Northern Liberties, Philadelphia, PA

FREE EVENT!!

2. Relay for Life: Friday, May 30th

@ Amosland Park in Norwood, PA

Another FREE Event to benefit the American Cancer Society

3. CoEXIST Celebrates Five: A Performance Celebration of our 5th Anniversary

@ Act II Playhouse in Ambler, PA

Admission: $20.00

So, in the spirit of starting new and challenging things, the professional dancers used their "Take 5!" to reflect on their hopes, resolutions, and goals for 2014 :) Enjoy some of their thoughts below....

"The last thing I made was very personal-I made myself be brave. I’ve been wanting to try to apply the concepts from that to a group but I have no…and I mean zero…idea what that looks like.

I’m trying to follow my instinct."

 - Megan

"A tree grows in all directions: widening, losing limbs, changing leaves, intertwining with vines and branches, deepening roots into the ground. I’m looking for new ways of expanding and refining the smaller details that can get lost in the growth of the entire forest."

-Whitney 

"Nothing made me feel more like a dancer than being in class and just wanting to learn everything from the person who inspired me. I may not find out exactly who I am, but this should bring me closer to becoming more comfortable in my own skin."

- Kelsey

"I am excited about dancing with CoEXIST for my 1^st season. I really want to enjoy moving for myself."

- Sam

"Another year older, another year wiser. During dance I do not feel my age, dance has no age to it."

- Sean

"If the opportunity is available, try dancing in a different location. Introducing ourselves to new styles, classes, auditions, dancers, and choreographers from all types of locations helps us to shape ourselves into smart, diverse dancers."

- Sara

Guest Artist Reflection: Lora Allen & A Newfound Looseness

On Friday, February 7, Miss Lora Allen graced us with her Modern dance presence, swinging limbs and teaching improvisation through a two hour class. Wow, did the junior company learn a lot! The girls were given an opportunity to play with the momentum of their bodies through group exercises and partnering. In duos, they alternated roles of initiator and mover. The initiator would creatively tap, push, or shove a part of her partner’s, allowing the mover to follow the momentum of the contact. Not only did they learn to communicate through touch, but the creative juices began flowing and new ways of moving were explored. They busted out of their regular studio routine of technique. Here’s a little taste of what our young dancers learned and enjoyed on such a cold winter’s night.

“I really liked in the beginning when we did the partner thing because it really let someone else control me and my movements. The combination helped me let go of myself.” – Hailey G.

 “Very different. We did a lot of stuff that we wouldn’t do at our original studios, like the combinations.” –Erin M.

“I thought it was very fun and outgoing. There were things I don’t usually do.” – Sarah C.

“I liked in the combination how you could let yourself out and not keep your whole body in.” – Abigail M.

 “When we did the partner stuff, it gave us an opportunity to trust more people.” – Jess W.

 “I thought it was looser than what we have to do in the studio that I go to.” – Julia H.

 “I like when we went across the floor when we were in partners and pushed each other.” – Alexa F.

 “I thought we did different body movements. It was awkward, like pushing the other person. I thought it was a trust thing.” – Emeral N.

 “I liked the routine at the end. I liked that it was different.” - Cashmere

“I thought it was fun because it was loose and not as stiff.” – Katie M.

 “I thought it was very helpful because I learned a lot and really got to learn to push through the ball of my foot.” – Ariana G.

 “I thought it was really fun. The combinations and the special slapping thingy.” – Maddie A.

CoEXISTdance: 2013 In Review

CoEXISTdance: 2013 In Review

SOS: Our Response to the Philippines

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! As we gather with family and friends this holiday to acknowledge our blessings, please remember how little the Philippines is surviving on. Any donation will help! Thank you thank you thank you! Click here to Donate Now!

A message from our own CoEXIST dancer, Lauren Sion:

A category 5 super typhoon (Haiyan/Yolanda) devastated the Philippines on November 8, 2013 displacing 4 million people and affecting 13 million.  Thousands have lost their lives and more than a thousand people are still missing as the Philippines continues to find relief for all of the areas affected by this natural disaster.  A little less than a month earlier, the province of Bohol was hit with a 7.2 magnitude earthquake where thousands lost their homes and more than a million people were affected. 

My family was blessed that everyone was ok.  My mother grew up in the Bohol province where our ancestral house of more than a 100 years is still standing with partial damage but others have been completely decimated.  We have many relatives still living there and their personal accounts of the earthquake aftermath is horrifying.  There are others who need our help.  While my family wasn't affected and we are so far away, it is still my heritage and my heart breaks.

The best and most effective way to help is through monetary donations.  Even if it is just $5 - that can go a long way.  It can buy, 16 pounds of rice, 10 cans of sardines, or 21 liters of water which, at this magnitude of devastation, will save so many lives!

Please. Open your hearts and donate whatever little you can!  You will be making more of a difference than you know for these people who have lost loved ones, homes and literally everything. 

Thank you, thank you, thank you-
Lauren Sion

Dance Kid

One of my longtime, dance studio friends recently brought an article titled "27 Undeniable Signs You Were A Dancer" to my attention. The buzzfeed article instantly brought back so many memories and it was prefect timing to me personally for two reasons. 

First, this past Saturday I substituted at my dance studio, teaching a long sequence of Ballet Technique, Somatics & Stretching, Lyrical, and then hosting a CoEXISTdance Master Class. This ultimately meant that the young dancers and myself spent Saturday at the dance studio from 9:30am to 3pm! Almost a full school day! The most amazing part: I loved every second of it and so did they. I used to LIVE for Saturdays at my dance studio: Ballet Technique, Ballet Repertoire, Dance Composition, Lunch, Modern, Modern Competition. Talk about the glory days. I mean really, what could be better? It's Saturday, you spend 8 hours doing what you love, with the people who become your closest friends. 

Second, the exciting start of the CoEXISTdance Jr. Dance Company has ignited so many reminiscent thoughts for me. It is so refreshing to see such young and genuine dedication, commitment, and pure passion. These are dancers who simply want to dance and want to dance more. All of the Jr. dancers are so hungry for the art form and it is so evident in the studio at our rehearsals and master classes. From their professionalism to their detailed questions, the way they practice on the side of the performance space and watch each other dance, the respect they show to their teachers and their excitement about upcoming shows. 

As a professional, it has been such a rewarding process to touch base with my own roots in my dance training as I work closely with the Jr. Dance Company. The young dancers have inspired me to take a step back and look at my own dancing and choreographing in a much bigger way. Instead of thinking only about my work over the past few months or years, I am so much more inclined to look at my work over the decades, accounting for the past, the present, and the future. Also making me feel ancient, but that is a whole different blog. I feel so much more well-rounded as an artist and I have the Jr. Company to thank for that :) 

Anyway, looking back to the article, I must take a more humorous and personal route by sharing my favorite point. 

1. You and your friends would choreograph dances after school "for fun"
HUGE UNDERSTATEMENT! Me and my friends not only did this after school but at sleepovers, down the shore, at the studio, anytime and anywhere! We had rehearsals and mock performances. From the Lion King's "Hakuna Mata"to Britney Spears, "Tainted Love" to Annie the Musical, choreographing was clearly more than a passion from a really early age. Still is. 

There is no point to this blog other than the simple joy of looking back upon dance memories and laughing. I encourage readers to jump in and share a dance memory or two below in the comment section. There is a beauty to sharing past memories and reminiscing and it feels so good! 

If anyone would like to check out the full article… http://www.buzzfeed.com/jessicamisener/27-undeniable-signs-you-were-a-dance-kid

Hope you enjoyed the read and I look forward to some great comments! 

Katie :)