• Open Ballet - Fidel Ernesto Orrillo Puga, Location: George 102

Come participate in a regularly scheduled Ballet class. Get the chance to dance with and learn from a Nazareth Dance Program faculty member. 

• Tap - Cheryl Johnson, Location: George 154

Come participate in a regularly scheduled Tap class. Get the chance to dance with and learn from a Nazareth Dance Program faculty member. 

• Latin Jazz - Jamie Bermudez, Location: George 154

Come participate in a regularly scheduled semester class. Get the chance to dance with and learn from a Nazareth Dance Program faculty member. 

TWO classes are offered during this time slot

• Movement Exploration: Heather Roffe, Location: George 102

Come participate in a regularly scheduled Improvisational class, with the Co-Chair of the Theatre and Dance Department, Heather Roffe. Get the chance to dance with and learn from a Nazareth Dance Program Director. 

• Latin Jazz: Jamie Bermudez, Location: George 154

If you can't make the first section of this class, come along and participate in the second section. Experience a regularly scheduled semester jazz class. Get the chance to dance with and learn from a Nazareth Dance Program faculty member

• Contemporary/Modern: Gianna Theodore, Location: George 154

Come take class with a current A.I.M By Kyle Abraham company member. 

• Contemporary/Modern: Gianna Theodore, Location: George 102

Come take class with a current A.I.M By Kyle Abraham company member. 

• Dance Conditioning - Dr. Sarah Carlton, Location: George 154 

Participate in a regularly scheduled semester dance class. Come dance with and learn from a Nazareth Dance Program faculty member. 

• Ballet III - Beth Bartholomew, Location: George 102 

Come participate in a regularly scheduled Ballet class. Dance with and learn from a Nazareth Dance Program faculty member. 

• Contemporary Guided Improvisation - Chris Collins, Location: George 154, Level - Experienced 

This contemporary class will offer the opportunity for the dancer to explore their quality of movement, floor work, musicality, learn new terminology, and technique. 

Class will begin with a center warm up. Following the warm up will be progressions across the floor which will challenge the dancers creativity in their movement, unique floor work, and jumps and turns.

We will end class with a combination exercising what we have learned and practiced during our class time. We will start with larger group then break down into smaller groups.

• Contemporary Partnering - Heather Roffe, Location: George 102

A regularly scheduled semester class opened up to the public. Learn foundational contemporary/modern partnering skills to promote safety and efficiency when when moving intricately alongside other dancers

• Hip Hop Dance - Intro To Hip Hop - Miranda Martin, Location: George 154, Level - Beginner to Intermediate  

The Hip Hop class is catered towards the beginner Hip Hop dancer, while still being informative and accessible to dancers of any ability or background. This class will include warm up, followed by introduction to Hip Hop basics, exploration of it’s distinct movement qualities, technique and the celebration of individualism in performance. During this portion of class work, there will be discussion of historical leaders and creators of the Hip Hop culture, as well as the discussion of the various styles of Hip Hop dance and the core elements and principles of Hip Hop culture. 

Following center work, various progressions across the floor which will incorporate multiple styles including: House, Breaking, and current commercial style.

The final element of class will be a short combination which will then break down to smaller groups, with an emphasis on performance quality and participating actively in the performance regardless of position as dancer or spectator.

• Modern MOVES: Marisa Ballaro, Location: George 102, Level - Open

Modern MOVES is a high-energy, though-provoking class open to all learners. Inspired by early American modern dance fundamentals, the class explores spatial tension and resistance, the use of body weight as power to find suspension, being both on and off balance, body part articulation to locomote. Through use of breath and spatial awareness, dancers connect from the inside out, affecting and being affected by space.

Using biomechanics, the class is attentive to joint angles and bony landmarks to find efficiency of movement leading to injury-free, expressive, and athletic performance. Analyzing muscular actions, joint motion, and skeletal assessment aids in observation, class discussion, and building self-awareness. Working at various speeds and direction facings provides micro-challenges that test the core and develop strength. The class incorporates a “practice as performance” approach: technical exercises are developed to not only strengthen the body but to layer expression and attention from the start of the learning process. Peer-to-peer feedback is a cornerstone and students enter into a “classroom as lab” environment exploring concepts facilitated by the teacher, while self-guided, or through collaborative investigation.

• The Naftali Method; Softness - Brianna Lopez, Location: George 154

The Naftali Method is a contemporary dance approach centered on improvisation and the embodiment of softness and speed. This method works to develop a relationship with effort by categorizing it into three levels: light, fleshy, and thick. By creating clarity in these levels, dancers learn to embrace softness in the body, enabling them to perform multiple tasks with sophistication and precision. The goal is to achieve efficiency and ease of movement for extended periods.

We will focus on embodying softness in movement. A soft body is versatile and capable of performing multiple tasks simultaneously. We will cultivate this softness by differentiating effort levels, allowing for greater fluidity and adaptability in our dancing.

• Intermediate Ballet - Alexandra Insinga, Location: George 102 

Take an Intermediate Ballet class with Alexandra Insinga who has worked with Gelsey Kirkland in New York City and incorporates that approach in her teaching method. 

• Hip Hop Dance 2 - Miranda Martin, Location: George 154, Level - Advanced 

The Hip Hop class will be catered towards the advanced Hip Hop dancer but will be paced according to the flow of the room. This class will include warm up, followed by introduction Hip Hop basics and vocabulary, exploration of it’s distinct movement qualities, technique and the celebration of individualism in performance. During this portion of class work, there will be discussion of historical leaders and creators of the Hip Hop culture, as well as the discussion of the various styles of Hip Hop dance and the core elements and principles of Hip Hop culture. 

Following center work, various progressions across the floor which will incorporate multiple styles including: House, Breaking, and current commercial style.

The final element of class will be a short combination which will then break down to smaller groups, with an emphasis on performance quality and participating actively in the performance regardless of position as dancer or spectator.

Diversity and Access in Dance (Panel Discussion) - April Biggs and Rachel Daly, Location: George 102 

Come participate in a panel discussion bringing together two incredible artists highlighting different disciplines/perspectives within dance surrounding diversity and access within the field. 

• Beautiful Noise: Individual and Community Identity - Marisa Ballaro, Location: George 154. Level - Open 

This session explores an existing composition structure that can be used to design new, innovative choreographic devices. Students will learn about and through the project, then use it as a launch pad for their own creative making.

The existing project explores identity through the lens of dance-making using two
professional works from the Jacob’s Pillow Dance Interactive collection as inspiration. The project uses qualitative elements from Trisha Brown’s solo If You Couldn’t See Me and contextual themes in HairStories by Urban Bush Women to frame a composition study. This project aims to invite the uniqueness of each dancer into focus through self-investigation and an invitation to encounter vulnerability through community sharing. Beautiful Noise enables participants to reflect, brainstorm, respond, create, design, and share with others in a safe, supportive environment. By centering the voices of community, each person can feel valued, appreciated, and acknowledged.

The development of Beautiful Noise parallels themes found in two masterworks: If You Couldn’t See Me and HairStories. In If You Couldn’t See Me, Trisha Brown explored facing away from the audience in performance and maintaining a spatial restriction to find a new kind of expression. In HairStories, Urban Bush Women utilized personal stories, histories, and memories to generate a community-based work fueled by the individuality of each collaborator. These research themes are replicated in Beautiful Noise through the lens of identity; students involved in the project were encouraged to self-reflect and identify parts of them that may be visible or hidden. The creative process invited students to analyze and interpret their own experiences designing and communicating through their sense of self. Narrative inquiry honors these lived experiences while becoming a living artifact or history of the community members involved; in our case, they facilitate a unique community dance project. 

• The Naftali Method: Multitasking - Brianna Lopez, Location: George 154

The Naftali Method is a contemporary dance approach centered on improvisation and the embodiment of softness and speed. This method works to develop a relationship with effort by categorizing it into three levels: light, fleshy, and thick. By creating clarity in these levels, dancers learn to embrace softness in the body, enabling them to perform multiple tasks with sophistication and precision. The goal is to achieve efficiency and ease of movement for extended periods.

We will explore multitasking within our soft bodies, prioritizing quantity over completion. Instead of focusing on finishing each task, we will aim to overlap movements, embracing the resulting chaos. Through this exploration, we will cultivate a playful and flirtatious relationship with spontaneity, allowing unique forms of expression to emerge.

Kyle Abraham A.I.M Performance - Location: Callahan Theater 

Experience A.I.M by Kyle Abraham perform on our very own stage in Callahan Theater, located in the Arts Center. This is the first time this world renowned company will be performing in the general Rochester area. You do not want to miss out on the opportunity to see Kyle Abraham's work in person. Go to the box office webpage to order tickets now!

• Floorwork For The Vertical Dancer - Catherine Messina, Location: George 154

With the growing need in the professional world, this floorwork class is designed for the vertical dancer - someone who has been in movement for much of their lives, but has limited experience getting in and out of the floor safely. The class will begin with a warm-up in a circle, finding the energetic transfer from one body to the other while the grounding of your full feet on the floor. It then move into a fluid center floor phrase to warm up the spine and increase hip mobility. We move across the floor with floorwork multivitamins, looking at commonly seen body patterning that will be asked of you in a professional space. All of this accumulates in a phrase to ignite our body with our learning brain.

TWO classes are offered during this time slot

• Advanced Pre-Professional Ballet - Aldo Katton, Location: George 102

This class applies the principles of Cuban classical dance technique with a special
emphasis in dynamics and musicality adding elements from other dance techniques. The barre focuses on establishing and consolidating precise movement, mechanics for jumping and turning, while building endurance and developing full body coordination. Center work pushes the dancer to transfer their weight quickly, move across the space with freedom and develop moments of personal artistry. Aldo's approach to technique is a body positive focus on movement concepts that are available to all body types, while creating a safe space for students to explore trial and error.

• The Naftali Method; Speed - Brianna Lopez, Location: George 154 

We will focus on generating speed with minimal effort. While speed typically involves muscle engagement, our goal is to reduce this reaction, allowing for greater velocity in movement. We will develop efficiency by exploring techniques to enhance speed without excess tension.

• Access and Criptime in an Anti-Capitalist Dance World - April Biggs, Location: A14 (Located in the Arts Center)

As a dance educator, are you feeling uncertain about what is meant by “access” and how that might change the structure of your class? What might it mean to deepen access practices and enter access-thinking? What shifts in your thinking and aesthetic might be needed to create a truly robust mixed ability dance practice? Have you heard the term "crip time", and if so/if not, what does it actually mean? Are you interested in ways to support your fellow disabled artists/teachers in the field? This session is designed to begin a conversation, using a disability justice framework, regarding these kinds of pedagogical and artistic questions. Access and "crip-time" are necessary for all to create a healthier landscape in the dance ecosystem. Oftentimes, especially in academia, access needs are labeled "accommodations" - which infers that the non-disabled get to decide "if" a particular access need will be given. Historically, disabled artists have built our own cultural practices in community together and then brought those practices to mixed spaces to share with non-disabled folks. This session will be another such dialogue between disabled and non-disabled dancers to bring more awareness and understanding to the premise that everyone has access needs, and attempts must be met to meet all. This session will be an informational and participatory workshop for all dance teachers, but will be especially helpful for non-disabled teachers who want to understand principles of disability access and disability justice and apply them in their classrooms. If you teach to disabled dancers but are not yourself disabled, your participation in this workshop is strongly encouraged. No matter where you might be in your journey with dismantling ableism in your teaching practices, all are welcome.

 Panel Audience:  Teachers, Dancers, All

• Leaps and Turns - DoubleTake Dance, Location: George 154

• Immersive Theatre - Cat Olson, Location: Callahan Theater

This class will explore the immersive theater medium both from the aspect of a creator and a performer. We will focus on archetypal character development and narrative through the lens of immersive, interactive, site-specific, and promenade theater. This is a call for choreographers/directors and performers as we will spend the class developing an immersive scene to be performed later on Saturday in Callahan Theater from 6:00 - 7:00 pm in an informal showing open to the public.

• Intermediate Pre-Professional Ballet - Aldo Katton, Location: George 102

 This class applies the principles of Cuban classical dance technique with a special emphasis in dynamics and musicality adding elements from other dance techniques. The barre focuses on establishing and consolidating precise movement, mechanics for jumping and turning, while building endurance and developing full body coordination. Center work pushes the dancer to transfer their weight quickly, move across the space with freedom and develop moments of personal artistry. Aldo's approach to technique is a body positive focus on movement concepts that are available to all body types, while creating a safe space for students to explore trial and error.

TWO classes are offered during this time slot

• Practices For Deepening The Presence Of You - April Biggs, Location: Callahan Theater 

This class uses various improvisational techniques to deepen a student's abilities to conjure, bring forth, and materialize a more full expression of their uniqueness within group improvisation. This class borrows from many different improvisational techniques and philosophies (authentic movement, Viewpoints, contact improv, contemporary improvisational performance, among others), focusing specifically on the transition from solo improv to group improv. There is a liminal space in this transition wherein artists can struggle to maintain that same sense of magical authentic expression that can be found in solo improvisation. A class like this also contributes to many others forms of dancing and performing in which a strong connection to self must be maintained. Immediately proceeding this class is an informal showing in Callahan Theater from 6:00PM - 7:00PM.  

Class Level:  Intermediate to Advanced

• The Power of Jazz - Hannah Bardeen, Location: George 154 

This class will include a thorough warm up and across the floor exercises to prepare us for a fun, powerful jazz combo! We will use classic isolations, plenty of dynamics, and lots of style. If you love to perform and are itching for a bit of classic jazz, I hope to see you in class!

Come attend this informal showing in Callahan Theater. April Biggs' class Practices For Deepening The Presence Of You and Cat Olson's Immersive Theater class will showcase the creative products of attending the classes during this time. Anyone and everyone is welcome to attend this informal showing free of charge. For artists interested in participating in the showing, you must be signed up for/attend at least one of the classes. 

TWO classes offered during this time slot

• Ballet For Musical Theater Performers: Full Body Dynamics - Felipe Panama, Location: George 102 - Sponsored by Theatre League 

In this course, dancers will be guided through an intermediate ballet technique class. The structure and focus of the class is to create full body engagement through mindful use of the arms, legs and eyes, as well as finding dynamics that are musical and impactful. The concepts of classical dance are presented as movement mechanics that help all performers discover how their own bodies, with unique proportions, react to momentum when turning, jumping and transferring their weight across the space.

Movement and musical concepts are presented together for the student to explore
dynamics and artistry. The class combines each element of mechanics and their
relationship to time signatures and tempi, as well as momentum and muscular efforts.

• Pilates - DoubleTake Dance, Location: George 154

TWO classes offered during this time slot

• Intermediate/Advanced Theater Dance - Felipe Panama, Location: George 102 - Sponsored by Theatre League

In this course, students can expect a warmup in center that utilizes concepts from jazz codifications such as Luigi, Matt Mattox and Jack Cole, as well as modern dance and ballet technique through a jazz filter. Though exercises are broken down before hand, themes with variations create long sequences: it is aerobic and focuses on solidifying a proper foundation as they move through many classic jazz exercises to strengthen, lengthen and prepare the body for dancing. Full body movement and isolations give the dancer a broad approach to movement in search of dynamics and a wide range of muscular effort. 

The choreography staged during the second half of the class will challenge students to think carefully about musicality while they develop skills to shift their weight and hit unexpected accents. The work from class reflects in the combination as we search to preserve distinct musical qualities. All of this, through a storytelling lens. The dancers are exposed to situations that require exploration of theatricality, drama, and style through movement and body language.

• Contemporary Partnering - Catherine Messina, Location: George 154 

Contemporary partnering has become a focal point in many companies in recent years. This class looks at the grips and weight shares of partner to partner with the understanding that everyone can lift, everyone can base. To find this, we use techniques obtained from contact improvisation and other physicalities. Ledging and lofting techniques will be employed to have students focus on discovering momentum and circularity within the larger context of the body, and how to connect that body with another in the room. We discuss consent and the safety and deep listening required. Finally, dancers will tune into an inner awareness of their body moving through space in order to achieve expansive, explosive movements. 

TWO classes offered during this time slot 

• The Whole Dancer: Intermediate/Adv Contemporary - 32nd Pack Dance, Location: George 102

This class will explore intermediate/advanced contemporary floorwork and phrases pulled from company repertoire. “The Whole Dancer” is a series of classes created to assist dancers in developing their artistry while nurturing their voice and emotional health. Dancers will be guided through somatic exercises throughout class in order to focus on their mind-body connection and connect to their inner artistic voice. Dancers will also work on using their full kinesphere while
smoothly transitioning in and out of the floor throughout warm up, improvisation, and company repertoire.

• Company Repertory - DoubleTake Dance, Location: George 154 

TWO classes offered during this time slot

• Breath and Momentum in Contemporary Dance - Felipe Panama, Location: George 102 

This class presents the students with an amalgamation of concepts from modern and contemporary dance techniques. The focus of the course is to reconnect the dancer with their body and its unique proportions and how to use them to create impulse and use momentum organically through breathwork. The dancers will then be able to play with their axis and center, create impactful movement on and off balance, while applying a ‘playful’ use of suspension.

The class is structured to present movement in a somewhat chronological order, using the historical timeline of the creation of these dance techniques.

• Introduction to Argentine Tango - Heather Roffe, Location: George 154

Come learn introductory level techniques to Argentine Tango with the Nazareth Dance Program Director, Heather Roffe. No partner is necessary for this class. Please bring socks. 

• MAD Artists Showcase and Post-Show Talk-Back - Location: Callahan Theater 

A curated showing of choreographic pieces from guest artists and a chance to discuss their work after the show.