Performance Project at Harvey Milk Civil Rights Academy
By Emily Pitcher dancer instructor for the San Francisco Ballet Center for Dance Education's Dance in Schools and Communities program (DISC). February 11, 2010
Since mid-January, Mr. Hall’s third grade class at Harvey Milk Civil Rights Academyhas been rehearsing every Tuesday afternoon. They are gearing up for their performance at the DeYoung Museum on May 8. Charles McNeal and I completed our ten-week residency through the Dance in Schools and Communities (DISC) program with these students in the fall. Most of them had never taken a dance class prior to their experience in DISC, but you would never know. The level of focus and their determination persuaded us to choose this entire class, without a regular audition process, to participate in this year’s Performance Project.
The school lies in the heart of the Castro and not only do these children learn about Harvey Milk and how he supported equal rights for gay people, but they learn about several international human rights activists. Harvey Milk Civil Rights Academy works to implement these standards in the classroom with a diverse population of students.
Our choreography is based on teamwork and the dance is meant to honor the work and commitment of several civil rights activists that have helped to shape our society.
Today the dancers were asked to come up with one word that came to mind when thinking of human rights and what it takes to have equality for all people. They created a movement based on that word and in small groups, threaded each movement together to create their own choreography. It feels extremely empowering to have everyone contribute to this dance. Thus, everyone has an equal opportunity to express their voice through movement.
Here I am listening to my dancer’s ideas.
Students learning through observation of their peers.
These dancers are experimenting with a movement for the word ‘hope’.
What an interesting shape!
And an even better ending to their movement phrase.
Performance Project at Harvey Milk Civil Rights Academy
dancer instructor for the San Francisco Ballet Center for Dance Education's Dance in Schools and Communities program (DISC).
February 11, 2010
Since mid-January, Mr. Hall’s third grade class at Harvey Milk Civil Rights Academy has been rehearsing every Tuesday afternoon. They are gearing up for their performance at the DeYoung Museum on May 8. Charles McNeal and I completed our ten-week residency through the Dance in Schools and Communities (DISC) program with these students in the fall. Most of them had never taken a dance class prior to their experience in DISC, but you would never know. The level of focus and their determination persuaded us to choose this entire class, without a regular audition process, to participate in this year’s Performance Project.
The school lies in the heart of the Castro and not only do these children learn about Harvey Milk and how he supported equal rights for gay people, but they learn about several international human rights activists. Harvey Milk Civil Rights Academy works to implement these standards in the classroom with a diverse population of students.
Our choreography is based on teamwork and the dance is meant to honor the work and commitment of several civil rights activists that have helped to shape our society.
Today the dancers were asked to come up with one word that came to mind when thinking of human rights and what it takes to have equality for all people. They created a movement based on that word and in small groups, threaded each movement together to create their own choreography. It feels extremely empowering to have everyone contribute to this dance. Thus, everyone has an equal opportunity to express their voice through movement.
Here I am listening to my dancer’s ideas.
Students learning through observation of their peers.
These dancers are experimenting with a movement for the word ‘hope’.
What an interesting shape!
And an even better ending to their movement phrase.