» All Posts by Stacey Blakeman

Final Practices for the 2010 Performance Project

Stacey Blakeman — Wed, 05 May 2010 21:24:47 +0000

We are getting close to performance day! The dancers at Redding Elementary have finished the last section of our dance—which is a fun finale featuring Indian Bhangra. The bouncy music invites everyone to “come dance” and brings smiles to all of our faces. As part of their costumes the dancers have chosen one word to be represented on their t-shirts: “courage.”

After our first in-school performance, we had a discussion about what it takes to be a good dancer: in addition to knowing the steps and the formations or the music, performing takes confidence and courage from within. As we talked, I could see many of the students realizing what this meant for them. During each rehearsal, there are lots of questions about the May 8 performance:

“What will the other dances be like?”

“How do we know when it is our turn?”

“What happens if my partner for the dance is sick?”

For many students it will be their first time to the de Young, and their first time on a real stage!

The students have all grown through this process. It is amazing to see children who were once shy, now leading lines and patterns. We are so proud of the students from Redding Elementary and are excited to support them through performance day!

Dancers finishing Mongolian Horse dance

Young at Art Performance Draws Near

Stacey Blakeman — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 18:19:51 +0000

With only three weeks until the show, it is crunch time with my students at New Traditions Elementary. I will start by saying that I’m so impressed with their progress. Those kids can dance and remember so much choreography! In fact, they did so well at completing the Country Western dance in such short time that we have added a second performance piece, which is an adaptation of Alvin Ailey’s Wade in the Water. While both dance numbers are very energetic, they are completely different. It has been an amazing learning experience for my students. We have discussed how our Country Western number is built around the barn dance tradition and how that served as a means of community building for folks in rural American farming towns. While learning the Wade in the Water composition, my students have begun to understand how childhood memories greatly influenced the work of Alvin Ailey and how his company helped change the face of dance in America.

Now we just have to do a little clean-up and finish getting all the costumes ready for the big show! All of the students from the four participating schools will come together at the Young at Art Festival to show off all of their hard work. Hopefully, you can join us for the final performance at the de Young Museum, Saturday, May 8, from 12:30-1:30 PM in the Koret Theater. See you there!

Students rehearsing Wade in the Water

The boys take center stage

The ladies learn to use their hats in Country Western Roundup

Students rehearsing the square dance section

Taking it to the Stage!

Stacey Blakeman — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 23:41:07 +0000

Even for an arts educator, teaching dance is never an easy thing. This winter and spring, four dancer instructors (including myself) from SF Ballet’s Center for Dance Education (CDE) will meet the challenge and choreograph original dance compositions for students in four San Francisco elementary schools. This program is called the Performance Project. After 16 grueling weeks of rehearsal, these students will take their hard work to the stage and participate in the Young At Art Festival at the de Young Museum, in early May.

CDE began this program about eight years ago, not with the idea of helping young dancers establish a professional career, but rather to offer a much needed opportunity for children to be exposed to the art of being a performer. Practice, dedication, hard work, courage, risk-taking, and facing some disappointment are all part of what goes into preparing oneself for a performance. Students who participate in this project learn what it takes to be a performer and leave feeling successful, with a renewed sense of self importance: all things that are in alignment with the goals of CDE. We believe in giving dance back to the community and allowing students to evolve during the process.

I, along with my teaching colleagues, will be taking you along on our journey with weekly updates from our rehearsals with students so that you can follow their progress along the way.

My 15 students are fifth graders from New Traditions Alternative School, which is located near the panhandle of Golden Gate Park. They are a lively group of kids who have had a good deal of dance exposure and experience through previous participation in SF Ballet’s artist-in-residence program, Dance in Schools and Communities (DISC). Because of this, I will be challenging them quite a bit with some sophisticated choreography. Our theme is “Country Western” (think of an old-style barn dance, do si dos, some fancy footwork and a little Rodeo feel). In fact, we will be using some of Aaron Copland’s famous music in the dance!

I attended one of Mr. Mc Neal’s rehearsals today and captured photos of his dancers trying out some West African dance moves. These are students of Rosa Parks Elementary, which is located in the Western Addition neighborhood. They worked pretty hard, but are just getting their feet wet. I wish them luck over the next couple of months!

Students warm-up for the rehearsal with some plies.

These two boys are loosening up their shoulders.

This little trio is trying hard to learn the new move!

He finally got the most difficult step of the day!

Summer Fun with Center for Dance Education

Stacey Blakeman — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:11:26 +0000

Hi! I’m Stacey Blakeman, and I work for the SF Ballet Center for Dance Education as the Dance in Schools and Communities (DISC) Manager. DISC includes a variety programs that operate in the San Francisco Unified School District and provide FREE interactive movement classes to over 3,500 students each year. Once school’s out, we run a one-week summer dance program, Community Circle Dance Camp (CCDC), for boys and girls ages 6-14 from all over the Bay Area. Our campers explore a variety of art forms with professional teaching artists. This year our classes include Musical Theater, Bhangra, Hip Hop, Creative Movement, Voice, West African Drum & Dance, Ballet, Yoga, and Visual Art. This year we have 75 students participating in the camp, and 50 of them are attending on a full scholarship. Campers also receive three healthy meals each day (made with organic and locally grown produce) at no additional charge.

In the middle of the week we will take a field trip to the War Memorial Opera House. Campers will go on backstage tours and participate in a special Opera Workshop. On Friday there is an end-of-week celebration for students to demonstrate to friends and family some of the things they learned during their experience at CCDC.

We encourage every student at CCDC is to find his/her inner artist. It truly is an exciting week for all involved, both children and adults. Below is a little glimpse from the second day of the 2009 CCDC:

Executive Director Glenn McCoy & SFB staff member Ruben Fonseca help serve breakfast to students at the camp.

Director of Education Charles Chip McNeal prepares students for an exciting day during the morning circle.

Camp Instructor Joti Singh leads students through the morning warm-up.

Camp students warm up their vocal cords for singing class.

I lead the youngest group of campers through a Creative Movement class.

Students learn to sing and dance to the music from Oliver! in their Musical Theater class.