Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Happy International Dance Day!

Today is historically recognized as International Dance Day! Since 1982, our art form has had its own holiday annually on April 29.

According to UNESCO, the hosting organization, the message of the 2009 Dance Day is: "The future of dance lies where there are persons who do not dance. These belong to two categories: those who simply did not learn, and those who think that they are not able to dance. They represent the greatest challenge for the dance teacher's profession." So...go dance! Even if you're not a dancer.

Today is also Hug a Dancer Day, according to a Facebook invitation with over 6,000 "attendees."

And of course all this means we're in the midst of National Dance Week, which runs April 24-May 3 this year.

There's lots happening to celebrate today, if you're interested...


-The always interesting Misnomer Dance Theater is having another live webcast performance tonight at 5:30pm. They're dancing in a bank vault down in the financial district! Wow.

Misnomer Live Webcast April 29th, 5:30 PM EST from Chris Elam on Vimeo.
Watch the webcast here.

Also keep an eye out for the new issue of Movmnt Magazine hopefully out soon, where I did an article on some of Misnomer's other projects!

-The New York Dance Parade (which doesn't happen until May) is having a big fundraising performance at 7pm. Looks like a fun mix of dance styles to see.

-Dancer and writer (and a ballet mistress I worked with a while back) Leda Meredith is having a reading and signing event for her recent book, "Botany, Ballet, and Dinner from Scratch: A Memoir with Recipes." It's at Ti Lounge at 7:15pm if interested.

Those are just a few New York events. Official events for National Dance Week around the country are listed here. But honestly, what better way to celebrate than to dance yourself? That's certainly what I'll be doing!

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