Dance is continuous motion. Whether the practice begins in childhood or well into adulthood, dancers live for the rhythm, the fine-tuning of technique, and the connection with an audience.
Dance is also broken into moments. One step leads to another. Each show matters as much as the last. Every moment reminds dancers of why they do what they do.
One of those moments for Anne Morris ’11 M.F.A. was in 2001, a week into her first semester as an undergrad, still trying to grasp the recent Sept. 11 terror attacks. “I was far away from home, didn’t know a lot of people at my college yet, and the only thing that made sense in that moment was dance class,” she says. “I didn’t know what place dance was going to have in my life, but I knew it needed to be central.”
One place where dance led her was UNC Greensboro, where she earned her master of fine arts in dance choreography. That’s where she met Jan van Dyke, an icon of Greensboro’s cultural scene until her untimely death from cancer in 2015. “She was director of the program at the time, and I danced with her group,” she explains.
Creating a dancing hub
Van Dyke founded the non-profit Dance Project, and Morris, its current executive director, continues her former mentor’s legacy of building the Gate City’s arts scene.
“Jan brought the organization to Greensboro when she came to teach at UNCG in 1989,” she says. “One of its primary missions is to help contribute to a really vibrant dance community.”
Dance Project workshops at NC Folk Fest.
Dance Project has a big presence at Folk Fest, but they are active all year. They promote dance through community classes, workshops, pop-up events, and by partnering with schools, hosting the NC Dance Festival, and inviting professionals to host programming.
Just as she realized dance should be central in her life, Morris wants North Carolina to become central to the dance profession.
“We want dance artists to feel like they can stay here. They don’t have to go to New York, Los Angeles, or Chicago for a career,” she says.
Journey from student to teacher
Its mission and countless activities have attracted UNCG alumni to work there. Lauren Joyner ’05 BFA was co-executive director with Morris for many years before moving into the role of director of strategic programs. Magalli Morana ’20 B.F.A. is the new school director.
Like Morris, Morana has been dancing since she was young. “I was really especially inspired by my high school dance teacher, Angie Greene ’97, ’08 M.A., who is also an UNCG alumni. And I had two student teachers, Danielle Kinne and Lauren Parker, who were from UNCG doing their student teaching. I was inspired by them to get a BFA for dance with K-12 licensure.”
As with Morris, a difficult event impacted Morana’s perspective on dance. For her, it was COVID-19.”I wasn’t able to physically be in a dance space as much as I wanted,” she says. “And I was juggling multiple jobs, trying to figure out my place, what I wanted. But I just kept coming back to dance.”
Despite this dramatic change, Morana says faculty like Mila Parrish, Ph.D. and Melinda Waegerle, M.A. brought the same enthusiasm as Van Dyke brought to Morris, feeding her love of dance. “I loved that I had a place that fit all my interests,” she says, “To not only explore dance, but how to become a dance teacher, how to be that person in someone else’s life who inspires them.”
Morana joined Dance Project as an intern shortly after graduation. “It all just felt so right,” she says. “I use the word ‘community’ a lot because that is so important to me. I felt invited and welcomed in a really great community.”
Fill the dance floor
Folk Fest is one of those places where community takes shape. Morris hopes that other people experienced their own moments of inspiration at the NC Folk Festival, Greensboro’s biggest downtown event of the year. There, visitors got to learn various styles of dance in workshops led by Dance Project.
“We’ve had a relationship with the Folk Festival for many years,” says Morris. “You can’t separate folk music from dance. It’s important to us to make sure that dance is a primary part of the festival. Plus, it’s really fun!”
This year’s workshops included samba, Bhangra Indian, and West African, the latter taught by Wesley Williams, a former assistant professor of dance at UNCG.
It’s an exciting time, Morana says, to expose more people to dance who wouldn’t otherwise come to the classes. “It’s common, as a dance teacher, to interact with people who are intimidated by dance. But you don’t have to have any kind of training. Just have an openness. Be willing to have a good time.”
Encore!
For those who missed them at Folk Fest, Dance Project brings more chances to learn this fall at its location in the Greensboro Cultural Center. Registration for youth classes runs through the end of September. Adults can drop in for classes anytime. They will hold the NC Dance Festival on Oct. 18 at the Van Dyke Performance Space.
On Sept. 28, the group returns to their alma mater, UNCG, to co-host a tribute to Jan Van Dyke. The event will mark 10 years since her passing with testimonies and a screening of her choreography from 2-4 p.m. at the School of Dance in the Coleman Building.
The Dance Project T-shirt has the phrase “Find your people.” Morana says, “You might find your people in a place you wouldn’t expect in a beginning ballet, hip hop, modern, or contemporary dance class. You’re able to connect and find a place that you can call home.”
Story by Janet Imrick, University Communications
Photography by Sean Norona, University Communications
