April 13, 2023
Story听by Joe Vinduska
SWAG合集鈥檚 Dance Department will host the 鈥淒ancing in the Heartland鈥 Dance Festival at 7 p.m. April 27 and 28 in the Fine Arts Auditorium. General admission tickets are $5 at the door. Children and students get in for free.
Instructor of Dance & Fine and Performing Arts Coordinator Danika Bielek said the concerts will highlight the many types of dance represented in our region. Performers include all SWAG合集 dance classes and SWAG合集 Dance Theatre. Both evenings of the festival will feature guest performances by regional dance groups including Aly鈥檚 Dance Studio (Thursday), Bethel College Academy of Performing Arts (Friday), El Sol (Friday), Euphoria Dance Centre (Friday), and choreography by Maddy Hayden (Thursday).
鈥淲e want to build a bridge connecting the many dance groups in the region and give audiences two engaging evenings of dance,鈥 she said. 听鈥淭hese days, many local studios have plenty of opportunities to perform in dance competitions where they compete against each other, often friends competing against friends. This festival provides a non-competitive environment for the groups to focus on sharing rather than winning. All dance styles will be represented, and audiences will be entertained by creative choreography, terrific dancers of all ages, and so much energy.鈥
Bielek said the festival will include modern contemporary dance, jazz dance, ballet (including a pointe variation), hip hop, tap dance, Hispanic Folkl贸rico Dance, and more.
鈥淭he SWAG合集 dance students are excited to share our stage with our dancing guests,鈥 she said. 鈥淭he response to participate by many different types of dance groups has been awesome. The Midwest is rich with a diverse dance culture. Our goal is to show the community that cultural and expressive dance is alive and kicking in SWAG合集 County and throughout our region. We hope to have a large audience come out to show support for these hardworking dancers.鈥
For more information, go to shows.bartonccc.edu or contact Bielek at (620) 792-9253 or bielekd@bartonccc.edu.