CLEVELAND, Ohio – Classical music, visual art and theater may be Cleveland’s cultural calling cards, but there’s another discipline in which the city also takes pride: dance.
Just as the Cleveland Orchestra, Cleveland Museum of Art, and the resident companies of Playhouse Square have been leading their fields for over a century, so have dancers in Cleveland been shining brightly for decades, making an impact far greater than many realize.
“There’s such a huge population in dance that started here,” said DoraRae Vactor, founder of the arts coalition Cleveland Dance Movement. “You have all these dancers and dance companies that have blossomed through Cleveland.”
That is the subject of “Cleveland’s Place in America’s Dance Legacy,” a two-day symposium taking place Sept. 27-28 at the Pivot Center for Art, Dance and Expression, 2937 W. 25th St., Cleveland.
Over two days of masterclasses, workshops and panel discussions, leaders in Cleveland’s dance community will celebrate their history and pass on their wisdom to those following in their footsteps. Guests will hear from and work closely with Cleveland dance legends and have a chance to put what they learn directly to use.
“We have to teach our young people what the arts are all about and where they come from,” Vactor said. “We have to let them know that in dance, in this particular art form, they can be free.”
The story told at the symposium will be an overview by necessity. Margaret Carlson, producing artistic director of Ohio Contemporary Ballet (formerly Verb Ballets), said a thorough history of dance in Northeast Ohio could — and probably should — fill a lengthy book.
But if Cleveland’s dance legacy is a vast and complex structure, there are beams that are load-bearing: people, companies and institutions whose work was critical to the art form’s development here.
Think of Karamu House, whose tradition of cultivating and showcasing modern dance in Cleveland traces back nearly a century and rivals its impact on the world of theater. Alumni from that school have fanned out across the region, nation, and world, establishing a legacy in their own right.
Or the Modern Dance Association, founded in 1956, the forerunner of today’s DanceCleveland. Out of that small group emerged what is now one of the nation’s oldest and most admired dance presenters.
Think, too, of our institutions of higher learning such as Oberlin College and Case Western Reserve University, where dancers and choreographers have been training, performing, and teaching for as long as anyone can remember.
When Cleveland hosted the 2015 annual conference of the International Association of Blacks in Dance, “We were able to showcase dance in Cleveland,” Vactor said. “All of the companies we have made people say, ‘Wow, look what’s here.’”
As it happens, one of Cleveland’s brightest and most enduring dance luminaries, Dianne McIntyre, will be a guest of honor at the symposium. A nationally renowned dancer and choreographer who practically embodies Cleveland’s modern dance legacy, she’ll anchor events on both days, along with former Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company member Antonio Brown.
She’ll tell how, when she started studying dance at Ohio State University in the 1960s, she stood out as one of the few with training in modern dance. While others had been steeped in ballet, she’d grown up around a cutting-edge art form.
“In Cleveland, it wasn’t strange at all to be an artist,” McIntyre remembered. “In Cleveland, we were applauded…The training was extraordinary.”
But that wasn’t the only art form. McIntyre notes that while Cleveland has deep roots in modern dance, it’s acclaimed in several other forms as well.
Cleveland Ballet, for instance, is a story unto itself. Once counted among the nation’s finest, the original company thrived for decades before folding and eventually coming back to prominence under new leadership. “The public loves ballet, and there continues to be great training,” McIntyre said.
Given its status as a melting pot, the city also has been home to a wide variety of cultural dance groups, troupes representing traditions in Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia. Look for these to figure into discussions at the symposium as well.
Meanwhile, when it comes to legacy, it’s hard to top Cleveland’s Dancing Wheels, the nation’s oldest integrated dance company, founded in 1980. “They have quite a reach,” McIntyre said, “and they’ve inspired people to know they can dance in different ways. On their wheels, they can do things people can’t do on their feet.”
Talk like this is what prompted Vactor, herself a pillar in the Cleveland dance establishment, to organize the symposium in the first place. It’s also what’s filling her with anticipation.
Between the artists slated to speak or teach and the topics of the panel discussions, Vactor said she expects the symposium to be for dancers and dance fans much like the 2015 conference: life-changing.
“I just can’t wait,” Vactor said. “I feel like saying ‘Come on, people. Just come. If you do, you’ll go home a different person.’”
If you go…
Cleveland’s Place in America’s Dance Legacy
What: A symposium of masterclasses, workshops, and panel discussions
When: Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 27-28 (see schedule).
Where: The Pivot Center, 2937 W. 25th St., Cleveland.
Tickets: $20-$50, eventbrite.com.
Schedule of events
Saturday, Sept. 27
10 a.m. – Masterclass with choreographer Antonio Brown
11:45 a.m. – “The Evolution of Modern Dance,” lecture by Catherine Meredith, visiting assistant professor of dance at Kent State University
1 p.m. – “Sounds in Motion,” interactive lecture and movement session with Dianne McIntyre
3 p.m. – Panel discussion: “Historical Influences on Dance in Cleveland,” with Bill Wade, founder and artistic director of Inlet Dance Theatre
Sunday, Sept. 28
10 a.m. – Masterclass with dancer Emani Drake
11:45 a.m. – Panel discussion: “How Culture Shapes Dance, Identity, and Expression,” with Talise Campbell, Samuel McIntosh, Antara Datta, Ron’Dale Simpson, Tamandra Diaz, and Audrey Godoy
1 p.m. – Choreography workshop with Dianne McIntyre and Antonio Brown
3 p.m. – Final choreography showcase