New Albany Dance Festival returns with 3 days of performances, free classes
Are you a fan of Columbus Dance Theatre? How about Columbus Modern Dance Company? Or Tru Kingdom Mega Crew?
This weekend, you won’t have to choose which local dance troupe to see — you can check out all three.
Each of those dance companies will be among the central Ohio troupes featured in the second edition of the New Albany Dance Festival, which features many of the finest local dance companies and studios for a weekend of inspired movement.
The festival will be held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the Hinson Amphitheater, 170 E. Dublin-Granville Road, and the adjacent McCoy Center for the Arts, 100 E. Dublin-Granville Road.
Taking place over three days, the event represents a major expansion of the inaugural edition, which was held on a single day.
“My long-term vision was always going to be a multiple-day festival,” said Melissa Gould, artistic director of the dance ensemble hosting the festival, the New Vision Dance Company.
“This year, we really took it upon ourselves to really make it more of a fleshed-out, full festival experience,” Gould said.
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Professional dancers perform on Friday
At 7 p.m. Friday at the Hinson Amphitheater, the festival will open with a series of short performances by Ohio-based professional companies and soloists. Long-established troupes, including Columbus Modern Dance Company, will share the spotlight with more recently formed ensembles, among them the Cultivate Dance Project and Whirlwind Dance Company.
Each drawing on its own dance tradition, other groups to perform include Nomel Inspirational Dance Theater, Ballet Legato and the Kenny Brown Dance Experience.
For example, Columbus Dance Theatre incorporates ballet into its choreography, while groups such as Nomel Inspirational Dance Theater combines elements of traditional African dance, contemporary dance, hip-hop dance and street dance, Gould said.
New Vision’s own performance will itself be a study in eclecticism.
“We are showing a broad variety of dance styles, which is what New Vision does best,” Gould said of her company’s selections. “We’ve got a very classic jazz piece, we’re going to do (Benny Goodman’s) ‘Sing, Sing, Sing,’ we’re doing a musical-theater piece, a contemporary piece, a tap piece and even a disco piece this year.”
Saturday morning begins with classes
From 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, free dance classes will be on tap at both the Hinson Amphitheater and McCoy Center. Nearly every age group will be given a chance to move in a variety of styles.
“This year, we are offering over 30 free classes to the community,” Gould said. “We have classes in traditional things, like jazz, tap and modern. We have classes in cultural dance, (including) belly dance and classical Indian dance. We even have classes for dance for adults over 50.”
To participate in classes, attendees must register either in-person or online at newvisiondanceco.org/free-classes.html.
Saturday evening wraps with student dancers
At 7 p.m. Saturday, the Hinson Amphitheater will be taken over by 300 local dance students. As part of the Central Ohio Dance Studio Showcase, students from studios ranging from BalletMet Dance Academy to Dublin Dance Centre & Gymnastics to J.A.Z. Dance & More will put their best foot forward.
Because many dance studios participate in dance competitions during the year, the showcase offers a rare chance for youngsters to perform in a non-competitive atmosphere, Gould said.
“Some of the comments that we got after last year’s Studio Showcase that were so beautiful were kids who said, ‘Oh my gosh, I’ve done this dance seven times this year, but this was the first time that I really enjoyed performing it because there wasn’t any pressure on me,’” Gould said. “It’s just doing it for the love of dance and for the audience.”
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Diverse dance seen on Sunday
The New Albany Dance Festival International Dance Concert will take place at 1 p.m. Sunday at the McCoy Center. This new addition to the festival is deeply personal for Gould.
“I’m half-Mexican,” Gould said. “I grew up in the south side of San Jose, California, and Mexican folklorico dancing was a huge part of our culture and a part of our celebrations. For me, Mexican folklorico dance is very precious and very sacred. I think that all cultural dance really has a huge part in the world of performing arts.”
The concert will shine a spotlight on numerous local ensembles specializing in dance forms that reflect various cultures, including Ballet Folclorico Xochihua, Gabriela Flamenco Dance Academy and Irwin Academy Irish Dance.
“We have got the most incredible variety,” Gould said.
Additional free dance classes will take place from 8 a.m. to noon on Sunday.
What does it cost?
Each day’s concert will be ticketed separately; there is no overarching pass for all three days. The 7 p.m. Friday dance concert costs $15, or $300 for tables for 8; the 7 p.m. Saturday dance studio showcase costs $10, or $300 for tables for 8; and the 1 p.m. Sunday international dance concert costs $5. To buy tickets, visit, newvisiondanceco.org/new-albany-dance-festival.html.
What about food and beverages?
Wine from Wyandotte Winery will be for sale Friday night; outside alcoholic beverages are prohibited. For more information, visit flipcause.com/secure/cause_pdetails/MTgzNDE4. Attendees may bring their own food.
Where do I park?
Festival-goers can use the parking lot of the McCoy Center for the Arts or the lot of the New Albany Intermediate School.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: New Albany Dance Festival to take place July 28-30
