2018 FREE Why We Dance Event Sunday, March 25

The ninth annual Why We Dance workshop will take place at Forest Road Park in Fanwood, on Sunday March 25, from 2-5:30 p.m.

This FREE event is open to the community and will include workshops on Hip Hop and Bollywood Belly dance.

Workshop leaders are Tatianna J Dorsey, Naleesa Jacob, Showoff and Saideh Browne.

Browne is a trainer, author, and has appeared on media outlets such as the Dr. Oz Show. She will be giving students tips about bullying and how to avoid it.

Dorsey has been working with Why We Dance for the past five years and will be teaching a contemporary hip hop class. She founded Pure Passion Dance Company in 2013.

Showoff is a DJ, dancer, model, actor and choreographer, and has worked with such hip hop artists at LL Cool J, P Diddy, Missy Elliot and Rah Digga in music and commercials. He will be teaching an Old Skool hip hop dance class.

The schedule for the day is:

Schedule for March 25

2:00-2:10 Registration

2:10-3 Bellydance by Nalessa

3:00-3:50 Old Skool HipHop by Showoff

3:50-4:00 water break and special dance

4:00-4:50 Contemporary HipHop by Tatianna

4:50-5:00 Snack Break

5:00-5:25 Motivation Talk on Bullying by Saideh Browne

This season is dedicated to Eddie Abdul Hackett, who passed away last month and was a long-time supporter of the group. Hackett, who lived in Morristown, New Jersey, supported his niece Candace Waller in this project. The dance was choreographed by Romainson Romain a regular on the dance show You Think You Can Dance.

“My uncle did a lot of work with children and the community,” Waller said. “Hundreds of people came out for his funeral, many sharing stories of how he helped them. He wanted to make the world a better place for children. We are going to do a special dance in tribute to him.”

The upcoming March 25 arts program is made possible in part by a HEART (History, Education, Arts Reaching Thousands) Grant from the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders.

For more information on the classes and the festival, contact Coordinator Candace Waller at 908-432 2003 or whywedance@gmail.com.

2017 Free Why We Dance Event: A Visual Journey

These pictures were taken by Ryan Henry, a loyal volunteer. All photos are from the 2017 Why We Dance free event at Forest Road Park in Fanwood, NJ. We’ll be holding the same free event later this year on Sunday, March 25, from 2:00 to 5:30 pm. These events are always a lot of fun, and we look forward to seeing you there. 🙂 Please click on Why We Dance to read press release.

 

Group shot! We had a lot of fun.

Saideh Browne, motivational speaker!

Nalessa Jacob, bellydance instructor extraordinaire!

Tatianna Dorsey, hip hop choreographer!

Tatianna’s shoes are badass

Food, wonderful food! Thanks to Garwood ShopRite, Swiss Pastry Bakery in Scotch Plains, and all of the wonderful volunteers!

Relief-Dance Grant Completed

Every year I apply for a dance grant and every year it is approved. That doesn’t stop me from being nervous about it. Here are a few tips to help others who may want to send to a grant.

#1 Keep a copy of all materials related to your programs.
Press releases, flyers and photographs should be carefully saved and organized. Grant applications always ask for support materials. It is a good idea to keep all of this handy so you are not searching everywhere.

 

#2 Keep in contact with workshop leaders, volunteers and others.
Don’t wait to the last minute to get in touch with people you need for grant. I always touch base with people I have worked with and I want to work with to see if they would be interested in working with me the following year. I also contact locations to see if they are willing to let me host with them again.

#3 Keep a working draft of grant questions.
Grant applications ask similar questions. I always keep on file response to grant questions. Even if the questions change slightly you will have a base to start.

#4 Keep a Calendar handy
Deadlines are important and if you miss the closing date than you won’t be eligible for that grant.

 

Thankfully I did those things and my grant is completed. Now the waiting begins.

Prince, Rest in Peace Purple Badness!

April 21, 2016 was the worst day of my life, my year. Prince Rodgers Nelson left this world. The mega star who could play multiple instruments and dance with such abandon was gone. How could that be? He was only 57 years old!

He leaves behind a legacy. He leaves behind wonderful music. He leaves behind a type of genius we won’t see in decades. He was totally dedicated to his craft writing and producing songs everyday. What he didn’t leave behind was a Will. I just hope whoever eventually gets control of his music rights respects and appreciates them

Prince worked so hard to be free. He wanted ownership of his music of his creativity.  So many artists bring so much joy for the masses and then live in poverty because they don’t own the rights to the music and/or art form they created.

We will miss you Prince.

P.S. BET really did a great job honoring your memory. Thank you for sharing your beautiful gifts with us Prince. You have made us all so much better by your kindness, generosity and love for humanity. See you on the other side.

Dancing is Fun!

Dancing is one of the few things in life that doesn’t cost you anything bur you can reap so many benefits. The art of moving your body to music is so freeing. The first step to becoming good at dance is to just be free. Don’t worry about what people think or how you will look. Everybody has their own rhythm. We all move and we must continue to move or we will become stiff.

Dance makes us flexible and open to new ideas. Just get up and dance. I promise you will feel better. Do whatever you want to do. People who dance live healthier, happier lives.

Dance is Fun!

Celebrity Choreographer William “Willdabeast” Adams shares moves with students

Why We Dance students pose with William “Willdabeast” Adams and Tatianna J Dorsey at the Why We Dance 2013 festival, March 23, 2013.

The fifth annual Why We Dance event featured celebrity choreography William “Willdabeast” Adams who has traveled the world teaching and working with hip hop artists Usher, Busta Rhyms, T-Pain and Chris Brown. worked extensively choreographing hip hop videos, tours and dance television shows. Some of his television credits include appearing on America’s Best Dance Crew.

Why We Dance in conjunction with Maxson Middle School hosted a free hip hop workshop Saturday, March 23. The program began at 9:30 am with a workshop led by Tatianna J Dorsey. Willdabeast taught the 10:30 am workshop to the delight of the students. Registration was onsite.

Participants who took place in these two master hiphop classes free of cost due in part to a Union County HEART (History, Education, Art-Reaching-Thousands) grant and with support from the community.

Tatianna J was thrilled to take part in Willdabeast’s workshop. She is a local choreographer who has worked at camps and churches.

Close up of Tatianna J Dorsey leading hip hop class at the Why We Dance 2013 festival.

Why We Dance Director Candace Waller and Legendary choreographer Yateesha Davis pose with William “Willdabeast” Adams at the Why We Dance 2013 Festival.

“I loved his teaching style. He was interactive, personal and the choreography was easy to catch on. He also stressed having fun,” said Dorsey, who is studying criminal justice and dance at Raritan Valley Community College in Branchburg. “Teaching with him was an honor and a blessing.” ..
Yateesha Davis Dance Director of the Legendary Dance team from Maxson Middle School and Candace Waller Dance Director of the Why We Dance team came together to put on this arts program for the community. The two dance teams will be dancing together on the track “Hello” from Mindless Behavior.

“It is so important that we have arts for the community,” Waller said. “Ms. Davis has a great group of students. She teaches them various forms of dance. Working with her and her dancers has been wonderful.”
Contact Candace Waller at 908.432.2003 or email whywedance@gmail.com for more information on this event.

Why We Dance Offers FREE Hip Hop Classes

2012 Why We Dance crew posing for a group shot at the Why We Dance Festival.

Why We Dance will again be teaching classes in the genre of ‘Old Skool’ (misspelling intended) Hiphop. Classes are geared to people who want to learn the history and dancing of an art form that was deemed a fad but has lasted 25 plus years. The influence Hiphop has on society cannot be denied. This class was focus on the positive side of the dancing.

The 2013 season starts Tuesday, January 8, from 7-8 p,.m. at the LeGrande Park Building in Fanwood. Classes are FREE. Why We Dance is celebrating its fifth year. As the director and founder of the program I am so humbled at the support and encouragement I have received from students, parents, volunteers and caring businesses who have supplied school supplies and refreshments.

Why We Dance was blessed to receive for the fifth year in a row a Union County HEART Grant. This is how I am able to bring in seasoned dance professions in various areas of dance to teach classes and facilitate works at  annual dance festival that takes place each March that is also FREE.

Dance instructors Nick Abreu and Joy Jackson demonstrating a battle dance.

As a person who has gone through several downsizing I understand the need to find constructive things for children to do without much expense. Why We Dance has been able to bring about positive change by giving students and outlet to express creativity for FREE.

The classes are open to all and everyone interested in learning about hip hop dancing. Registration is ongoing and can be done by sending an email to whywedance@gmail.com or calling 908.432.2003. 

Please check this site to check for updates on classes, events, guest teacher bios.

This Arts program is made possible by in part by a HEART (History Education, Art Reaching Thousands) Grant by the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders.

June is Black Music Month: Michael Jackson

June has been designated Black Music Appreciation Month. I think with all the sampling out there we should take the time to honor our musical ancestors. The first artist I wanted to celebrate is Michael Jackson.

When he did the Motown special he was already a legend in the making. He started out with the Jackson 5 that became the Jacksons. Michael was a powerful musical entity that could write, sing, dance, produce and create. He showcased the moonwalk and the crowd went wild.

Michael Jackson’s Thriller was truly a phenomenon. It broke all kinds of music records and is still a classic more than 25 years later.

I loved Michael as a kid. He was the first African-American artist featured on MTV. The music channel started in the early eighties but many of my favorite artist were never featured there. Micaheal’s album Thriller broke so many barriers and crossing the color line at MTV was one of them. Michael treated his videos like mini films.

When he made the video for Thriller he hired a movie director to make a mini-horror flick for about 1 million dollars. It instantly became a hit. The Making of Thriller (the forefather of reality television in my humble opinion) gave us all the behind the scenes tidbits that went into making the video.

Everybody is making a behind the scenes videos but Michael was the first artist to share in this way. This speaks volumes to his generous heart. Michael may be gone physically but his spirit lives on in his music. He never forgot his musical roots.

Michael Jackson is my favorite dancer. He truly was an artist and his music uplifted people. I was never embarassed to play his songs. I hope Michael is getting the respect and credit he deserved now because he had a lot of pain in his life. I salute you musical legends.

In my upcoming posts I will be talking about James Brown, Bojangles, The Nicholas Brothers and Sammy Davis Junior.

Whitney Houston “I Wanna Dance With Somebody”

One of my favorite Whitney Houston video is “I Wanna Dance With Somebody”. RIP Ms. Houston 1963-2012

Red Tails featuring singer/dancer NE-YO

I am a huge Ne-yo fan. I love the way he dances the positive lyrics in his music so when I heard that he was in RED TAILS it made me want to see the movie even more. I was among those who  rushed to see the movie on opening weekend. I LOVEDDDDDDD the movie. The story is about the Tustekee Airmen and the director is Star Wars creator and director George Lucas. I enjoyed Star Wars and all the effects so I knew this would be a great movie. NE-YO, a compelling story and a celebrated director, what could possible go wrong???? It turns out a lot.

When I got tot the theater (Sony Loews, Mountainside) I told the cashier I wanted to see RED TAILS paid my money and went into the the theatre. Only I wasn’t in the theater for RED TAILS but another movie, Sherlock Holmes. I missed 20 minutes of RED TAILS.  I enjoyed the parts of the movie I did see but I wasn’t satisfied.

I went to the manager and explained that I was given the wrong ticket. He was reluctant to do anything because I had seen some of the movie. I pressed the issue because I paid $10.50 to see the entire film not miss the first 20 minutes. This nosy bystander who had no affiliation with the movie butted in and I kindly asked him to butt out. I was give a “free” pass to another showing but I was not satistfaced.

I requested that the ticket be adjusted to reflect RED TAILS and not another movie. The following week 3 PEOPLE SITTING NEXT TO ME ALSO GOT THE WRONG TICKET FOR RED TAILS.  I scalled the general manager the following Monday who explained that ticket wasn’t as relevant as I was making it out to be  because the films are paid for in advance. I kindly pointed out to her that ticket sales are used to determine ratings. I also wrote her a letter. I am writing this entry to let people know that they should always check their ticket stubs of movies. If they notice a mistakes take it up with the manager and have their tickets credit to correct movie. 

African-Amrericans in big budget Oscar worthy films are rare. Having an all-black cast is even rarer. And having a esteemed and highly respected director such as George Lucas sink millions of his own money into this type of film is rarest.