Second Wave of Groups Advance in DanceMKE

DanceMKE 2017

A huge crowd was on hand Tuesday night at the Peck Pavilion for the second night of the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts 2017 DanceMKE competition. The multi-week contest is part of Live at Peck summer programming series.

All the Above Dance Company, Cultural Institute of Dance and the Young Dance Academy Tap Group have advanced to the August 22nd finals. See their performances and learn more about the groups below.

Want to help pick the next group of winners? Join the fun at 7:00 p.m. on August 15th at the Peck Pavilion at the Marcus Center (929 N. Water St.). The event is free to attend.

Twenty groups of talented dancers from all backgrounds and disciplines will compete for nine spots in the finals. Come down and be amazed by these talented Milwaukee dancers as they compete for cash prizes and Danceworks scholarships, and bragging rights. There will be a little something for everyone with dance styles including: contemporary, Mexican folklore, hip-hop, American Tribal Belly Dance, lyrical, salsa, contemporary fusion, ballroom and tap.

For more information on the DanceMKE schedule and all of the free Live at Peck events visit http://www.marcuscenter.org

All the Above Dance Company

With DanceMKE – What are you hoping to get from this experience?

We love to share our dances, our stories, with as many people as possible. This opportunity has given us a chance to do just that in a city that has so much potential artistically.

Why do you love to dance?

Dancing provides a release, it provides an opportunity to express what we may be feeling or thinking. This dance, specifically, is a very personal journey for us as a group.

What is one unique characteristic about you/your group?

Our dance is about insecurity, it’s about the deep dark feelings we have about ourselves. Our teacher asked us to pick out one negative word that we feel about ourselves. She in turn, picked out a positive word for each of us. The dance, pretty hurts, not only is a physical description of what every man, woman, boy and girl, goes through…but a very personal journey that means the world to all of us.

Cultural Institute of Dance

With DanceMKE – What are you hoping to get from this experience?

Like in all the other dance competitions, we always learn something and this competition won’t be the exception. We learned that here in Milwaukee, there are a lot of things from our Mexican culture that we can show our community.

Why do you live to dance?

Dance is a form of communication and artistic expression that allows us to show our feelings and attitudes which we don’t do on our daily basis. This is why I have made dance part of my everyday life.

What is one unique characteristic about you/your group?

What makes our group unique is that we don’t recognize the words “I can’t” because we strive to do our best and try to always accomplish our goals, learning from our mistakes.

What is your favorite thing about your dance you performed?

My favorite thing about our performance was the connection that we had with the audience and the feeling of being able to transport our beautiful Mexican country in just a few minutes. Manuel Gaona-Director Cultural Institute of Dance

Young Dance Academy Tap Group

Watch the Facebook live stream for dance footage of Young Dance Academy.

With DanceMKE – What are you hoping to get from this experience?

A chance to see others perform and to meet dancers from our city

Why do you love to dance?

It’s fun!

What is one unique characteristic about you/your group?

We do more than just tap!

What is your favorite thing about your dance you performed?

It’s a really upbeat song so it’s a lot of fun to smile at our friends and relate to each other along with the audience!

Bonus Content

The audience even gets to participate at DanceMKE. Watch this video of audience members learning a dance from Shrek the Musical.

Past Coverage

• First Three Groups in DanceMKE Advance – August 5th, 2017
• DanceMKE Returns – August 4th, 2017