The Dance Club will be performing a showcase in either late April or early May at the Performing Arts Center (PAC,) and planning of the showcase took center stage when the club met Feb. 15.
Not only will this showcase act as an opportunity for the dancers to show off their skills and routines, but it will also act as a fundraiser for an organization of the club’s choice. Club members haven’t picked a nonprofit beneficiary yet, but are researching several Monmouth County nonprofits that specialize in teaching technique and choreographing routines to young, underprivileged dancers.
As of now, unlike their mini-showcase, the Dance Club’s upcoming performance will be entirely open to the public. In addition, the Theater Club at Brookdale Community College is planning on incorporating some of their skits and scenes into the show.
President Arianna Smith, secretary Molly Fennessey and members also discussed potentially reaching out to Brookdale’s The Innovation Network (TIN,) and inviting members to choreograph and perform numbers in the showcase.
The Dance Club at Brookdale Community College is planning on performing in upcoming St. Patrick’s Day parades that will be occurring throughout Monmouth County. Fennessey announced that she received an email from the assistant director of Student Life and Activities at Brookdale Community College, Erin Tierney; it states that the parades are taking place on March 13 in Asbury Park from 1 to 2:30 p.m., March 13 in Downtown Freehold from 1 to 2:30 p.m., and March 26 at 1:30 p.m. in Keansburg.
The St. Patrick’s Day parades in Asbury Park and Downtown Freehold will be taking place simultaneously. Therefore, the club members must choose which parade they shall perform in. Fennessey believes that participating in one or more of these parades will count toward the club’s required amount of yearly community service.
For most of the meeting, the club members rehearsed their small group numbers, in preparation for the showcase. The name of the showcase has yet to be determined, however, the theme will focus on reasons to celebrate/holidays. Half of the club members are a part of the contemporary/lyrical, Valentine’s Day-themed number, while the other half are a part of the hip-hop/jazz, New Year’s Eve-themed number. Each of the groups are almost finished choreographing their respective dances.
At the end of the meeting, the entire group rehearsed the hip-hop-inspired, Halloween-themed number that they learned and performed in the previous semester.
At future meetings, Smith is planning on choreographing a Christmas-themed group number. It will most likely be inspired by musical theater dance or jazz. Additionally, there were discussions about a St. Patrick’s Day-themed tap number. If this idea comes to fruition, the tap dance will feature four of the club’s members.
Brookdale Community College’s Dance Club meets every Tuesday in PAC 101 from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., on the main campus. This club welcomes student dancers of all different levels and dance backgrounds. Many of the members have been dancing for over a decade, while for some members, the holiday-themed showcase will be their very first time being featured on stage.