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MN Dance Task Force: Next Meeting and Previous Minutes

MN Dance Task Force (MNDTF) is a group of community members who gather and focus on better supporting the dance community in Minnesota with an intentional focus on moving toward an equitable dance ecosystem.

To sign up and be included in future communications, please email mndancetaskforce@gmail.com.

Next MNDTF Meeting: Monday, May 19
4:45-5:00pm: Welcome new visitors
5:00-6:30pm: Hybrid meeting

Join in person at Center for Performing Arts or virtually over Zoom:
Meeting ID: 850 3135 3212
Passcode: 226744

Red Eye Presents: New Works 4 Weeks Festival

Red Eye Presents: New Works 4 Weeks Festival
May 22-June 14, Thursday-Saturday

A cornerstone of the Twin Cities arts landscape, Red Eye’s New Works 4 Weeks Festival is an annual gathering for performance works that challenge dominant culture. Each year, artist cohorts engage in mutual support and dialogue that culminates in this public sharing.

This year’s works meet our current moment: journeying, unraveling, and remembering, asking how we might stomach the horrors as well as how we might tend to seeds. The 2025 festival extends the sharing of process and emphasizes connection, with an expanded group of festival producers, an embedded writer, and post-performance engagements each week.

May 22-24: Works-in-Progress with Bri Blakey, snem DeSellier, D Hunter, Jess Kiel-Wornson, and Taylor West
May 29-31: J.H. Shuǐ Xiān and Charles Campbell
June 5-7: aegor ray and Margaret Ogas
June 12-14: Rachel Sadie Lieberman and Akiko

More information and tickets at www.redeyetheater.org.

Pay-as-you-wish, suggested $17-70. If cost is a barrier, please email boxoffice@redeyetheater.org for discount ticket options. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Audition for the Phipps Junior Dance Company

Auditions for Phipps Junior Dance Company (PJDC) will be held in person in the Dance Studio at the Phipps Center for the Arts on May 27 and 29. The Phipps Junior Dance Company provides young dancers with the opportunity to challenge their technique and artistry on a higher level in a non-competitive setting. This company is an auditioned group of 10 to 13-year-old dancers from the Hudson area, directed by Greta Lewis and Megan Bauer.

This audition is open to dancers in grades 5-8.
Fill out the PJDC Audition Form.

Dancers must attend both days:
May 27, 4:30-6:00pm: Dancers will learn the combinations and skills needed to audition.
May 29, 4:30-6:00pm: Dancers will perform those combinations and skills for a panel of judges.

What to bring:
Any athletic dance clothing that you are comfortable moving and dancing in.
All types of dance shoes you own (ballet, tap, jazz, turners, etc.).
A water bottle.

The Oldest Deer – The Longest Path – The Highest Bough

Off-Leash Area’s newest original production, The Oldest Deer – The Longest Path – The Highest Bough, invites audiences on an imaginative journey of transformation: set at the edge of a darkly mystical forest a ghostly herd of deer emerge from another time and space to deliver an invitation to transformation. Off-Leash Area builds an immersive space of projection art and physical performance drawn from world mythology.

In this, the company’s 36th original production, Off-Leash Area combines dance, physical theater, and original music, all performed within an installation of projection art for a most creative and immersive experience. This production also continues Off-Leash Area’s partnership with Young Dance, whose mission is transforming lives through movement. The Oldest Deer – The Longest Path – The Highest Bough will continue Off-Leash Area’s long run of presenting singular, imaginative, and uncompromising performance works. 

Friday, May 30 at 7:30pm
Saturday, May 31 at 7:30pm

Admission is by sliding scale, $10-30 suggested donation.

Featured Artists
Cast (all-abilities and multi-generational): Jim Lieberthal, Christine Maginnis, Piper Rolfes, Lexi Samara, Jesse Schmitz-Boyd, Julie Warder, Jennifer Ilse, and Paul Herwig
Direction and Choreography: Co-Artistic Director Jennifer Ilse in collaboration with the cast
Projection and Installation Art: Co-Artistic Director Paul Herwig
Original Music and Sound: Reid Kruger
Poetry: Athena Kildegaard

CoreAlign® Teacher Training at Paragon Pilates and Physical Therapy

In Balanced Body® CoreAlign 1: Foundations Instructor Training, learn the CoreAlign and its versatility in strengthening, stretching, conditioning and functional movement in clients of all abilities. At Paragon, we offer CoreAlign Teacher Training for fitness professionals, movement educators and rehab clinicians.

This course includes CoreAlign method theory and 60+ foundation exercises to build functional movement skills. Areas of focus are trunk integration, upper body strength and balance, lower body strength, power, gait, and dynamic flexibility. Variations for all ability levels and specific modifications and precautions for special populations are covered, as well as equipment set up, maintenance and safety.

Friday, May 30, 4:00-8:00pm
Saturday, May 31, 11:30am-6:00pm
Sunday June 1, 9:30am-4:30pm

Fee: $499 + $60 materials ($549 after May 9)
Instructor: Matthew Hodge-Rice

Audition for the Phipps Dance Company

Auditions will be held for Phipps Dance Company (PDC) in person in the Dance Studio at the Phipps Center for the Arts on May 31. This non-competitive, performance-based dance company is made up of auditioned dancers in grades 9-12. The Company performs at a variety of events around the Twin Cities area and ends its year with an annual concert performance at the Phipps in March.

This audition is open to dancers in grades 9-12.
Dancers must fill out the PDC Audition Form.

Auditions: May 31, 9:45am-12:15pm
Sign in and warm up: 9:45-10:15am
Audition: 10:15am-12:15pm

What to bring:
Any athletic dance clothing that you are comfortable moving and dancing in.
All types of dance shoes you own (ballet, tap, jazz, turners, etc.).
A water bottle.

Director Christina Leines: kleines@spacestar.net
Associate Director Stephanie Campbell: stephaniewithprima@gmail.com

Free Early Bird Dance Party at Communal Studio

Do you love to dance but can’t stand the club scene or can’t stay up late? We’ve got the event for you!

Free Early Bird Dance Party for 21+
Saturday, May 31, 7:00-10:00pm

Come, bring your friends, party like it’s 1999, and then go to bed at a reasonable hour.
We will have great music and fancy lights to get you in the mood.

Please register as we have limited space although drop ins are welcome too!

Summer Kathak Classes with Katha Dance Theatre

Katha Dance Theatre: Summer Session
June 1 – July 29
In-person or virtual Kathak classes.

New students will be introduced to this dynamic storytelling dance tradition in a supportive and welcoming environment. Returning students will spend the first half of each class refining technique and the second half learning a complete dance sequence that can be performed at Diwali celebrations.

This summer, we are so excited to announce a new class format: Parent & Me, a parent-child recreational dance class for children ages 3-5. The Parent & Me class will allow preschool-age kids and their caregivers to explore how to tell stories creatively and in a fun way through games, basic Indian dance movements, hand gestures, music and rhythm.

Children ages 6+ and teen/adult dancers will discover the fundamentals of Kathak dance in a welcoming and supportive environment. This eight-week series introduces key techniques such as basic movements, footwork, spins and storytelling techniques helping students build confidence, coordination and creative expression. The session will culminate with an informal in-studio showing for students’ family. All new beginner classes will be taught by KDT instructor and Company member Shilpi Chatterjee.

These classes will be led by KDT Artistic Director and master teacher Rita Mustaphi. They’ll serve as a one-of-a-kind opportunity for beginners through advanced students to refine their skills, push themselves, and have fun in an eight-week session led by one of this world’s finest Kathak gurus.

Enroll now on our website.

Enrollment Deadline: June 5

Lines in the Dirt

Troupe Rendezvous presents Line in the Dirt, an aerial arts, partner acrobatic and dance production.

In this piece, five artist follow the journey of a white pine through germination, growth, weathering a storm, and finally to decay, reminding us that everything is connected. The show will also feature pieces by aerialist Josephine Hoffman and dancer Cecil “Virgo” Neal.

Bring a blanket or chair and come early to explore the sculpture park!

Saturday, June 7 at 7:00pm
Sunday, June 8 at 2:00pm

Run time is about an hour. A 1/4 mile walk is required to get to the stage from the parking lot; golf cart shuttles are available upon request.

Minnesota Dance Theatre: Performing Arts Division Summer Programs

Minnesota Dance Theater’s Performing Arts Division (PAD) summer programs are designed to expand upon MDT&S’s classical ballet-based curriculum, seamlessly integrating contemporary dance styles, innovative choreography, and classical repertoire. All classes are led by the esteemed MDT faculty and exciting guest teachers, with live piano accompaniment enriching most classes.

All classes are aimed for dancers who have mastered the fundamentals of ballet technique. Classes will include: ballet technique, pre-pointe, pointe, men’s repertoire, choreography, contemporary technique, jazz, character, conditioning/strength and more.

Classes are taught by esteemed MDT staff, and internationally recognized choreographer, Gemma Bond (ABT and The Royal Ballet), and Katie Deuitch (Ballet Austin), among others. Stay tuned for updates!

Session Dates: 
June 9-13, 9:30am-4:00pm 
June 16-20, 9:30am-4:00pm
June 23-27, 9:30am-4:00pm 

PAD summer program classes are divided into three levels: Level 1 for ages 8-10, Level 2 for ages 10-13 and Level 3 for ages 13-18. Level placement will be determined by age and experience level and is at the discretion of MDT&S staff. Please enroll based on age, and email school@mndance for any questions.

Registration is open until Thursday, May 15.

For more information visit Minnesota Dance Theatre: Performing Arts Division Summer Program.