ClancyWorks Dance Company:
Dance for Good
At ClancyWorks Dance Company, the motto is “shifting perceptions through performance and education.”
Founded in 2001 by Dr. Adrienne Clancy, ClancyWorks focuses on positive social action through community engagement, senior citizen programs and arts education.
“Adrienne attacks everything with an equal amount of passion and enthusiasm,” said ClancyWorks intern Maia Stam, a senior at Goucher College.
ClancyWorks offers four strands of arts education – in-school K-12 residencies, in singular assembly presentations, in after school programs and through college and university residencies.
“Youth development is really at the core of our educational work,” Erin Tunbridge, Program Coordinator, said in an interview.
They partner with multiple organizations, including Excel Beyond the Bell and the DEA Youth Dance Program.
“We like to make sure there are also special representatives from the DEA,” Erin said. “Students are seeing how being part of this program is creating a community within itself. They’re building community with peers, learning about teamwork and problem solving.”
Board member Camille Harris came to know ClancyWorks as the director of The Boys and Girls Club of Silver Spring, when she offered daytime practice space in exchange for dance classes for the kids in afterschool attendance.
I believe in their mission,” Camille said. “I believe arts in education is very important. It keeps kids busy and keeps them occupied in something that is developing them as well as keeping them off the streets.”
ClancyWorks Dance Company:
ASPIRE to be Superheroes
ASPIRE.
Acquire Knowledge. Solve Conflicts. Partner to accomplish greater goals. Improve academic achievement. Respect self, others, and the environment. Embrace community and diversity
This is the philosophy employed by ClancyWorks Dance Company in its facets of arts education work. Through the concept of ASPIRE, students learn about social consciousness and about becoming active, engaged citizens in their communities.
Students keep journals, write informal critiques, and learn not just dance steps, but job and life skills. Each student is given the opportunity to take on a leadership role.
"It's not just that whoever is loudest is the leader," said program coordinator Erin Tunbridge.
“(ClancyWorks) has helped to boost my confidence. I will forever remember this class because it has been educational, fun and very interesting.”
-8th grade student, Neelsville Middle School
“This is such a cool class! Before, I was a little nervous about dancing around others even though I previously took a dance class. They were people I didn’t know. I learned fast though that my friends and peers support me. I’ve learned many types of dance and it’s all so fun.” - 10th grade student, Watkins Middle School
Be Your Own Superhero:
Eleventh grade girls at West Potomac High School were challenged to create their own super heroines, using the dance process as a means of brainstorming. The goal was to create characters who could make a difference in the world around them. One student reflected:
"Although we may not have known it at first, the powers and characteristics that we chose for our superheroes deeply represented the inner traits that were hidden within ourselves -- the traits we knew we had but were too afraid to reveal; or the traits that we always had and never knew about. Interestingly enough we all had the same idea -- a female superhero that broke the stereotypes, and bettered our community and the world."
ClancyWorks Dance Company:
SOARing High
You're never too old to dance.
Okay, so The SOAR (Seniors Organized in the Arts to Rejuvenate) program at ClancyWorks Dance Company might not be a training ground for an NBA hip hop dance team, but it provides a physical and mental workout for seniors aged 55 to 98. Which is pretty badass in its own right.
"It’s an opportunity for (seniors) to get together and open up different parts of their lives," said Erin Tunbridge, program coordinator at ClancyWorks. "Rather than just meeting each other and talking about the weather, we’re initiating different conversations."
The classes include both seated and standing work for a variety of agility levels. Much of the focus, Erin said, is on using dance to exercise the memory as well as the body. Students might be asked to choose a word to complete a sentence, and offer a movement to go along with the word. They're tasked to remember each movement, then to put them all together. Et voila, a dance!
Now, doesn't that sound more fun than flashcards?