21ST CENTURY CLASSROOM
Dance fever takes over St. Albans City School
By MITCH CRAIB and MEG JARVIS
St. Albans City School
ST. ALBANS — On January 26, approximately 900 students and staff gathered for a wholeschool assembly to watch and participate in a Karen Amirault’s Dance Company and KIDZ performance. The show was engaging, delighting both students and staff. The audience loved the high energy and the obvious passion the dancers exhibited for their craft. The talented performers ranged in age from 9 to 61 years old.
Karen and Kidz showcased dances in a variety of jazz styles from the company’s repertoire, including hip hop, African and Broadway. What students and staff witnessed opened the audience’s minds to dance possibilities that they may not have considered before. Perhaps the best move of the dance company was to engage the audience by inviting dozens of students to join them in the last minutes of the performance, much to the delight of the new participants and the audience. This dance troupe made dancing seem exciting and accessible.
So who are the Karen Amirault Dance Company and KIDZ? It’s a group of mostly youthful performers inspired and managed by the very athletic Karen Amirault since the early 1980’s. Karen has danced and taught as a Vermont Arts Council sponsored Artist-in-Residence throughout the state of Vermont. Along the way she has found student talent to join her troupe. Typically Karen tries to make a powerful impact by committing to one to two weeks of dance instruction at any given school. Her work has proven so popular that schools have frequently invited Karen a half dozen times or more over a period of years. Most of her residencies culminate in a performance by the school’s students and an invitation for the audience of parents and friends to join in. That will be the case for St. Albans City School as well. The Artistin- Residence grant from the Vermont Arts Council is funding much of this program.
In the next few weeks Karen will work with 3rd, 4th, 7th and 8th graders over four days in consecutive weeks. A final dance will be shared on February 16 at St. Albans City School’s Unified Arts Night, an event that attracts hundreds of families and community members to the school. Karen and her performers know how to help people discover their talents and joy in moving. “Everyone can dance” believes Karen and her troupe of dancers.
Top: Karen Amirault Dance Company dancers perform at a St. Albans City School Assembly. Above: Students at St. Albans City School join the dancers at the end of the program.
Link to The Messenger Newspaper
