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Earth Day Program: The Trees Are Singing!
Celebrate Earth Day with "The Trees are Singing!" (Los árboles están cantando), a
program of dance, poetry, and music with beautiful costumes and props. "Blue Sky"
(Cielo azul) is a dance with a billowing blue fabric that celebrates the great outdoors and
keeping our air clean. "Colors of the Rainbow" (Colores del arcoíris) is a vibrant dance
with colorful streamers. "Lotus Flower" (Flor de loto) depicts the peaceful beauty of a
white flower floating on a lake. Audience members learn the enchanting song of the
trees!
A Celebration of Women's Equality Day
In 2024, DWDC premiered a new program with live music,
A Celebration of Women’s Equality Day, featuring notable women artists from the ragtime era to the present.
A highlight was the premiere of “While Birds Fly Suite” to new music by singer/composer Tamuz Nissim.
The program included a Vaudeville Suite to music by May Aufderheide,
a Motown Dance to music by Martha Reeve and the Vandellas, Haitian Dance, Voguing, and a Mambo.
The Mambo included community members who took free dance workshops with Debra Weiss.
The program’s vocal selections paid tribute to Billy Holiday, Kay Swift,
Abby Lincoln, and Judy Garland. The program was funded, in part, by a grant
from the County of Rockland. The dance company is working on a sequel for 2025!
Bailes Latinos
Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with Bailes Latinos, a series of dance classes offered at
libraries in September and October. Bailes Latinos features dances from the Dominican
Republic, Mexico, Brazil, and Cuba. It is suitable for adults and teens; no previous
experience is necessary. No partner is needed, as students will learn line dance versions
of the Merengue, Mambo, Bachata, and other Latin dances. Instructor Dr. Debra Weiss is
the Artistic Director of the Debra Weiss Dance Company (DWDC), based in Rockland
County. Debra has been dancing professionally since age 13; she has performed
throughout the US and Europe.
A Celebration of American Dance!
In America Dances! the Debra Weiss Dance Company performs a social
history of US dance and fashion, from the Ragtime Era to the present. The
program includes a Vaudeville Dance to Scott Joplin, a Charleston from the
Roaring Twenties, Motown moves, Broadway tap dance, and Latin Dance.
Before the 1920s, ladies' fashions featured corsets and long gowns. After
women got the vote in 1920, they threw away their corsets and shortened
their skirts, allowing more freedom of movement. In recent decades, the
Latin influence has made Salsa and Merengue staples of American dance.
MLK Day 2025—Performance at Boca Raton Museum of Art
On January 20, 2025, DWDC premiered “100 Years of African American Dance,” a program
celebrating MLK Day and the Centennial of Boca Raton, at the Boca Raton Museum of Art. It
featured the Charleston and Ragtime Dance, with students from Florida Atlantic University.
Broadway Dance Program For Youth
From 1993 to 2004, the Debra Weiss Dance Company's Nyack Arts Exposure program offered children and teens professional
training in dance and musical theatre after school and over the summer. In 2017, the Debra Weiss Dance Company founded a new
after school program, Broadway Dance, for students in grades 3-9, near its new satellite office in Boca Raton, Florida.
Students perform in the community, at parks, youth
centers, and special events, including Martin Luther King Day.
View 2021 MLK Day Video
Healthy Snacks No-Cook Cookbook for Kids
In 2022, Broadway Dance (BD) launched the Healthy Living Youth Program, which
includes Healthy Eating and Healthy Bodies. In Healthy Eating, students learn
nutrition education through gardening and create healthy snacks out of fruits and
vegetables. Upon completion of the course, they receive our Healthy Snacks No-Cook
Cookbook for Kids, which features the healthy snacks they have made (see photos of
Kale Clown and Pepper Pinwheel). In Healthy Bodies, students learn dances such as
"Colors of the Garden" and "Vegetable Rap."
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