PARK DANCING

"All in a moment, my dream of an intergenerational
dance troupe came true."

~Returning Participant

"She was just glowing -- with this radiating smile the whole time she danced."-Meredith, mother of 10 year old dancing participant

SUPPORT PARK DANCING - DONATE TODAY!

ST★RLIGHT A WINTER SOLSTICE DANCE
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 15TH 5 PM

EASY TO LEARN - INTERGENERATIONAL, ALL AGES WELCOME!
NO EXPERIENCE NECESSARY - LIVE MUSIC!

~BRING YOUR LIGHT - LITERALLY! BRING LANTERNS OR A FLASHLIGHT WE CAN DIFFUSE WITH COLORED TISSUE PAPER (WE'LL HAVE MATERIALS ON HAND!)

~FOR THOSE WHO HAVE PAPER LANTERNS (LIKE ME WHO HAS HAD ONE FROM MY SON'S KINDERGARTEN CLASS HANGING IN A CLOSET FOR FIVE YEARS), LET'S REUSE YOUR BEAUTIFUL CREATIONS AND BRING THEM TO LIFE AGAIN!

**THIS IS NOT REQUIRED TO PARTICIPATE, COME DANCE - THERE WILL BE PLENTY OF LIGHT TO SHARE!

~WEAR YOUR WARMEST COMFORTABLE CLOTHES, MITTENS, GLOVES, AND COMFY SHOES

~SEATED DANCING WELCOME! BENCHES AND CHAIRS ON-SITE

WE WILL BE JOINED AGAIN BY ACCLAIMED MUSICIANS LYDIA LOWERY BUSLER AND DOV MICHAEL SCHILLER OF TRADEWINDS IMPROV ENSEMBLE (TIE)!
MORE ON TIE AT WWW.TRADEWINDSIMPROV.COM

WARMING SPACE WILL BE AVAILABLE, HOT BEVERAGES VERY LIKELY TO BE ON HAND. MORE DETAILS TO COME!

THE CENTER COMMONS IS LOCATED IN WATERBURY CENTER ADJACENT TO THE GRANGE HALL CULTURAL CENTER (GHCC), BETWEEN HOWARD AVENUE, MAPLE STREET, AND GUPTIL ROAD.
FOR GPS DIRECTIONS, USE 317 HOWARD AVE, WATERBURY CENTER, VT 05677

THE COMMONS IS WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBLE. ADA PARKING DESIGNATED AT THE GHCC. THE PARK CAN BE ACCESSED EASILY BY WHEELCHAIR ON TWO SIDES WITHOUT ANY STEP OR GRADE TO TRANSCEND/ASCEND.
RESTROOMS ARE ADA ACCESSIBLE AT THE GHCC. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT ACCESSIBILITY, PLEASE REACH OUT TO ALANA.

Alana Rancourt Phinney (MFA) is a Vermont-based dance artist. She has been facilitating creative movement programming for varied populations for over twenty years. In 2013, she founded Park Dancing in the Philadelphia area to provide opportunities to the community to move together to promote shared creative engagement and wellness. She is thrilled to bring Park Dancing to Waterbury Center!

Park Dancing is supported by Across Roads Center for the Arts, Grange Hall Cultural Center, and Revitalizing Waterbury.

WHAT'S IT LIKE?

"Alana is a gem to work with and her work is a gem. Alana’s Park Dancing projects are informed by a profound respect for how individuals can actively participate in the building of community. An opportunity to dance with Alana is an opportunity to feed your soul, nurture relationships and affirm the truth that we are all better off for the strength and beauty we find in unity."

"Making dances with Alana is as satisfying and nourishing as the freshest, most lovingly prepared meal. She supports the dancer in all of us through her deep understanding of dance as a necessary and natural part of life. I'm grateful to Alana for opening the door for me as an older dancer with physical limitations who still wants to move."

Debby Rosan, Ardmore, PA

Olivia Gay, Calais, VT

“Alana was so warm and made us feel comfortable.
The movements were relaxing and accessible.”

“Park dancing is a joy because I get to play with movement, in the moment, inspired by the sights and sounds around me, and shaped by the people who are dancing with me!”

Karen Litzinger, Pittsburgh, PA, Spring Bloom (on Zoom) Participant

Sarah Schlechter, Bala Cynwyd, PA

“Thanks, Alana! I hope there will be more opportunities to dance with you in the future. Go team!”
“Thanks so much, Alana! What fun we had - you were amazing throughout!”
“Under your wonderful guidance we really pulled off a fun flash mob.”

"I love having the space to play."
"The space between us creates the movement!"
"This experience was such a gift."
"My body feels new to me!"

Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Fall 2018

5-Week Workshop, Spring 2021

A BRIEF HISTORY

Park Dancing began in 2013 in a small, idyllic park located in Ardmore, PA, near Philadelphia. It was a venture/adventure driven by the desire to build community and make dance available to everyone, regardless of skill-level or age, and as participant in roles of either dancer or witness, in the artfully designed Linwood Park.

Nearly four years of site-specific dance concerts and improvisational happenings were presented as public art and community building events. The memories are so very fond and the friendships made still persist across lands. Thank you to Friends of Linwood Park for constant support and enthusiasm. May we dance there again some day!