dance
Dance & Movement
Click below to explore our instructors and the classes offered.
Andres Liviola
African Dance & Drum
Andres Liviola
African Dance & Drum
Andres Liviola, a resident of Charleston, SC for over 14 years, is a seasoned musician and educator who specializes in traditional African drumming as a lead member of WOSE drum and dance company under the direction of Queen Atterberry. He educates people of all ages through group movement and polyrhythm, embracing creative expression and connectedness. Andres strives to engage the creative minds of young people to enrich their lives with a sense of purpose and community.
Annex Dance Company
Dance & Movement
Annex Dance Company
Dance & Movement
Annex Dance Company is a professional modern dance company rooted in modern dance tradition while pushing the boundaries of movement invention through relationships and intention. The company's creative process is collaborative and integrative of other art forms and inspirations that inform our work, which is why we love curriculum-based residencies! Using the standards and grade specific curriculum, students will use creative movement to explore dance composition elements such as shape, levels, dynamics, pathways, space, time, and effort. Most experiences will conclude with a dance created by the students in collaboration with the company. Experiences are usually taught by 2-3 Annex Dance Company members allowing for small group, partner, and individual work in class.
Common Denominator: Explore math through movement exercises including the use of number lines, addition, and subtraction. Students will be introduced to dance composition concepts such as shape, levels, and dynamics. There is opportunity for small group work as students create connected shapes and movement phrases to solve math problems.
With These Words: Focusing on literary works that span the curriculum, students will focus on using creative movement to explore composition elements such as shape, levels, dynamic pathways, space, time, and effort. Exploration of literary work will be more abstract, allowing for students to think outside the box as they create movement to represent the words and themes.
Forces and Motion: Students will explore the push and pull of bodies through space comparing speed and direction. Using position terms such as above and below, students will identify the position of created shapes in relation to one another. Students will explore balanced and unbalanced forces, and how they affect the rate and direction of motion.
Caroline Hoadley
Dance & Media Artist
Caroline Hoadley
Dance & Media Artist
Currently on the SCAC Artist Directory as a Teaching Artist, SC Certified Teacher of Dance, Dance Educators of America certification in teaching all levels, Kennedy Center trained Teaching Artist, BA in Media Arts, Residency Artist for over 30 years. Author of books on Dance.
*Dance Fine Art dance for fitness and focus, and classroom management
*Dance Integration: grade level subject area and standards integrated with creative movement dance or, in the case of social studies, actual cultural dances.
*Filmmaking craft and concepts for the 21st century videographer
Dancing with Ms. Nina
Chilenia Jamison
Dancing with Ms. Nina
Chilenia Jamison
Ms Nina is a Gullah Geechie native born in Charleston, SC who specializes in performing arts of West African Dance, songs, Gullah storytelling, African drumming, impactful monologues, fashion, song writing, hip-hop & African & Gullah history & culture. She is a fashion business & management graduate of the Art institute of Charleston who loves to share her art forms w/kids of the lowcountry & surrounding areas.
*Solar Dance w/Ms Nina: Students will learn about our solar system and all of its entities such as: our planets, our different moons, our Sun, asteroids, meteoroids & comets w/Ms Nina's "Did You Know Fun Facts" exercise demonstrated & taught w/ cohesive modern & classic hip-hop dance moves & rhythm. Students will also learn a song listing our planets in order closest to the Sun. Our little scholars will then partner into groups of at least 3 and team build and create their own dance routine using some of the moves they learned w/our "Did you know Fun Facts" exercise and some that they create themselves. Lastly, after presenting their cool new moves we will put all of their routines together and create a complete dance reflecting our solar system and all of it's great entities- Solar Dance w/Ms Nina
*Dancing in dynasties & empires w/Ms Nina: Students will learn about different dynasties and empires (which ones in particular are determine by grade level & curriculum standards) for example: Middle School: students will learn about the empires and dynasties of West Africa such as the Ghana, Mali & Songhai empires w/Ms Nina's "Did You Know Fun Facts" exercise demonstrated and taught w/ traditional and modern African, jazz, contemporary & hip-hop dance moves. Students will also learn 2 traditional West African chants that date back to the early 400 BC. Students will then be paired into groups and will be able to partner up, communicate with each other, team build and create a dance routine that reflects what they learned about the 3 dynasties of West Africa. Next, students will present their cool new dance routines. Finally, students will learn a fun upbeat afrobeat dance routine collectively as a class reflecting the 3 dynasties of West Africa: the Ghana, Mali, and Songhai empires.
*A taste of Gullah w/Ms Nina: Students will learn different aspects of the Gullah culture of Charleston, SC such as: it's history, customs, traditions, cuisines, fashion, language & a few influential leaders w/ Ms Nina's "Did You Know Fun Facts" excercise demonstrated and taught w/jazz, contemporary, African and lyrical dance moves. Students will also learn 2 Old spiritual songs that reflects the struggles of Africans brought to America during the early 1600s until the mid 1800s, communication to freedom from the plantations and the rise & perseverance of Gullah culture. Next, students will learn a traditional West African dance that reflects customs and traditions of Gullah Geechee people. Then students will be paired into groups of at least 3 to create their own dance routine representing Gullah traditions. After presenting what they created, students will then collaborate the traditional African dance they learned with their cool moves they created A Taste of Gullah production!
Jordan Maria Giancursio
Dance
Jordan Maria Giancursio
Dance
Jordan Giancursio (Benton) is a local professional dancer and choreographer. In addition to working in a company, she performs in multiple shows throughout the year. As a teacher, Jordan uses her performing skills to create fun and engaging experiences for students.
When creating ELEs, Jordan likes to study the content and create an experience that uses dance and relates to students on a different level. She crafts her ELEs to include movement that stimulates the brain, the body, and learning!
Simone Liberty
Dance & Musical Theater
Simone Liberty
Dance & Musical Theater
Simone is a teaching artist in Dance and Musical Theatre with over five years of teaching experience in her craft. She teaches with methods that encourage students to practice self-awareness, confidence, authenticity, and ownership. No matter the subject, standard, or grade level, students' confidence will be bolstered throughout the experiences. All experiences will include activities that encourage collaborations in small groups and creativity through student-led creations.
From Page to Stage teaches English Language Arts standards through student-written adaptations of popular or classic children's/young adult books. Students work together to create a script based on one story or book, and then take their script to the stage for performance. Students are encouraged to take ownership of their creativity and ability to conceptualize a performance. Through the experience, students will practice line memorization, stage presence, blocking, and character development while exploring grade-appropriate ELA standards.
For Every Action is a Musical Theatre-based experience teaching science curriculum through the study of action and reaction in theatre. Students will create a unique performance based on science concepts in which they become characters of the earth, the sea, or space. By the end of the week, students will have a 15-20 minute production - complete with song and stage blocking - to perform for their peers.
*For every action can also be taught through dance and choreography creation. Students will be encouraged to explore how the physical world reacts by studying concepts in dance such as time, weight, flow, space, shape, and even expression.
Once Upon A Lifetime is a Musical Theatre experience that teaches Social Studies standards through character development, creative movement, and song creation. Students will explore events and/or concepts through analysis, with the goal of creating a performance based on the event or concept being taught. Students will be reminded to consider: who are the characters and how they move. What do they do, and how do they do it? What is the setting and how do the characters interact with the setting? What similarities and differences can they draw between themselves and the characters? Our time together culminates with a small group or a full-class performance.