A special opportunity to train with one of Detroit’s finest dance professionals, Michael Woodberry Means, is being offered at the YMCA. Mr. Means will lead weekly classes for teens and adults in ballet and modern dance beginning on Saturday, January 9 and running through Saturday, February 20. The classes take place at the Boll Family YMCA, 1401 Broadway, in downtown Detroit and are a program of YArts, the Arts & Humanities Branch of the Metropolitan Detroit YMCA.
“Intermediate Ballet” is scheduled from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. and focuses on developing and establishing classical ballet technique. Floor barre work and centre floor dancing are emphasized to improve the leaps, jumps and turns of the intermediate level dancer.
“Modern Dance” follows from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. and is designed for the advanced beginner and intermediate dancer. Exciting techniques from modern dance legends Lester Horton, Martha Graham and Jose Limon are introduced and practiced in the class.
Michael Woodberry Means was awarded the 2009-10 Michigan Dance Council Teacher of the Year. A former member of the Peter Sparling Dance Company, Michael is a certified dance instructor for K-12 students and adults.
Class fees are only $35 for each seven week session. Online registration is available for YMCA members by visiting the website: ymcadetroit.org. Nonmembers may register at the Boll Family YMCA or call 313-309-9622. Funding from the YMCA Endowment Fund supports participation by Detroit area teens in the dance program.
I applaud the Y for this wonderful cultural opportunity. As the mother of a teen African American male ballet dancer, I am delighted!
As an African American black male I am so thankful that someone has taken the initiative here in the city of Detroit to offer beginning classes for adults in Ballet and Modern dance. Though I may not have the opportunity to dance professionally, I am truly thankful to have the opportunity just to DANCE and Dance with a “STAR” at that!