Friday, April 29, is International Dance Day and Nelson will be celebrating with back-to-back community dance gatherings open to all on the 29th and 30th at the North Shore Hall. The gatherings are hosted by Ecstatic Dance Nelson and The Greater Groove with music provided by Nelson’s Apukuna. Both dances embrace the values of inclusivity, respect, consent, and free expression. Events are substance-free, phone-free, and the dance portion is talking-free.
The two events will culminate on Saturday, April 30 with the afternoon dance acting as a fundraiser for the newly-formed Reach Out in the Kootenays — a website that hosts a community of 40 therapists who are providing no-cost and low-cost counselling and therapy. The website is one of three services created in response to the passing of West Kootenay resident Mike Cole who took his life in January of this year.
The other two services on the website are a friend’s helpline and an education program for people to learn how to better support struggling friends. Reach Out is entirely supported by local donations and is a volunteer-run project in service to supporting a healthy and safe community (www.reachoutinthekootenays.com). The April 30 event is hosted by The Greater Groove and its Dance4Change series that raises money each time for a different organization or cause that is doing good in the world. Dance4Change events have raised over $5,191 to date.
The Friday event hosted by Ecstatic Dance Nelson will carry the theme of Reaching In, inviting participants to explore and support their own inner health and wellness by using movement and dance to strengthen our individual capacity to care for ourselves.
The Saturday event on the other hand will carry the theme of Reaching Out — inviting participants to come together as a community to dance, to express, and to embody what it means to hold and celebrate each other as a community. Having fun, dancing with joy, exercising our smiles and expressing laughter are strongly encouraged!
Both events will be held at North Shore Hall, 675 Whitmore Road. Parking is limited.
April 29:
Doors open at 7:15 p.m.; Opening circle and dance at 7:30 to 9:15 p.m.; closing circle at 9:15 p.m. Tickets are $12 plus tax online at https://tinyurl.com/2n3nbht5, or $15 at the door.
April 30:
Doors open at 3:15 p.m., followed by an introduction at 3:45. Dance begins at 4 p.m.; closing circle at 6 p.m.
Suggested donation of $10-$20 in support of Reach Out in the Kootenays. If you can’t donate, just show up and dance guilt-free.