Portland Youth Dance Company & Outreach

“These young kids, teens, and instructors have truly inspired me to continue to befriend dance and to step out there with confidence and vulnerability, fully and completely, in dance and in life!”

All I want to do is dance! I have been taking beginner jazz at Casco Bay Movers Dance Studio in Portland with Susan Thompson-Brown, and it just feels so good to move to music, connect, and express myself in this way. There is so much I am experiencing on an emotional level in my life right now, and it feels like I can let it all out on the dance floor and be filled up and recharged at the same time.  I am tired of the voice in my head, I am tired of speaking, or trying to figure things out, or make sense of... On the dance floor, something else is happening.  I am expressing myself without words, telling a story without my voice. Sometimes it feels like through choreography, I am journaling my “stuff” through my body-through chassés, tondus, isolations, my flexed foot, my shuffle ball chain. I am so grateful that I have found this art of dance and it’s never too late to start something new!

This past Saturday, I went to watch the spring show of the Portland Youth Dance Company at Scarborough High School. The Portland Youth Dance Company & Outreach is a non profit youth dance company that also provides free Outreach programs in the community and scholarships for those in-need. It originated in 1998 out of Casco Bay Movers and was partly created as an alternative to competitive dance. It cultivates personal artistic growth for youth, while striving for creative excellence in dance.  How cool!

I was near to tears of joy as I watched some of the younger kids moving and grooving to beats performing without hesitation and just putting themselves out there in front of a packed audience. Oh, how I wish I could have been that brave and fearless as a young child when I would go out on the ice and perform in skating competitions and shows. The Portland Youth Dance show included a variety of dances from samba to modern to hip hop to tap with performers probably ranging from ages 7-18. 

After watching this show, I left feeling absolutely inspired and full of joy. I could feel the love and passion for dance these performers had, and for many of them, I could feel it is in their blood, part of who they are. It was a beautiful experience to witness.  These young kids, teens, and instructors have truly inspired me to continue to befriend dance and to step out there with confidence and vulnerability, fully and completely, in dance and in life!