Kathlyn Cabrera ’14, a studio art major and apprentice at the Grinnell Arts Center, will be teaching a series of hip-hop dance and choreography classes every Friday from Feb. 7 to March 7. With a registration fee of 25 dollars, all participants will be able to enjoy a completely new dance experience, one that has never been offered by the Grinnell Area Arts Council (GAAC).
As an apprentice, Cabrera mostly plans events for the GAAC and advertises these events, but what she enjoys most about her position is being able to work on her own projects, such as her upcoming classes.
Cabrera’s idea for the project first emerged with the intention of giving members of the community a completely innovative experience in dance. A member of IndepenDance, a hip-hop dance group on campus, Cabrera had long been thinking about the opportunity to teach hip-hop dance.
“Part of the reason I wanted to teach this class is because [choreography] is a different skill than dancing. You can translate whatever style of dance that you want into something that’s more concrete,” Cabrera said.
The series of classes will take place every Friday from 7 to 8:30 p.m. According to Cabrera, as of now, 67 people have registered for the class. The age range of participants ranges from college students to people in their 60s.
“There’s a very diverse age group in the class and I would want [the participants] to feel a lot more comfortable by the end just being able to dance in a hip-hop style or any style they want, really. I want to get them, just, more confident,” Cabrera said.
During the first four sessions, participants will be practicing dance moves choreographed by Cabrera herself. However, in the final session, she will encourage participants to make their own choreographies using free expression and their personal styles.
“The hardest thing about hip-hop is sometimes following other peoples’ choreography because even if it’s hip-hop, sometimes it just not your style,” Cabrera explained. “If a girl is choreographing for a guy’s part, it gets lost in translation sometimes, too.”
Anyone still interested in registering can do so online at www.grinnellarts.org or in person by stopping by the Arts Center located on 926 Broad Street.
