MOVING FORWARD FUND

BLACK LIVES MATTER

Dear LMP Community,
We call upon you to listen, learn, and pay attention to the unrelenting harm being done to Black people in our country. It is time to recognize and say out loud that white dominant culture is dangerously pervasive everywhere, including in dance education. In order to disrupt and dismantle structural racism, we need to identify it within our own institutions and organizations, and then hold ourselves accountable to do the work every day.

At Local Motion Project, we are confronting the white supremacy in dance that has long privileged euro-centric dance forms such as ballet and modern, that has lacked representation of Black bodies in ballet, and that has culturally appropriated and trivialized dance forms outside of the white normative teachings.

We invite you into an ongoing conversation that pushes and challenges limited viewpoints, and makes space for the voices of Black people in dance. This is an ever-evolving conversation that will remain at the core of our organization.

In pursuit of shared humanity,
Sara Lavan, Founder, Co-Artistic Director, and Executive Director
Kylie Murray, Co-Artistic Director and Chief Operating Officer

MISSION

Our mission is to bring people together in meaningful experiences through the art of dance and movement.

VISION

Our vision is that all people will engage with dance and other movement arts to expand and deepen the human experience.

WHAT WE DO

At Local Motion Project, we strive to elevate dance in Alexandria through education, participation, and observation. We believe in the power that collective movement experiences can have on well-being, and we center dance as a means for expression, connection, and human understanding. Founded in 2016 as a youth dance program, we have grown to provide programming for youth and adults alike.

Dance has the ability to share stories, bring communities together, and create spaces for multiple perspectives to be heard and seen. We are committed to sharing these opportunities with Alexandrians of all backgrounds and encouraging people of all ages to find movement they love.

Programs

We believe in giving people agency over their experience, creating an equitable learning environment, and utilizing dance education as a means for positive personal, communal, and social change.

We offer adult classes including dance, somatic movement, aerial hammock and a variety of workshops. Our approach lifts up the importance of movement as it relates to well-being, tapping into creativity, and as a means for building community.

Our youth dance program uses a dynamic approach and a progressive dance curriculum that teaches students to create, perform, and understand movement as a form of artistic expression.

PERFORMANCE

ADULT ENSEMBLE

Our adult dance ensemble is comprised of a diverse group of women in various stages of life, both personally and professionally. The ensemble work is rooted in a passion for creating live art in which artists’ ideas are integral to the work. Giving women a voice in later stages of life and a place to be creative is one of our values as we expand the idea of who gets to dance.

YOUTH ENSEMBLE

Our youth dance ensemble is comprised of dancers aged 9-14 who are students at the Local Motion Project Movement Arts Center. This ensemble embodies the progressive, comprehensive, and collaborative approach of the curriculum of the dance school, while challenging dancers to find new ways to express themselves and go deeper into their training.

DANCE INTEGRATION RESIDENCIES

Our dance integration program annually serves 400 students in Alexandria City Public Schools in grades K-5. Dance integration is an approach to teaching in which students demonstrate understanding of classroom curriculum through dance making. It engages all students including English Language Learners and students with special needs. Teachers participate in all parts of the program and receive continuing education credits for recertification.

For more information on brining dance integration to your school, contact Kylie Murray at kmurray@localmotionproject.org.

PARTIES & RENTALS

Youth Parties

Creative Dance Party

Outdoors @ Jones Point: Gather friends and family for a dance celebration! Plenty of space, and options for families and friends to safely gather afterward if desired.

60-Minute Party $125

Online: Let us bring your child’s friends together in an online dance party! Using a password protected zoom meeting, your child will delight in seeing friends dance together in a creative dance class. A bonus feature is that it will be easy for family and friends from afar to join in!

45-Minute Party $75

Kids Aerial Birthday Parties
Give your kids and their friends the gift of flight and enjoy cake in the lobby afterwards. For ages 9 and up.
$345 – 9 children maximum

Girl Scout Badge Classes
We welcome you to experience dance! Earn your Dancer Badge by learning a dancer’s warm-up, trying out new dance moves, and creating your own dance with your friends!
$150 – 8 children max in studio, 15 children max online

Rehearsal Rentals

Our studio space is 1000 sq. ft. with padded wood flooring, a marley floor covering and equipped with 1 mirror wall, ballet barre, and sound system.

Rates per hour:
Group Rate: $50
Nonprofit Group Rate: $30
Individual Practice Rate: $25

All rentals require a Local Motion Project Rental Agreement.

Private Aerial Classes

Aerial classes are a great way to spend time with friends or co-workers. Contact us for more information.

For more information on rehearsal rentals, parties, and special events contact Sarah Craig at scraig@localmotionproject.org.

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SUPPORT THE PROJECT

MAKE A DONATION

Local Motion Project has been generously supported by:

Office of the Arts