Archive: Workshops, Intensives, Master Classes, and Open Houses

James Sewell Ballet is delighted to have Jennifer Hart with us for a 2-hour master class. Please note that this class replaces our normal open class programming on February 5. This class requires special registration – click here.

Jennifer Hart is the Founder of Performa/Dance and the Curriculum Manager/Resident Instructor at Ballet Austin. Jennifer has been hailed as a choreographer “with an imagination so exuberant that one could not be sure how one movement led to the next” and “not only inventive but heart-rending.” JSB fans will remember Jennifer’s work on the company: Bloom (2019) and Lightspace (2007).

For more information about Jennifer and to check out some of her work, visit her website.

Classes will take place in beautiful Studio 2B at the Cowles Center in downtown Minneapolis. Cost is $20.

Monday, February 5
9:30-11:30am

Threads Dance Project Presents Tapestries 8.0 Masterclasses

What is Tapestries 8.0?
Threads Dance Project commissions 3 emerging choreographers selected by an expert panel of dance/community leaders to create new works for the company under the guidance of Artistic/Executive Director Karen L. Charles. Tapestries provides a much-needed avenue for underrepresented women and artists of color to take center stage in the world of professional choreography.

What are the Tapestries 8.0 Masterclasses?
The Tapestries 8.0 Masterclasses are intimate and engaging opportunities for you to learn from the master themselves. Each of our choreographers will guide you into learning the fundamentals and will hone your skills from their wealth of knowledge. They will showcase to you why they were chosen to be a part of Tapestries!

Averie Mitchell-Brown: Hip-Hop
February 5-20 on Tuesdays and Thursdays
Tuesdays: 9:00-10:30am
Thursdays: 9:00-10:00am

Da’Rius Malone: Contemporary, Ballet
March 11 – 26 on Mondays and Tuesdays
Mondays: 9:00-10:30am – Contemporary
Tuesdays: 9:00-10:30am – Ballet

Pay as you come. No prior registration needed: $12.

Learn ballet at any age! This 8-week Ballet Fundamentals Session will teach adult students the basic steps of ballet, how combinations in class are built and the history and roots of ballet terminology. No ballet or dance experience necessary!

Spring Session: February 8-March 28, 2024
Thursdays, 6:15-7:30pm

Attire: Leotard (any color) and tights (pink or skin tone) or yoga apparel.
Teaching Artist: Zoé Henrot or Anna Betz
Tuition: $145

On Monday, February 19, spend your day off from school exploring new dance styles with your friends! Classes include Family Dance and Creative Movement for younger dancers. Dancers 7 years and older can explore a morning of Dance + Photography and/or afternoon Variety Camp—bring a lunch and take both offerings for a full day of dancing!

Family Dance 
Join us for a morning of dancing together. Children and caregivers will get a special start to their day, exploring movement and stories in a fun environment. Taught by Judee Shuǐ Xiān.
Ages 1-6 with caregiver
9:15-10:00am
$15

Dance a Story
Your little one can explore movement possibilities with a focus on storytelling. Using personal experience and imagination, children will spend time expressing stories in their bodies and minds. In this fun-filled class, children develop large and fine motor skills, coordination, rhythm, and listening skills as they go on their creative adventures. Taught by Denise Gagner.
Ages 4-7
10:00am-12:00pm
$25

Dance + Photography*
Experience the intersection of dance and photography! Participants will use photography to consider how bodies create shape and transform from 3-dimensional experiences to 2-dimensional images. Teaching Artist and professional photographer Blake Nellis teaches this camp. Participants will receive a link to photographs taken during the workshop by the Instructor and professional photographer, Blake Nellis.
Ages 7-18
9:30am-12:00pm
$42
*A digital device with photography capabilities is recommended but not required.

Variety Dance Camp
In Variety Camps, participants will dip their toes in different dance styles and find new ways of expressing themselves through movement. In this year’s camp, students will learn Capoeira with Guerreiro, Modern with Jennifer Ilse, and Hip Hop with Cecil Neal. At the end of the workshop, students will show off their new moves in an informal showing for their caregivers.
Ages 7-18
12:30-4:30pm
$68

Multiple class discounts apply. Register at: register.youngdance.org.

March 6-April 24, 2024
Wednesdays, 8:00-9:30am
Pre-registration required – no drop-ins.

Early bird registration now open: $120
After February 6: $160
Registration closes: February 25
Register here.

Contemporary Forms
The core themes of this practice will include sensory exploration, movement as meditation, and engaging with the body’s intuition. In each class, we will move through improvisation and phrase work to engage the senses and awaken the body. Movement material will have an expansive, animal-like virtuosity. Over the course of the series, we will extend phrase work, using imagery and prompts from our research to explore individual choice-making. This series is designed for intermediate/advanced movers who are interested in researching their unique movement modalities in a space based in curiosity and joy.

Sarah McCullough (she/her) is a Minneapolis-based movement artist and educator. Originally from Virginia, she attended James Madison University and earned her BA in Dance and Mathematics. Since joining Minneapolis’ dance community in 2018, she has performed the works of Carl Flink, Mathew Janczewski, Alexandra Bodnarchuk, Berit Ahlgren, Helen Hatch, Marisol Herling, and more. Alongside her performance work, Sarah is an educator in contemporary forms. While at JMU, she served as Co-Director of JMU’s Associate Dance Ensemble where she led a weekly company class and mentored 20 first-year dance majors in the early stages of their collegiate dance journey. She has led classes at the Limón Twin Cities Intensive, ARENA DANCES’ Instinct Summer Intensive, The University of Winchester (UK), North Carolina State University, as well as several high school dance programs and studios across Minnesota and Virginia.

Friday, February 2: 6:30–8:00pm
Center for Performing Arts, Studio 105w – next to 38th Street entrance.

This event is open to people of all ages and abilities. Enjoy being present in the moment, responding to other dancers, finding new ways of moving, and discovering form as it emerges during this fun evening of creative movement. We’ll begin with an informal warm-up, then improvise together based on movement ideas offered by participants.

Musician Dave Stagner will enhance our in-the-moment creations with his incredible guitar playing, and Klee Burke will help us wind down with her beautiful sound bowl playing. A fun and relaxing evening for all!

Come to move, to dance, to observe, or some of each!

Suggested donation $5-$15
No one turned away for lack of funds.

Balanced Body® Orbit Training
Friday, February 2: 2:00-5:00pm
Friday, February 16: 2:00-5:00pm

Fee: $195 + $50 manual
In person or online.

Developed by Octavio Galindo, the Orbit is a simple yet extremely useful addition to your Pilates or personal training practice. It provides a dynamic, rolling surface that can be used to increase flexibility, challenge strength and balance, and add a new dimension to your classes, small group training or private sessions.
This course is designed not just for Pilates instructors, but also for anyone who wants to learn more about how to use the Orbit.

Instructor: Cari Riis Stemmler

James Sewell Ballet is delighted to have Jennifer Hart with us for a 2-hour master class. Please note that this class replaces our normal open class programming on February 5. This class requires special registration – click here.

Jennifer Hart is the Founder of Performa/Dance and the Curriculum Manager/Resident Instructor at Ballet Austin. Jennifer has been hailed as a choreographer “with an imagination so exuberant that one could not be sure how one movement led to the next” and “not only inventive but heart-rending.” JSB fans will remember Jennifer’s work on the company: Bloom (2019) and Lightspace (2007).

For more information about Jennifer and to check out some of her work, visit her website.

Classes will take place in beautiful Studio 2B at the Cowles Center in downtown Minneapolis. Cost is $20.

Monday, February 5
9:30am-11:30pm

Learn ballet at any age! This 8-week Ballet Fundamentals Session will teach adult students the basic steps of ballet, how combinations in class are built and the history and roots of ballet terminology. No ballet or dance experience necessary!

Spring Session at Ballet Co.Laboratory: February 8-March 28, 2024
Thursdays, 6:15-7:30pm

Attire: Leotard (any color) and tights (pink or skin tone) or yoga apparel.
Teaching Artist: Zoé Henrot or Anna Betz
Tuition: $145