Summary: Everybody Dance Now! offers FREE, on-site, year-round classes for Santa Barbara's underprivileged youth. Functioning under Santa Barbara Dance Alliance's 501c3 nonprofit status, Everybody Dance Now! (EDN!) has taught dance at 16 sites to over 500 children and teens who might not otherwise have the opportunity. Mission: We strive to instill self-esteem and confidence in children through dance, while encouraging them to work toward goals in a supportive and creative learning environment. We give them a healthy outlet to express themselves, and to enable them to build friendships, find role models and mentors in their instructors, and develop a sense of belonging and self-resepct. Not to mention, it's fun and brings students joy! One unique aspect of the program is that not only do students perform for their peers; they also dance for the elderly, the terminally ill, and people with brain injuries or disabilities, so that they, too, can feel the joy of giving back. These community performances give our students a further sense of self-value. Teachers: Most of our instructors are high school and college students, because we believe that the closeness in age to our students creates a strong sense of understanding, as well as a fun atmosphere. We began with 3 teachers and have had over 25 instructors involved, with 10 currently teaching. My Inspiration: When I was twelve, I performed a hip-hop dance for eighty teens with disabilities through an organization called Santa Barbara Dance Alliance. You can imagine how nervous I was. But as soon my music came on and the audience started bouncing, I could see that they enjoyed the dance moves and loud music. One boy had to have two men hold him down because he couldn’t contain his enthusiasm. Then, halfway into my dance, the music stopped unexpectedly. The audience began shouting, "Do it again!"—so I started over, until my song cut a second time. I didn't know what to do until the silence was broken by a girl who yelled, "We want to dance!" I figured there was no harm in going along with her idea and was able to talk my horrified program director into it. We invited groups onstage to let loose and dance freely. That day, I realized that dance is more than an after-school activity; it is a powerful creative force that can bring people together and give them joy and self-esteem. Four years later, I haven’t forgotten the way it felt to see those teenagers full of self-confidence and adrenaline from dancing. World & Cultural Dance: In May and June, 2007, Derrick Curtis and Trudie Olsen taught Latin Dance at Cesar Chavez, Franklin, Adams and Cleveland, exposing the children to the dances of their culture and opening their eyes to styles of dance beyond hip-hop! In July, 2007, Tanya Keenan taught two swing dance classes with our Girls Inc group as a special treat. Throughout 2007-2008, EDN! will expand its guest teacher world dance program to offer classes in styles including Afro-Brazilian, Middle Eastern & Oriential, Latin, Flamenco and Swing. What better hands-on, fun way to teach our young leaders about diversity than through dance? Additional Events: -In April, EDN! invited teens with the Santa Barbara Dance Alliance's "ON THE VERGE: Teen Choreographer's Showcase" to dance at our Cleveland and Franklin Elementary School classes. EDN! students were also given free tickets to the showcase in May, 2007. This was an incredible source of motivation and inspiration for them! -In November, 2007, 40 of our students will go to a dance studio and take a special master dance class with Buck World One, a "krumping" group from Northern California. -In the spring, 2008, Tommy the Hip-Hop Clown, the legendary pioneer of krump dance, featured in David Chapelle's movie "Rize," and his troupe, will teach two giant master classes for Everybody Dance Now! and the community!