This Partnership is supported by an Arts & Cultural Grant from Lilly Endowment
Indiana Black Expo, Inc. recently announced that its 2019 Summer Celebration will feature a dance heritage component as part of the Lilly Endowment’s Strengthening Indianapolis Through Arts and Cultural Innovation Initiative. The grant allows IBE to add an innovative conference style dance heritage program that will be taught by renown industry professionals.
During the 2019 Cultural Arts Pavilion, IBE and its partners will partner with Jeffrey Page, founding and artistic director of Movin’ Legacy (“ML”), to host 4 days of dance workshops and performances. In additional to offering workshops in Heels Dance, Hip-Hop Dance, Afro Beat, Modern Technique, African-American Social Dance (Line Dance and Two-Step) and West African Dance from Monday, July 16 through Thursday, July 19, the event will also include a performance flash mob and multiple choreographed dance performances on the Entertainment Stage inside the exhibition hall on Saturday, July 21. This conference style dance heritage program is new to IBE and Indianapolis.
During the event, IBE will reveal its 2019 cohort of middle and high school students that will undergo training through its performing arts program in the areas of acting, dance, music production, photography and videography. IBE has been training middle and high school students in videography through its Youth Media Institute for 25 years. Earlier this year, IBE announced its expansion of this program to include other performing arts area that it will utilize as a medium to enhance academic outcomes for underrepresented youth.
Page is a director, producer performer, Emmy-Nominated and MTV Video Music Award winning choreographer. From the bright lights of Broadway in the Tony Award winning musical, “FELA!”, the co-creation of the MTV award winning choreography for Beyonce’s riveting smash hit, “Run the World (Girls),” to the stage of the Fox hit series, “So You Think You Can Dance,” Jeffrey has achieved world acclaim as a foremost expert in African, jazz and hip-hop dance. Being a part of Beyonce’s creative team for over 8 years, he has helped develop and stage three world tours, videos and TV appearances. Additionally, Jeffrey has staged concerts and TV appearances for celebrities, including the opening for BET Awards, finale for Billboard Awards, and production numbers for VH1 Hip-Hop Honors Awards, Fashion Rocks, NAACP Image Awards, World Music Awards, MTV Awards and Dove Awards.
Indiana Black Expo, Inc. is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization with 12 chapters across the state of Indiana. The mission of IBE is to serve as a voice and vehicle for the social and economic advancement of African-Americans. IBE is nationally known for its two fundraisers, Summer Celebration and Circle City Class- ic®. IBE provides year round youth and family programs, including its Scholarship Fund, Youth Leadership Summit, Youth Media Institute, Coronation, Education Day, Youth Football & Cheerleading Clinic, State of Our Black Youth Initiative, Opportunity Zone, Minority Business Conference, Employment Opportunity Fair, Children’s Day, and Education Conference.
