programs1


	Each year the ATDF serves close to 500 students thanks to its Tap Dance Conservatory which includes ongoing Training Programs for kids, teens and adults; the Tap City Youth Ensemble; seasonal Master Tap Intensives, Choreography Workshops for professionals and numerous public performances, lectures, jams and film presentations. The Foundation’s classes offer students a chance to become immersed in tap culture. The Tap Dance Conservatory is a year-round school of tap dance with a comprehensive curriculum for kids, teens and adults. (Beginning Level to Advanced Professional) The ultimate goal is the development of a comprehensive program that includes; an array of tap dance styles that are taught by masters of their own style who can articulate their methods clearly and are eager to help the student develop virtuosity, a thorough knowledge of the form; it's history, diversity, vernacular, various techniques and choreographic structures.

	Youth Training Program ATDF year-round youth programs, for children and teens (ages 31/2 – 19), teach students about America’s own indigenous art form – Tap. Our distinguished faculty shares their knowledge of the artistry and history of tap with each student in a fun, safe and supportive environment. On-going classes in technique, improvisation and tap dance history are held daily.

	The Tap City Youth Ensemble, which gives intermediate and advanced tap dancers ages 10 to 18 the opportunity to work with professional choreographers to learn classic and contemporary tap repertory and the chance to hone their skills on the stage. The Ensemble meets weekly in rehearsal to prepare for performances. Dancers strengthen their tap skills and deepen their knowledge of tap history through special master classes, rehearsals with guest tap artists and live musicians, video showings and tap history lessons. The Tap City Youth Ensemble performs in a range of New York area venues including formal concerts, school shows, free public events, and Tap City - The New York City Tap Festival each July.

	In its commitment to diversity the Foundation continues to administer the Gregory Hines Youth Scholarship Fund for serious tap students ages 4 – 19. Scholarships are awarded to students based on both financial need and artistic merit. The goal of the program is not only to offer training and performance opportunities to ‘under-served’ youth, but also to encourage pre-professional level students to continue with their studies with on stage performing experience. The program brings together students from different socio-economic and racial backgrounds.

	Adult Training Program – Our growing year-round Adult Program offers rhythm tap training and enrichment for beginning through advanced professional tap dancers (Adults & Teens 13+), including tap dance rudiments, technique and repertory classes, professional tap dance intensive weekends and seasonal master classes, jams, performances & special events.

	Master Tap Intensives give advanced students and professionals a chance to work with top teachers and choreographers in the field. Students experience first hand the choreographic process and the creation of original material that is often presented in future productions produced by the ATDF.

	The ATDF develops, creates and produces full length Concert Performances at leading venues locally and while on tour. Many of these productions are themed performances focusing on tap dance as music, with leading International artists, legendary tap masters, contemporary soloists, cutting edge ensembles, and up and coming hoofers.

	Tap City, the New York City Tap Festival is the preeminent tap dance festival of the world and is held annually each summer in NYC. It is the quintessential celebration of our collective American heritage – virtues that are certainly evident in tap’s hometown, New York City. Tap City offers hundreds of master classes and courses with internationally renowned teachers, expansive adult, pre-professional, teen and youth training programs, awards and numerous diverse premiere performances and city-wide events that features dancers, teachers, musicians and choreographers from around the world.

	Sound Check brings the incredible musical feet of an eclectic cast together in a unique fusion of percussive dance through a dynamic and whimsical composition that blends international music, percussion, text, imagery, improvisation, and choreography. Conceived as a ‘state of the union’ address for the art form, Sound Check presents some of the most versatile ‘voices’ working in the field today and educates the public about the vast breadth and scope of Tap, from improvisation to new choreography, solo to group dances; classical to rhythm tap.

	Tap City on Tour brings full evening performances that showcase the best of the annual New York City Tap Festival to cities throughout North America and Internationally. The cast of Tap City is drawn from a list of performers who have been featured in the New York City Tap Festival since it’s inception in 2001. Tap City on Tour is available for touring October-November, and February-April. The company also offers master classes in tap for all levels of students as well as 50-minute programs for young people.

	New Tap Choreography Showcases provided opportunities for seasoned professionals and up-and-coming choreographers to develop and perform new work. The current lack of arts funding has created a cultural environment where there are very few tap companies for professionals to audition for, very few performance venues, and very few opportunities for young tap dancers to engage in mentoring programs with seasoned masters. Performers are selected by personal invitation, videotaped audition, as well as from students who attend Tap Composition Labs and New Choreography Residencies. Students have the opportunity then to work with professional choreographers, learn and perform full works of tap choreography, hone performances skills beyond the recital level, and develop their own choreographic voice.

	International Tap Dance Hall of Fame was created in 2002, and its purpose is to honor the contributions of legendary tap dance artists by preserving their legacy for future generations to enjoy, to increase public awareness of the diversity inherent in the form, and to provide an educational experience available to local, national, and international professionals, students, and the general population. The International Tap Dance Hall of Fame is the only tap dance hall of fame exclusively focused on tap dancers. It features founding and innovative 20th and 21st century professional tap dancers. With a collection of photographs, biographies, and videos, the Hall of Fame is becoming a colorful and diverse retrospective of America's seminal tap dance personalities.

	Hoofer and Tap Preservation Awards The Hoofer Award recognizes prominent tap artists as leaders in the community for their unique contribution to the form and for inspiring future generations. The Tap Preservation Award is given to an outstanding individual or organization in the field, for the superior advancement of tap dance through presentation and preservation. Both awards are presented annually at Tap City.

	Gregory Hines Collection of American Tap Dance Archives ATDF is one of a handful of dance companies committed to ensuring that Tap and its illustrious family of performers receive the recognition that is their due alongside the masters of ballet, modern and jazz. In collaboration with the Dance Division of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, the ATDF is also custodian of an extensive film, print, audio and photo archive entitled the Gregory Hines Collection of American Tap Dance. Preservation and education go hand in hand and are the cornerstones of the Foundation’s mission.

	Reconstruction Projects Our recent revivals of Brenda Bufalino’s “Buff Loves Basie Blues” and “Haitian Fight Song”, are just two examples of how we make the art form relevant and vital for today’s audiences. Through efforts like this, the ATDF is able to educate audiences and point a spotlight on little-known facts such as the 1980’s when Tap enjoyed a ‘renaissance’ thanks to a group of modern dancers, mostly women who discovered the tap masters of the 1930s, such as Charles ‘Honi’ Coles, John Bubbles, Steve Condos, Buster Brown, Leon Collins, Bunny Briggs and Chuck Green. What started off as a series of isolated partnerships, such as Bufalino and Charles ‘Honi’ Coles, it then evolved into the next generation who would continue the work of their mentors. The revivals of Bufalino’s work recall not only her living legacy but the legacy of those that came before her. Mounting classic works not only preserves a piece of history, but it also supports the underlying mission of the organization, which is to legitimize the art form of Tap. We are very proud that the National Endowment for the Arts and American Express have recognized the Foundation and its important work preserving the tap dance legacy.

	Tap Talks/Tap Films The ATDF present seasonal film presentations and panel discussions with leaders from the field of tap dance focusing on different periods of tap dance history and issues within the tap dance field. Historians, teachers, writers, and dancers examine the birth of the form and its practice in films, television, on the Broadway and concert stages throughout the world. Discussions on the importance of the many preservation and archival issues that tap now faces are an important focus. Presentations of Tap Talks/Tap Films is a wonderful opportunity for the Foundation to take many of its archival materials from off the shelves and introduce them to a whole new generation thanks to the inclusion of lectures and films led by tap historians such as Constance Valis Hill.

	Our Artists In Residence Program supports professional tap dancers recognized for their unique vision and personal style. Artists receive weekly studio space to support their creative process, create new work and mobilize their on-going activities and career. The ATDF is dedicated to nurturing a creative environment for artists to connect, explore and share their talent with other artists, students, ATDF faculty and the community. The ATDF encourages artists to pass on a tradition. A tradition of teaching, learning, exploring and then passing it on to the next generation.

	Choreography Commissions Beyond the Foundation’s mission of producing, reconstructing and preserving important tap masterworks, commissioning work from established artists in the community has an even deeper significance. A strong committment to commissioning new work looks forward into expl;oring and nuturing new voices, giving them an arena to demonstrate the innovation and vitality of the art form.

	Tap Jams Tap Jams are structured improvisation events open to the public to dance or observe and we encourage dancers of all ages, all races, all nationalities, and all levels of expertise, to share their skills, while celebrating the form in a traditional way that emphasizes experimentation and improvisation. Where else can a tap dancer go to improve their technique, show their stuff, trade steps, expand and develop new work in such a unique environment surrounded by their peers, as well as the built in support system of professionals, students, teachers, mentors and audience? These events are often accompanied by live jazz.

	Special Events Occassionally the ATDF produces events for the general public to create community, celibrate traditions in tap dance and build local audiences.