BETHLEHEM, PA— The Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts (Charter Arts) will present its annual Dance Soup concert on November 22 & 23, 2019,  in the Charter Arts Theatre, located at 321 East 3rd Street in South Bethlehem.  There will be evening performances on both days at 7pm and a matinee performance on the 23rd at 2pm.

Dance Soup has been an annual tradition at the school for the past sixteen years and features student-choreographed works.

The concert is directed by Jennifer Weaver, a member of the school’s dance faculty. “The audience will have the pleasure of viewing many genres of dance with wide-ranging music selections and themes that will keep them fully engaged,” says Weaver.  “Students have spent a great deal of time developing the concepts for their pieces and exploring the process of creating dance.”

Dance Soup provides students with the opportunity to practice the skills they learn in Improvisation and Dance Composition classes.  Many students begin developing their concepts already in the summer prior to school starting in September.  Through a lengthy process involving faculty acceptance of a student proposal which is due at the start of the school year, the auditioning of fellow classmates, setting rehearsal schedules, creation of a work, and attending mentoring sessions with faculty members, the student sharpens their leadership and choreographic skills. “The students also learn what it’s like to have their work critiqued throughout this process, ” says Weaver.  “We give them a lot of freedom for this concert to really explore the whole world of dance, and they really get the chance to express their individual voice and specialties.”

When asked why the name, Dance Soup?, Weaver explains,  “Just like soup is made from many varied ingredients, so is this concert; and those ingredients come together beautifully to make a complete and diverse show.”

ABOUT THE LEHIGH VALLEY CHARTER HIGH SCHOOL FOR THE ARTS (Charter Arts):