There'll Be Music (and Dance) in the Air

This weekend, Grand Center hosts Dancing in the Street, and as the song goes, "All we need is music, sweet music" — well, that and 50 dance companies performing on four outdoor stages and all around Grand Center! At this dance festival, cloggers will stomp, belly dancers' hips will shake, ballerinas will pirouette and plié, tap dancers will shuffle and step, and practically every other movement master will bring it, all for the very affordable price of free. Be sure to arrive in midtown by 1 p.m. — that's when things get hopping — and don't leave before 9 p.m. That way you won't miss a shimmy or a sashay or anything else (you also might want to check out the schedule at www.grandcenter.org to plan your visit).

Highlights of the day include an aerial performance in Strauss Park (Washington and North Grand boulevards) by a husband-and-wife troupe from Chicago, and a show by the always-impressive local gals in Diva La Tap, who will wow you with precision and panache on the Fox Tap Stage (on Olive Street between North Grand Boulevard and North Spring Avenue). Plus, you certainly won't want to miss the top-secret performance that will be held outside the Fox Theatre (527 North Grand Boulevard) at 3:20 and 6:20 p.m. — those at the first viewing will hopefully not ruin the surprise for the folks attending the second show. That definitely wouldn't be dancerly at all — and that's what this day is all about!
Sat., Sept. 26, 2009