2021 Riverside Dance Festival Information July 26 – August 7, 2021

Audition Information: Interested Applicants, aged 10+, must complete a video audition in order to be considered for The Riverside Dance Festival. There are no application deadlines, however space is extremely limited due to safety protocols. Additionally applicants submitting applications and payments by May 14 will receive a 20% discount on tuition and 10% discount on room and board.

Students who participated in the Riverside Dance Festival in 2019 or 2020 do not have to submit video footage as part of their audition provided they can prove they have been training either virtually or in person throughout the 2020-2021 school year.

To Audition: Submit an application form (Signed by a Parent/Guardian) and a link to a YouTube (or other video sharing service) video showing student in Ballet Class (Especially Barre) and Modern/Contemporary Class (No performance footage please), or for alumni of the last two years, proof of continued dance training. Audition Videos should not exceed fifteen (15) minutes in length. When filming your audition please consider the dress code requirements: solid color leotard/pink or black convertible tights for ladies; white t-shirt/black tights or shorts for gentleman with long hair secured up and off the face.

Email your audition materials to [email protected]

All applicants will be notified of their acceptance on a rolling basis. Remember, space is extremely limited. Apply early!

Tuition assistance is available to qualified students. This is a separate application that must be submitted online. See the link on our website for details.

Cost of Program (through May 14): Tuition: $400 Room and Board: $1800 Cost of Program (May 15-July 19; provided space is available): Tuition: $500 Room and Board: $2000

Tuition is non-refundable unless we cancel the program. Room and Board may be refundable up to a few weeks prior to arrival. All payments will be made online (accepted students will receive links to pay).

Apprentice Program: As in previous years we will consider college-aged dancers for our apprentice program. Apprentices are often tasked with working more closely with the invited company/RDF staff in order to make valuable professional connections for future employment. To be considered for this program, simply indicate interest in your application materials.

Riverside Dance Festival Information:

The Riverside Dance Festival is a unique experience in Intensive Summer Study presented by Riverside Theatre and Ballet Vero Beach. Accepted students will experience day-to-day life with konverjdans from City. Students will have the opportunity to take daily technique classes in Ballet and Contemporary Dance forms from konverjdans and Riverside’s own distinguished faculty, they will also participate in master classes, open rehearsals, and work towards the creation of their own work to be performed alongside konverjdans in a mixed repertory concert to culminate the festival.

About konverjdans: konverjdans (con-verge-dance) is a contemporary ballet company co-founded in 2016 by artistic directors Amy Saunder, Jordan Miller and Tiffany Mangulabnan, three dancer-creators who hail from Zimbabwe, the US and the Philippines respectively. In collaboration with other artists -- musicians, composers, visual artists, filmmakers, and other dancers and choreographers -- konverjdans creates dance to celebrate the convergence of different backgrounds, voices and experiences. The company has self-produced performances at the Mark Morris Dance Center in Brooklyn, NY, as well as at the PPG ArtsLab Theatre in Fort Wayne, IN. We have also performed at The Actors Fund Arts Center (presented by Norte Maar), Danspace, Socrates Sculpture Park, The Kumble Theatre (presented by Periapsis), JACK Brooklyn, the Unruly Collective, John Doe Gallery and other venues in New York. We were also recently presented by Ballet Vero Beach at the Vero Beach Museum of Art in Florida.

Program Faculty:

Adam Schnell (Director Riverside Dance Festival/The Dance Conservatory at Riverside) was born in Northwestern Vermont and began his dance training with Manon Pellman, Judith Karstens, and Shelly Ishmail (former members of Les Grands Ballets Canadiens). He graduated from Walnut Hill School for the Arts as a ballet major in 1999. At Walnut Hill, he was trained by Samuel Kurkjian, Michael Owen, Tamara King, and Diance Arivantes. As a professional dancer he has performed with the Channel Islands Ballet, Omaha Theater Ballet, Sarasota Ballet of Florida, and Nevada Ballet Theater. He has performed as a guest artist with Southhold Dance Theater, Lone Star Ballet, and with the world famous Les Ballets Trockadero De Monte Carlo. In addition to and principal roles in a large amount of the classical repertoire, he has performed in Neo-Classical and Contemporary works by choreographers such as George Balanchine, Peter Anastos, Yves De Boutellier, Paul Vasterling, and Robert North. His dance and theater choreography has been seen all over the and he has served as resident choreographer for both the Omaha Theater Ballet and Sarasota Ballet of Florida. In 2009 he completed his BA from Empire State College with a double major in Arts Management and Dance Education. He has been teaching in the disciplines of both dance and theater for over a decade and is a sought after master teacher throughout the country. Since moving to Vero Beach in the fall of 2009 he has served as a faculty member for Riverside Children’s Theatre and director of dance. In December 2010 his “: In Swingtime!” premiered at RCT to sold out audiences and critical acclaim. In 2013 Mr. Schnell founded Ballet Vero Beach, the regions first and only professional ballet company.

Camilo A. Rodriguez (Faculty Member The Dance Conservatory at Riverside) Camilo A. Rodriguez was born in Mexico City and grew up in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He began his ballet training at Ballets de San Juan and Ballet Concierto de Puerto Rico. He continued his training on full scholarship in New York City at the prestigious Joffrey Ballet School. As a professional dancer he has appeared with the Eglevsky Ballet, Virginia Ballet Theatre, and danced several seasons in Mark Morris’s version of The Nutcracker: The Hard Nut. Mr. Rodriguez also toured internationally with Ballets Grandiva and the world famous Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo. In these all male comedy ballet troupes, Mr. Rodriguez excelled in parody of not only contemporary masterworks but also the great Imperial and Romantic Ballets of the last two centuries. His many triumphs include a command performance at “The Royal Variety Show” in the presence of His Royal Highness Prince Charles. Mr. Rodriguez excels in the teaching of Ballet and Modern technique and is also a well respected certified Pilates Instructor. He is also the ballet master of Ballet Vero Beach.

Amy Saunder (Co-Director konverjdans) Amy Saunder was born in Harare, Zimbabwe and moved to the United States when she was eleven years old. She trained at North Carolina School of the Arts under the tutelage of Ethan Stiefel, and continued her dance training at Charlotte Ballet and Richmond Ballet. Amy has danced professionally with the Suzanne Farrell Ballet, Eugene Ballet, Traverse City Dance Project, Ballet Next, Ballet NY, and Eglevsky Ballet and has also performed the work of Brendan Fernandes at The Whitney Museum of American Art and The Noguchi Museum. She is currently freelancing in New York City and is the co- director of konverjdans (con-verge-dance), a contemporary ballet company based in Brooklyn, NY.

Tiffany Mangulabnan (Co-Director konverjdans) Tiffany, originally from Manila, Philippines, where she studied and trained, was a principal dancer with the Philippine Ballet Theatre. She moved to New York City in 2012 and danced with BalletNext for four years. Since then she has worked with companies like Claudia Schreier & Co, Emery LeCrone DANCE, Gabrielle Lamb’s Pigeonwing Dance, Gleich Dances, Indelible Dance, and Trainor Dance, among others. Since co-founding konverjdans with Jordan Miller and Amy Saunder in 2016, she has continued to freelance in New York City in addition to co-directing and dancing and choreographing for konverjdans.

Jordan Miller (Co-Director konverjdans) Jordan Miller moved to New York City to study at the School of American Ballet in 2011. She joined the two years later, and performed as an apprentice for several seasons. As a freelance dancer, Jordan has danced professionally with companies such as The Pennsylvania Ballet, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, The Ashley Bouder Project, Claudia Schreier & Company, BalletNext, Gleich Dances and Indelible Dance among others. In 2016, Jordan co-founded konverjdans, a contemporary ballet company that celebrates the convergence of different backgrounds and experiences by creating work in collaboration with artists from both musical and visual realms. Jordan serves as a co-director of konverjdans, alongside dancer/collaborators Tiffany Mangulabnan and Amy Saunder, in addition to dancing and choreographing for the company.

Additional Faculty will include members of konverjdans, and faculty members of Riverside Theatre’s Dance Education Program.

Sample Daily Schedule

Group A Group B Apprentice

10:00-11:30 Ballet Contemporary Company Class 11:30-1:00 Contemporary Ballet Class 1:00-2:00 Lunch Lunch Lunch 2:00-6:00 Rehearsals Rehearsals Rehearsals 7:00-10:00 Company Rehearsals

Boarding Program Information:

A complete chaperoned Boarding/Meals plan is available for students who wish to take advantage of it. Students will be provided extended stay accommodations with fully equipped kitchens. Our background checked chaperones will assist students with grocery shopping and meal prep. Transportation to and from the festival each day will be provided and a full range of evening and weekend activities will be planned. All activities/meals are included in the price of the room and board package and may possibly include:

-Beach Trips -A Visit to The Vero Beach Museum of Art -A Visit to McKee Botanical Garden -Movie Night -Outlet Shopping at Vero Fashion Outlets -Dinner At Beachfront Restaurants

Check-In for the Boarding Program is the afternoon of July 25, and Check-Out is August 7.

Getting to Vero Beach:

The airports closest to Vero Beach are Orlando (MCO), Palm Beach (PBI), and Melbourne (MLB). Airport pick-up may be arranged with RDF for an extra fee. Please make sure to contact [email protected] before making flight reservations if you are expecting to arrange airport pick-up through RDF.