This is a very special year for the Center for Symbolic Studies and The Vanaver Caravan--and we need your support. Please consider making a contribution to our campaign to Build the Caravan Center at Stone Mountain Farm. Your donation will help build a new forever home for The Vanaver Caravan and a much-needed four-season creative space for a myriad of wonderful classes, workshops, performances, and local/international artist residencies.
The Vanaver Caravan celebrates their 50th Anniversary this year with a series of events that highlight the best aspects of their impactful work; both past and present. Join founders, Livia and Bill Vanaver, and the Caravan community as they reflect on their legacy and imagine a bright future – handing the leadership torch to the next generation and building a home dance center in the Hudson Valley. . . READ ON.
Excerpt: I don't know about you, but I could use some good news! So I'm making. My mom, Lexi, published an incredible in-print homeschool newsletter for over a decade. My favorite activity as a kid (aside from dancin') was getting to submit my own artwork, advice, recipes, and writing to a "Real Newsletter"! It was a genius idea, conceived by parents who chose to educate their kids at home. You may not have chosen to educate your kids at home, but here we are! If you’re looking for activities to do at home, scroll through our Good News feed or send in your own submissions.
I’m looking for submissions such as . . .
From July 3rd-8th, the Company will be on tour in Germany, performing at Germany’s premier folk festival, Rudolsdadt. The Vanaver Caravan performed at Rudolsdadt in 1996 and 2007. We can’t wait to go back! SCHEDULE. If you happen to be in Germany, come find us (or plan a fun stop in Germany for your summer vacation).
To all our moms backstage, who have (at one point or another) saved the whole show while simultaneously tying our tap shoes—and to our Company moms, dancing front and center: We love and appreciate you so much. Our Company dancers are currently scattered across the globe but put together a home-made treat! Because, even when we can’t get together, we can still find ways to dance together. Watch our video, Hangman’s Reel: At Home Edition
Every first Sunday of the month, we will be streaming a concert from The Vanaver Caravan Archives for our communities to enjoy. Get cozy and enjoy our dance and music from your homes! For the first installment of our series, we share last year’s performance of Turn Turn Turn: The Story of Pete Seeger, from the Bardavon Opera House. The show features special guests, Tom Chapin, Maria Muldaur, Happy Traum, the Southern Dutchess Coalition Choir, and the Beacon High School choir.
A Note from Our Team
Amidst the uncertainty of this pandemic, we have quickly refocused our priorities to provide online classes, comprehensive online school curricula, and virtual summer programs for all. Our small team has been volunteering around the clock to see that this almost 50-year-old organization stays afloat in the coming weeks and months. Today, when you make a contribution to The Vanaver Caravan, you bring the joys of dance and connection directly into the homes of people who need it right now. If it is within your means to do so at this time, please make a donation: a little goes a long way and will be deeply felt. DONATE NOW
Excerpt: I don't know about you, but I could use some good news! So I'm making. My mom, Lexi, published an incredible in-print homeschool newsletter for over a decade. My favorite activity as a kid (aside from dancin') was getting to submit my own artwork, advice, recipes, and writing to a "Real Newsletter"! It was a genius idea, conceived by parents who chose to educate their kids at home. You may not have chosen to educate your kids at home, but here we are! If you’re looking for activities to do at home, scroll through our Good News feed or send in your own submissions.
I’m looking for submissions such as . . .
As summer comes to a gentle end, The Vanaver Caravan excitedly awaits our first sign of autumn: FallDance classes begin next week! Our young dancers, Caravan Kids, Youth Co, and Company begin rehearsing and preparing for a series of performances in October, November, and our Holiday Show in December. We have new faculty members and some new changes to our FallDance classes.
Our 2019 FallDance faculty are Livia Vanaver, Miranda ten Broeke, and our newest faculty member, Michelledana Shafran, founder/creator of YogAbundance! We are very excited to bring Michelledana on board. (Juliet ten Broeke will pop in for guest-teaching appearances as she finishes up her final semester at SUNY New Paltz. Go, Juliet!)
We are opening our Monday classes to a wider age-range. Monday percussive class now goes from 10-Adult and will focus on Appalachian Clogging and a medley of powerful rhythmic world dances. Adults over 18 may drop in to both our Percussive and Modern Dance classes.
You can now find all sorts of helpful info on our recently updated FallDance registration page.
See Schedule below for classes. We look forward to dancing with you!
Register now for Spring classes! Series begins: April 2 - ends: June 3rd. Culminating dance recital pageant at Beltane Spring Festival, May 8, 2024. LEARN MORE & REGISTER
One of the best kept secrets in the Hudson Valley. The Beltane Pageant is a performance of myth, magic, and puppetry which fuses the pomp and whimsy of a Renaissance fair with the delights of a springtime picnic gala. Don your best fairy wings and join us! TICKETS: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/4709fb05-2ab5-4f95-86c8-295840bd782d
CaravanKids workshops are two weeks bursting with dance, music, creativity, and adventure. Each day, we go to a new country, meeting with different teachers from around the world. Little ones receive secret missions from fairies, embark on creative projects, and stamp their special passport journal. LEARN MORE & REGISTER
CaravanKids workshops are two weeks bursting with dance, music, creativity, and adventure. Each day, we go to a new country, meeting with different teachers from around the world. Little ones receive secret missions from fairies, embark on creative projects, and stamp their special passport journal. LEARN MORE & REGISTER
SummerDance: Immersion Week is dedicated to the pure joy and community connection created by The Vanaver Caravan’s dance & music program. Whether you are looking to improve your dance technique, relieve stress, or get inspired to choreograph, strum, or sing--Immersion Week provides a full introduction to a myriad of dance and music styles from a stellar group of teachers. LEARN MORE & REGISTER
SummerDance: Performance Week culminates at a public performance at the Rosendale Theatre on the evening of August 9th. All Summer-Dancers take the skills they learned during the previous week and bring their dance to life, choreographed by the SummerDance Faculty. LEARN MORE & REGISTER
Mark your calendars for our culminating performance of SummerDance. The show is directed by Brian T. Lawton and co-created by the dancers and faculty during the last week of SummerDance.
