A Park Slope dance troupe is one step closer to international acclaim.
The Dancewave Company, which caters to talented teenagers training to become professional dancers, has received $10,000 from S Clubs Fitness and a free airfare donation from British Airways. Dancewave, located at 45 Fourth Avenue, now has half the money necessary to send its dancers to the Aberdeen International Youth Festival in Scotland.
“I feel very heartened that the community has come forward to help us,” Dancewave Executive and Artistic Director Diane Jacobowitz told this paper. “For so many of these kids, this will be their first time out of the country. It’s going to be an incredible once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
The donations are extra sweet since Dancewave was conned out of more than $8,500 earlier this year. According to reports, a travel agent accepted a check to cover plane tickets for Dancewave’s young performers but made off with the money.
After learning of the scam, Park Slope residents rallied around Dancewave.
“It’s a happy ending,” Jacobowitz noted. “But it’s not completely over because we are still only halfway there.”
Dancewave will be the only American troupe performing at the festival in Scotland. The teens will perform modern dance pieces.
Dancewave must raise another $20,000 for the trip.
“We believed in our heart that we would make this trip happen in spite of everything,” Jacobowitz said. “We still have a ways to go, but for the first time our goal is in sight. I hope that people will see our story and help us close that final gap!”
To donate to Dancewave, call 718-522-4696 or e-mail info@dancewave.org. For more details about the company, visit www.dancewave.org.
Check out www.sclusfit.com to learn more about S Clubs Fitness, located at 808 Union Street.
