Backhaus Dance

Education - Annual Summer Dance Intensive

Annually, Backhausdance hosts a 3-week, life-changing training program in July for teens, college-university levels and professional dancers through its annual Summer Intensive program held at Chapman University. Backhausdance is dedicated to making this powerful program accessible to the dance community and provides scholarships through the Benny Mor Summer Intensive Scholarship Fund for nearly half of more than 150 nationwide participants who travel to Southern California each year. Guest faculty and choreographers from renown dance companies teach a variety of sessions in composition, improvisation, ballet and contemporary ballet, safety/injury prevention, partnering, and more. Backhausdance company members teach repertory and contemporary dance vocabulary that is the signature of Backhausdance's artistry. The program culminates in performances for the community and with a wrap-up dance party. With the pandemic, and following health and safety guidelines, in 2020, the program, our 16th year, was held entirely virtual, as Chapman University was closed. For our 17th year, the Summer Dance Intensive has been designed as a hybrid model, with in-person classes being held at South Coast Conservatory studios in Laguna Niguel and virtually. The current registration for the 2021 year is at 155 students, with 98% coming for live classes. Without a suitable outdoor venue for a final performance, students will be rehearsing work outdoors that will be filmed and edited to be presented as a virtual performance on August 6, 2021. In 2022 the 17th annual intensive was held live in the dance studios at UC Irvine, Claire Trevor School of the Arts, with 80 enrolled. The program included guest faculty and training with Backhausdance company members and Jenny Backhaus, with informal share-showing sessions at the end of each week, open only to the participants and Backhausdance staff. . With COVID-protocol and liability issues, there were no live performances or admission to studios for family and friends. The final sessions for each group were videoed and students were provided with photographs and videos of their culminating work. our 19th and 20th Annual Summer Intensives (July 15-August 2, 2024) were held in the beautiful and spacious dance studios at the new Sandi Simon Center for Dance at Chapman University, with the return of our culminating performance at the Waltmar Theater, Chapman University. The 21st session, BDSI 2025, will be held from July 7 - 25, 2025 at Chapman University, with the culminating performance on July 25th.

Education and Community Angagement

Backhausdance develops and produces a wide range of educational programs including assemblies/performances, workshops, residencies, lecture-demonstrations, master classes and more for K-12, college/university, families, adults and seniors. Education programs combine original, energetic choreography with classical and/or modern music and are accessible to all students. Programs for K-12 public and private schools are designed to link to California Department of Education curriculum and common core standards for dance, English/Language arts Science, Math, History/Social Science, and Technology. Equally integral to curricula and content of programs is the alignment to Socio-Emotional Learning (SEL), Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and Multiple Tier Support Systems (MTSS) which are priorities to educate the whole child and for achieving 21st century skills for readiness and career pathways. As a member of the ArtsTeach program at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts, since 2004, specific assemblies performed at schools throughout the community include "Arrive," based on a poem by Maya Angelou, connecting students to literacy skills and the art form of contemporary dance featuring excerpts from Jennifer Backhaus' piece, "Hive," "Communicate through Dance," introduces different methods to convey stories, ideas and emotions through movement, using excerpts from the work "Sitting on January," and "Physical Science through Movement," an interactive science experience based on the innovative and acclaimed work, "The Elasticity of the Almost," focusing on space, time, and movement, set to modern music. Backhausdance has also been a partner for 15 years with the education department of The McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert, presenting performances that are part of the annual summer Aesthetic Education Institute, programs in public schools in Rancho Mirage, an annual residency for high school students called the East Valley Dance Project and bus-in programs for grades 2 - 12 at the McCallum Theatre. New programs include "The Dance for Kindness Project", launched in February 2022 live and in-person with two elementary schools in Newport Beach USD, with assemblies, a series of six creative movement workshops for each class, and Family Nights, designed to promote healthy and creative expression for students as we emerge from the trauma and loss of the pandemic, focusing on socio-emotional learning and positive communication through dance. BD Online: Move with Us, started in March 2020, our virtual platform of free and low-fee zoom classes for dancers, children and the community, in areas of exploration, technique and wellness; "Moving Santa Ana," free ballet and creative dance classes for Santa Ana children and youth, funded by the City of Santa Ana, Parks, Recreation and Community Services agency, starting virtually in April 2021, and moved to live in June 2021, and is continuing at two different sites with performances in June and December for the entire community. Additional programs include "Dance Expressions: Creativity and Choreography," "Dance Connect Orange County: CommUNITY Through Dance," "Let's Dance" after school programming, "Dance for Joy and Well-Being" for seniors, caregivers and veterans, master classes and more. Backhausdance offers workshops and artist-in-residence series for adults and seniors at community organizations and senior facilities focusing on the art form of contemporary dance, dance phrases, mobility, and creative movement for overall health and well-being.

Performances

Backhausdance creates and performs original, contemporary dance works for diverse audiences across a wide spectrum of ages and demographics. The company's repertory offers an eclectic and dynamic movement vocabulary with a wonderful sense of fluidity and strength, featuring a multifaceted body of work that is innovative and artistic. Backhausdance has performed extensively nationwide as well as internationally. The company also presents concert pieces with a focus on younger audiences that incorporate pre-concert introductions, opportunities for interaction and audience participation, post-concert question and answer time, and/or a lecture-demonstration or master class component. In addition to performing in a traditional theatre, Jennifer Backhaus is greatly interested in creating work that is performed and experienced 'out-of-the-studio. Through a community partnership with the Orange County Museum of Art (OCMAExpand), innovative, site-specific pieces have been choreographed to exhibitions and works of art that are intended to involve the audience and reach new levels of understanding about experiencing a work of art through movement. The new commission from Sherman Library and Gardens for fall 2021 and continuing in spring 2023 is an innovative choreographic project that involves audience participation. Additionally, the company has worked with two renowned guest choreographers (Ching Ching Wong and Tommie-Waheed Evans) in spring 2022 to rehearse for two new works that will be premiered on November 19, 2022 at the Old Town Temecula Community Theater, as part of our 20th anniversary celebration and being named the resident dance company.