Zachary Weg
News@queensledger.com
This past Saturday was full of holiday cheer and childlike wonder as Forever Dancing presented The Nutcracker at St. Francis Prep in Fresh Meadows.
With a line that snaked around the school’s lobby, full of parents eager to get to their seats, anticipation was high for the event. One mother donned a shirt bearing the inscription, “Faith Over Fear,” which turned out to be a fitting theme for the Christmas-centered The Nutcracker.
As the audience of around two-hundred members took their seats and the lights began to dim, the festivities began. Consisting of approximately seventy children, the play opened with the classic Party Guests Dance scene during which the youths blazed across the stage with their dancing moves and delighted the adults in the crowd. Next came other iconic bits such as Drosselmeyer’s Magic Show, Harlequin Dolls, and Mice (comprising nine toddlers).
The highlight of the afternoon, however, was Dancing Dreams’ choreography of the show’s iconic snow scene. Featuring eight of the Bayside dance school’s children performers, the scene was impressive as a showcase of both Christmas spirit and youthful possibility.
Dancing Dreams, which has been running for over fifteen years and has two other locations in Manhattan and Plainview, consists of children with physical and medical challenges that, still, love to dance. The organization began with, as goes its mission statement, “the dream of little girls to put on a tutu and glitter—and dance just like other little girls their age.”
As Dancing Dreams’ founder, Joanna Ferrara, says, “We have 130 dancers in three locations. Our biggest one is in Bayside in the Bay Terrace Shopping Center (thank you, Cord Meyer, for being so generous). I’ve known Marianne, who runs Forever Dancing, for many years and she invited us this year to be part of the show, to bring our dancers.”
Gesturing to her child dancers in the green room pre-show, Ferrara notes, “These are our dancing divas,” and continues, “We also have a very big teen leadership program, which is teenagers coming and volunteering weekly to assist our dancers.” Says one of the teen volunteers in the room, “Most of our helpers are actually from this location, St. Francis Prep. We have a good amount from all around but St. Francis Prep is definitely one of our best friends.”
Ferrara, who is a trained pediatric physical therapist and was inspired to start Dancing Dreams after a chance encounter with a little girl with cerebral palsy, adds, “The goal was just to give children with challenges the ability to be on stage, be superstars, and have a great time. What’s been successful is watching the joy of the dancers dancing on stage and watching their parents seeing them dance, and just the fact that they’re having fun, watching our teenagers mature and learn the value of volunteering and of helping someone.”
When asked about some of the highlights of Dancing Dreams over the years, Ferrara motions towards one of today’s performers and this year’s National Ambassador for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, Leah Zelaya, who gives a shy smile of recognition.
As Ferrara says, “It’s not about the perfect plié. It’s about each child feeling special and maximizing their own potential.” Smiling as she asks her dancers, some of whom are high schoolers, about their college plans, Ferrara adds, “Their stories inspire the other dancers and the families. And we give back. We run parent workshops.”
After The Nutcracker ends, amidst all of the performers’ hugs and picture-taking, one of those parents, Barbara Eliaas, says, referring to her daughter Emma, “She was a patient of Joann’s, and how the circle sort of closes is that now we are performing here.”
As the crowd disperses from St. Francis Prep, and the Forever Dancing Spectacular ends, the Dancing Dreams dancers celebrate, another marvelous performance in the books.
