The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Fine Arts elevates program with hires
Creative director, dance faculty aim to ‘reenergize’ realigned curriculum
New faces are joining the education team at The Fine Arts Association in Willoughby in efforts to revitalize its dance program for the 2020-21 season.
The addition of Creative Director Howard Washington and several new faculty members, along with a restructured curriculum, aims to “reenergize” the program positioned to offer refocused outlets for the area dancers and dancers-to-be, Fine Arts confirmed.
The expanded hiring rounds out a busy session, coming about a month after Fine Arts announced all programming will be offered virtually for the remainder of the season. The school also partnered with Lake Erie College in Painesville during its summer session to increase awareness and engagement in arts education this year.
“Our main focus is always to provide the best possible opportunities for students of all ages, backgrounds and experiences to grow to become their best selves through all our art forms,” said Director of Education Michael Lund Ziegler.
“We’re so excited for our realigned dance curriculum and especially thrilled by the energy, passion and focus of our incredible dance faculty.”
Washington brings more than five years in public education to Fine Arts and has worked for over 15 years in the Cleveland dance community. The Akron native is also the founder and director of ELEV TED Dance HQ, based in Independence.
It appears Washington could not be more excited.
“Fine Arts Association has all the arts,” he said. “With the endless possibilities and creativity in dance, FAA has the tools and passion to ignite Northeast Ohio young creatives in all aspects. FAA can utilize its entire faculty and the resources/opportunities to take dance and the arts to the next level. Creatively, the possibilities are endless.”
Ziegler cites the efforts of Washington along with lead ballet instructor and longtime faculty member Jan Smith as “paramount” in refocusing the program to ensure pathways for all students.
“Mrs. Smith has been a stalwart member of the Fine Arts dance faculty for nearly 50 years and her guidance and leadership have been pivotal in shaping the future of our program,” he said.
Washington pointed to the ballet instruction at Fine Arts as the foundation of its current and future success.
“It is imperative to start dancers with strong ballet training,” he said. “Working
with a ballet teacher that shares and delivers the same passion seems to be a great fit. We can learn so much from each simply through the unspoken. The unspoken is that we love our dancers, and we want them to be good at dance, but more importantly, we want them to be better people.”
According to Fine Arts, beginning this fall, dance families will see clearly delineated pathways for their dancers, as students 3 to 18plus will be able to pursue multiple disciplines in addition to ballet, including tap, jazz, hip-hop and contemporary. Pathways exist for students to pursue dance recreationally or intensively.
Middle and high school students excited about performing can audition to join one of Fine Arts’ six hip-hop or contemporary performing dance company groups, according to the school.
In addition to Smith, Washington joins faculty members Bea Parker and Lisa-Marie French, along with newcomers Lindsay DePenti, London Fulton, Ariana King and Alexia Rodriguez.