DancEast Youth Ensemble
The Program
For many years DancEast Collective has been offering young dancers opportunities to learn from professional choreographers and improve their technique and performance skills outside of their usual classes. In line with our mission, this season we extended an opportunity to the wider Nashville community, giving dancers from across the city the chance to participate in the process and work with exceptional choreographers.
The Audition
The audition was open to all dancers ages 9-18 with previous dance experience and ready to devote time to rehearsals and be a part of this exciting production! Choreographers Becca Hoback, Kaylee Lane, and Claudia Monja (read more about each choreographer below) are creating pieces for the show. Twenty dancers attended the audition, and we were able to cast each dancer in at least one piece!
The Performance
Rehearsals are currently underway, and the performance will take place on February 15th! Keep an eye on this web page for more details and a link to purchase tickets (coming soon)!
The Cost
The cost for one dancer to participate in the 2024-2025 DancEast Youth Ensemble is $240 (an additional $50 for dancers cast in more than one piece). Fees help DancEast Collective pay choreographers and cover production costs such as costumes, venue rental, sound, and lighting. We never want cost to prevent a dancer from participating, so we offer need-based scholarships for the program. We received scholarship applications from 40% of the participating dancers, and we plan to award a total of $1,415 in financial support to ensure that every dancer who wants to be a part of the program will be able to join in the excitement.
Your Support
You can be a part of supporting these young dance artists! Help us cover the $1,415 in scholarship funding by making a donation - of any amount - to our DancEast Youth Ensemble Scholarship Fund. Your gift is fully tax-deductible, and your support will mean so much to an aspiring young dancer right here in Nashville!
Meet the Choreographers
Becca Hoback
Becca is a freelance movement artist, performer, collaborator, and choreographer. She received a 2020 Tennessee Arts Commission Individual Artist Fellowship for her solo work. She founded Enactor Productions and worked with collaborators Ana Maria Lucaciu, Ben Green, Roy Assaf, and Ariel Freedman to curate the first Enactor performance program, which premiered at OZ Arts June 2021. She developed a workshop series titled “Body View” to fuel participants’ physical curiosity and inspire artistic engagement. Her solo work has been featured at Istanbul Fringe Festival; SOLOCOREOGRAFICO’S Torino, Frankfurt, and Friedrichshafen dance showcases; SOLO Dance Ankara; Alter Ego International Theater Festival; Brussels Dance Contest; Arts on Site NYC; Kindling Arts; and Tennessee Women’s Theater Project. She received the audience award at SOLOCOREOGRAFICO Torino 2022 for her performance of “Rendering.” Becca + Enactor Productions is a part of the TNPresenters network. Read more about Becca at https://www.beccahoback.com/
Kaylee Lane
Kaylee is a professional dancer, choreographer, and teacher. She has been dancing for 23 years — training in ballet, tap, jazz, contemporary, modern, hip hop, and more— and she is in her third year of teaching. Kaylee received her B.A. in Dance from Western Kentucky University and now is a member of DancEast Company. She’s a principal company member with Found Movement Group. Kaylee’s choreography has been showcased in Nashville’s Kindling Arts Festival, for the TN Arts Commission, and by DancEast Company.
Claudia Monja
Claudia was born in Havana, Cuba. At age 3, she began practicing rhythmic gymnastics, which she did until beginning her ballet studies at age 9. After studying at the Elemental Ballet School and the Cuban National Ballet School, she began her professional career with the Cuban National Ballet. Shortly after, she joined the Ballet de Camagüey, where she performed as a soloist for six years. In 2012, she became a Principal Dancer with Joburg Ballet in South Africa, where she performed works like Giselle, Don Quixote, The Nutcracker, La Traviata, Spring Waters, Flames of Paris, and Gamzatti. She has worked with choreographers such as Redha Benteifour and Corey Baker and has danced in international tours to Italy, Ecuador, Colombia, and China and credits her growth as an artist to these experiences. Monja is passionate about empowering youth and exposing them to the beauty of ballet. In addition to dancing on stage, she has worked as a ballet instructor, composed her own productions, and both prepared and judged students for competitions.