Monticello Central School District’s dance program performed their annual production of The Nutcracker on Tuesday, Dec. 17. Third-grade students from throughout the district traveled to the high school to watch a performance during the school day, followed by a public performance in the evening.
The district is proud to offer a robust dance program to its students beginning with introductory classes in sixth grade and spanning six levels and seven dance classes. The classes, which are graded electives, are held every other day in middle school and daily at the high school. Students taking dance for at least three years in high school are eligible to be considered for induction into the National Honor Society of Dance Arts, of which Monticello High School is a chapter, as well as to compile a portfolio that would count as a Regents Individual Arts Assessment Pathway (IAAP) towards graduation.
“Monticello’s dance program is really one-of-a-kind,” said MCSD Dance Teacher June Wheeler. “I don’t know of any other public high school in the Hudson Valley that has a full-time dance position for a New York State-certified teacher, not to mention a beautiful, mirrored dance studio with a sprung dance floor to minimize injuries. We are lucky!”
The 60 Monticello High School and Robert J. Kaiser Middle school students who participated in the Nutcracker began the year studying ballet to build a foundation of correct body alignment and musicality, while also learning the choreography. Now that the Nutracker has been performed, the students will study social dance next – including salsa, bachata, and swing; followed by jazz and hip hop units. At the end of the school year, they’ll perform in the district’s annual Spring Dance Concert, scheduled for May 22.
“The Nutcracker at Monticello is a wonderful tradition, stretching back many years before I got here, and it’s a privilege to keep it going with the support of the Monticello High School community,” said Ms. Wheeler. “I am grateful to everyone for their support.”
