HEATHER CORNELL

THE DETAILS for 2023:

Dates: 

Week One:  June 19 - 23

Week Two:  June 26 - 30

Week Three: July 3 - 7

 

Hello Students:  A lot has happened since I cancelled my 30th Anniversary Tap Labs due to CoVid.  In 2020, ready to celebrate that milestone, I had sold out 5 weeks of classes,  and had booked musicians from all over the world and all throughout my history to join me.  Dancers were coming from over a dozen countries, some having saved up for a number of years, visas squeaking through.  And I had secured grants to support an unprecedented amount of outreach to connect the Labs to my community.  When CoVid hit, that all disappeared.

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With the loss and impermanence of the past two years has come a growing understanding of who were are as artists and the important role we all play in strengthening community and our very humanity.  I was blessed to be offered a job at Hope College, a magical place where the respect for tap dance runs deep.  I'm grateful to be able to invite you all to my new home so we can continue to celebrate what it is we all love so much.

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Some things old, some things new:

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Live Music in Classes

25 Students Maximum per session

Minimum 30 hours of classes per week

Come to one or two or three weeks

Open Level in all sessions

Studio:  Tap Studio, Hope College, Holland, MI

Housing:  Please see housing page for options

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"Heather Cornell's laboratory is the dream space, a teacher who gathers passion for dance and music and shares it, a teacher who creates the right place to explore, integrate, share, risk, listen and understand. One really comes out as if the world had stopped to connect. This laboratory is such a necessary place."

             Antonio Vilchez, Master Zapateo dancer and Afro-Peruvian musician

 

 

History:

 

When I started offering my NYC Tap & Music Intensive in 1990, the goal was to teach tap as music, connecting tappers to the music world where I drew my inspiration from for Manhattan Tap.  For many years this intensive has been the place for tap dancers and musicians to come together to talk about music and dance, but more importantly, to play.

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Now called the "Tap Labs", they provide an open learning environment, providing an opportunity for artists of all ages and experience to deepen their practice. Here we work together in a uniquely free way, with musicians woven into the process, enriching and supporting each other's voice.  These Labs are for anyone who wants to nurture their path as an improvisational artist, to connect their artistry to the history, and to dig deeper into their musical roots. 

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My goal is to create a learning environment that nurtures individual development while at the same time developing a strong music/dance community.  I have been mentoring dancers for 4 decades, demystifying collaboration and working with live music.  My passion is to teach students to be creators and not imitators, and to be bilingual in music and dance.  Whether you are a teacher, performer or student, beginner or professional, this intensive will help to answer your questions, help you to pose new ones, and help you to refocus your work.