Class Act Dance Troupe will celebrate its 25th anniversary with a performance Sunday at 3 p.m. at the Lakeview Middle School Auditorium. Tickets may be purchased at the door or at Debra Collier’s School of Dance. The performance will include pieces by Chicago-based choreographer Connie Fagan and Indianapolis-based choreographer Diane Gudat, along with performances by Dance Etc. from Debra Collier’s School of Dance. CADT is a non-profit performing company created in 1986 to provide students with additional opportunities to use their dance training and develop their abilities through the creative outlets of performance events and community involvement. The troupe began with five dancers under the guidance of CADT founder Debra Collier and has grown into a company of three troupes with students ranging in age from 8 to 18 with three troupe directors. The troupe now competes on the local, regional and national levels and has performed for such events as Six Flags Great America’s DanceFest, Walt Disney World’s Magic Music Days and the Legacy program in New York City. CADT also performs for many local events including Warsaw Downtown Days, Cruisin’ Hoosiers’ Car Show and First Fridays of Warsaw. Many students have been a part of CADT throughout the years. In honor of the troupe’s 25th anniversary, members have submitted photos and quotes to be shown during Sunday’s performance. Chicago-based choreographer and master teacher Jeremy Plummer wrote, “Class Act Dance Troupe was an amazing building block for me. CADT allowed me to train, perform and start choreographing which lead me to an amazing career. I would not be where I am today without my time with CADT.” “Many CADT members have gone on to various careers in the field of dance,” said CADT Director Tammy Seibold. “We are proud of their accomplishments but also of what our members take from troupe that impacts their lives outside of dance.” Each season CADT joins the students of Debra Collier’s School of Dance as they host “Bring-A-Friend” Week in honor of National Dance Week, April 25-30. The event is held annually to raise public awareness to the benefits of dance. Former CADT member Cassie Dishman explained, “CADT taught me about responsibility, dedication, integrity, respect, trust and friendship along with countless other lessons.” Annual auditions are held for CADT and members rehearse each Saturday throughout the school year, as well as continue year-round training through the studio. Members added additional rehearsal hours this past season as they prepared to present the studio’s first annual Christmas performance, “An Enchanted Christmas”. “We enjoyed watching our dancers take their performance skills to another level by not only performing routines but portraying characters and responding to the narration to convey an entire story to the audience,” CADT Director Kristina Crane said.Fellow director Courtney Brown said, “CADT has always offered opportunities to our members that you cannot find elsewhere in our area and this added wonderful new challenges for our dancers. It shows how far our troupe has come in 25 years and that we still have exciting things ahead.” For more information regarding the troupe or to schedule a performance, contact Tammy Seibold or visit the website at collierdance.com
