More than 30 free dance workshops, world-premiere performances and a community event in Central Park will fill four days on Amelia Island when the Amelia Island Dance Festival returns for its eighth season Sept. 10–13.
The nonprofit festival, founded in 2019, brings national companies and solo artists together with Northeast Florida performers for shows at Amelia Community Theatre, workshops at the Residence Inn and Atlantic Recreation Center, and Saturday's Dancing in the Park at Central Park in Fernandina Beach.
"Our mission has always been to remove barriers to experiencing dance," executive artistic director Susan Dodge said on the festival's website. "Whether someone is attending their first performance, taking a workshop, watching their child perform, or seeing a professional artist on stage, we want people to feel welcome and connected to what is happening."
Dodge, a former member of the Paul Taylor Dance Company, leads the festival alongside president Linda Loftis-Vrooman, who danced and choreographed in New York City before directing the Fernandina Beach studio of Royal Academy of Dance.
What's on stage
The Guest Artist Performance, a professionally curated program repeated four times across the weekend, anchors the lineup. Thursday, Sept. 10, and Friday, Sept. 11, performances begin at 7 p.m. at Amelia Community Theatre. Saturday, Sept. 12, adds a 7 p.m. show, and Sunday, Sept. 13, closes the run at 4 p.m.
Broadway tap artist John Manzari is producing an original tap work created specifically for this year's festival. East by North Dance Theatre, a local Amelia Island company, is collaborating with percussionist Mal Stein on an immersive new piece. Colombian-born choreographer Sofía Forero, trained at New York's Joffrey Ballet School and The Ailey School, will present a work inspired by her grandmother's culture. Jacksonville native James Boyd III, a Douglas Anderson School of the Arts graduate who has appeared on So You Think You Can Dance and performed alongside Elton John and Misty Copeland, brings a multimedia contemporary piece blending dance with technology.
Returning companies include the Anubhava Dance Company and the Jon Lehrer Dance Company.
Saturday's schedule also features the Young Choreographers Program at 2 p.m. and an Emerging & Local Artists Showcase at 4 p.m. Sunday adds a second Emerging & Local Artists Showcase at 2 p.m.
Workshops and Dancing in the Park
All workshops are free.
They span ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip hop, modern and cultural dance traditions, open to all ages and experience levels. The classes are funded by the Theodore & Pauline Cohen Charitable Trust. Thursday and Friday sessions take place at the Residence Inn; Saturday workshops move to Central Park, the Atlantic Recreation Center and Amelia Community Theatre.
Dancing in the Park runs Saturday, Sept. 12, from 9 to 11:30 a.m. at Central Park with Zumba, country line dancing, an intro to swing and a new Dance Passport Adventure where children explore global dance traditions. A Studio & Academy Performance Showcase follows at 11:45 a.m.
In an Aug. 10 feature in Amelia Islander Magazine, Dodge described the park event as "an invitation to explore, create, laugh, and connect with our community."
Tickets and details
Tickets are on sale at ameliaislanddancefestival.org, where residents can also register for workshops and view the full artist lineup. The Residence Inn by Marriott Amelia Island is the official festival hotel; guests can check room availability through the festival website.
Upcoming festival calendar
- Thursday, Sept. 10: Workshops at Residence Inn; Guest Artist Performance, 7 p.m., Amelia Community Theatre
- Friday, Sept. 11: Workshops at Residence Inn; Guest Artist Performance, 7 p.m., Amelia Community Theatre
- Saturday, Sept. 12: Dancing in the Park, 9–11:30 a.m., Central Park; Young Choreographers Program, 2 p.m.; Emerging & Local Artists Showcase, 4 p.m.; Guest Artist Performance, 7 p.m., Amelia Community Theatre
- Sunday, Sept. 13: Emerging & Local Artists Showcase, 2 p.m.; Guest Artist Performance, 4 p.m., Amelia Community Theatre
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