BU Summer Dance program includes Dot teens

: Dorchester residents Kyre Ambrose (left, standing) and Brayan Reyes Castro (right, standing) along with teens Cynthia Fu and Anna Tils (seated, left to right).

Kyre Ambrose and Brayan Reyes Castro of Dorchester will serve as emissaries of the arts this summer along with twelve other teens from the greater Boston area as Reach: Summer Outreach Dance/Teen Apprenticeship Dance Program celebrates its 29th anniversary. Since 1990, Reach has been providing training and mentorship to teen apprentices and bringing dance performances and workshops to Greater Boston neighborhood centers.

The Reach program was founded by the artistic co-directors of Dance Collective, a former contemporary dance troupe based in Boston. It was Martha Armstrong Gray and Dawn Kramer's vision to select teen apprentices who would experience the artistry and discipline associated with dance, acquire skills for future jobs, and provide thousands of urban youth with a quality art experience.

In 2006, Micki Taylor-Pinnet, then artistic director of Dance Collective, moved the program to Boston University, where she is the director of dance.

On Wednesday, July 24, Reach's intergenerational dance company will present a free performance at the Cambridge Municipal Lot #5 at Bishop Allen Drive and Essex Street. The performance will showcase the diversity of the individual teen apprentices' training as well as their personal and cultural backgrounds.

Reach's 13-18 year-old teen apprentices are mentored by professional choreographers and college-age interns. This year's professionals include Wendy O'Byrne, Brian Washburn, Kseniya Melyukhina, and Mcebisi Xotyeni, along with two college interns, Hanna Cyr and Brandon Mccrory-Joseph.

During three weeks of intense daily class and rehearsal with Reach staff, the teens prepare for the company's summer tour. The tour, which begins July 22 and lasts two weeks, includes 11 performances and 25 workshops, serving over 1,200 kids and adults at nearly two dozen local camps and community centers in the Greater Boston area.

"We all benefit from Reach's success--the teens, the community and those who strive to bring the power and beauty of dance to a wider audience," Taylor-Pinney said. Reach is primarily funded by charitable grants and through private donations. For more information, visit bu.edu/fitrec/dance/rech/ or call 617-353-1597.


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