VISITING DANCER HELPS KIDS

A gym full of girls giggled when asked to rotate their shoulders and sway their hips, tripped over their toes as they learned a jazz run and discovered that walking to the rhythm of music was harder than it looked.

Along the way, the fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders at Washington Elementary School learned a few basics of ballet.

Dana Vanoni is a former Cape Girardeau resident, who now works as a professional dancer and dance teacher in Italy. She and her husband also own a health club, and she directs a dance troupe that performs throughout northern Italy.

Vanoni is visiting family in Cape Girardeau, including her sister Robyn Gross, a physical education teacher at Washington.

"I usually try to do at least one workshop while I'm in town," Vanoni said.

She started dancing at age 5 and danced with regional companies including the Springfield (Mo.) City Ballet. At age 19, she choreographed her first off-Broadway musical, "Desire Under the Elms."

Vanoni also worked with Girls Clubs of America - teaching dance to underprivileged girls - and as a fitness journalist for Ladies Home Journal.

At Washington School while the girls were learning the difference between sixth and second position, Vanoni said the young dancers were also learning about movement and their bodies.

In one of the exercises, the girls acted out a scene using no words.

Vanoni said she works a lot with actors and theater companies, teaching body movements and mime. She said movement and dance are important to communication.

"I try to give them a chance to understand that dance is not frivolous play," Vanoni said. In fact, she often refers to movement or bodily expression rather than dance.

The two-hour workshop included some lessons on dance history, running, jumping, stretching and dancing.

"They were all smiling and laughing when they left," Vanoni said. "I think it went really well.

"I would really like to do a creative workshop some time to give the kids a chance to express themselves," Vanoni said.

"Creativity can be an emotional outburst and it can help a lot with the transition from childhood to adolescence, whether it is singing or dancing or acting or painting. Each child needs to find that expression of creativity inside."

Vanoni's sister said dance is taught as part of the physical education curriculum.

But Gross said bringing in a guest instructor adds impact and variety for students. "I'm a dancer too, but when I do dance they get aerobics, because that's what I teach," Gross said. "This shows other types of dancing.

"I try to get guest people to come in throughout the year to expose the students to as many different things as possible."

The workshop was for girls only this year. In other years, co-ed groups have participated. But Gross said youngsters at this age feel self-conscientious in front of the opposite sex. A basketball workshop is planned later for boys.