April 29 is Dance Day: what your group can do

February 6, 2007 -- On the 29th of April, as every year since 1982, Dance Day will be celebrated all over the world by the international community of dancers and dance enthusiasts.

The International Dance Council (CID) has prepared the following guidelines as a useful checklist for persons institutionally involved in the wider field of dance: teachers, choreographers, group leaders, journalists, researchers, associations, suppliers, organizations, etc.

Object
The main purpose of Dance Day events is to attract the attention of the wider public to the art of dance. Special emphasis should be given to addressing a "new" public, people who do not follow dance events during the course of the year.

Events
Dance Day events may be special performances, open-door courses, public rehearsals, lectures, exhibitions, articles in newspapers and magazines, dance evenings, radio and TV programs, visits, street shows, etc.

Organizers
Events are primarily organized by dance companies, amateur groups, schools, associations and other institutions active in dance. Wherever possible, it is better for events to be organized jointly with a non-dance institution such as a government agency, a public school, a municipality, a business enterprise, a trade union.

Content
Organizers have full freedom to define the content of the event. Make sure that you include general information on the art of dance, its history, its importance to society, its universal character. This can be done in a short speech, a note in the program, a text distributed to those present. By adding this dimension you make the event different from dance activities taking place any other day. Read a message from a prominent personality, a poem, a passage from a text by a famous author.

Coordination
In order to achieve maximum success, it is important that preparations start early enough. It is imperative to inform the press and generally the media about your event. Notify an organization holding a central position at regional or national level, which should publish a list of events planned for Dance Day. Entrance to events should preferably be free, or by invitation. Invite persons who do not normally attend dance events.

Location
At best, events should take place in "new" places, such as streets, parks, squares, shops, factories, villages, discotheques, schools, stadiums etc. By setting the event in original surroundings you stress the fact that this is an event dedicated to the universal family of dancers.

Prof. Alkis Raftis
President of the CID

World Dance Day has been established in 1982 in view of attracting attention to the art of dance, every year on the 29th of April. On that day, dance companies, dance schools, organizations and individuals are asked to organize an activity addressing an audience larger than their usual one.

The International Dance Council (Conseil International de la Danse - CID) is the official umbrella organization for all forms of dance in all countries of the world. It is a non-governmental non-profit organization (NGO) founded in 1973 within the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, where it is based.
Its purpose is to act as a worldwide forum bringing together international, national and local organizations as well as individuals active in dance. It represents the interests of the dance world at large and consults accordingly governments and international agencies.

International Dance Council -- CID -- Conseil International de la Danse
UNESCO, Paris, France
www.cid-unesco.org