Press & News

For parents of children with special needs, it can be difficult to find inclusive extracurricular activities. CBS News New York's Noëlle Lilley attended the National Dance Institute's Dream Camp, where music unites people of all abilities.

Since 1976, the National Dance Institute has provided dance education for thousands of students. One program is specifically tailored to children with disabilities. Mr. G visited the studios in Harlem for this week’s Dream Project, where students were rehearsing for a special performance.

Born in Alameda in 1991, Jerron Herman found his home in the arts from an early age. Exploring drama, writing, and self-expression were vital for him. His artistic life took shape in New York City, training in playwriting at NYU and New Victoria Theater and completing a degree in Media, Culture, and Art from Kings College.

The National Dance Institute (NDI) has launched its 50th anniversary season, celebrating five decades of providing arts education to New York City schoolchildren. Founded by Jacques d’Amboise, the Harlem-based organization is calling on its extensive network of over 2 million alumni to reconnect and participate in the celebration, including through a series called Jacques Art Nest.

If it takes two to tango, then Brooklyn-based choreographer Jerron Herman’s personal identities serve as perfect dance partners. “There’s a connection between Blackness and disability in my work and in my art,” he said in a Zoom conversation. “It supports more literacy around that deep connection that is there between the disenfranchisement of Black people and often disabled people.”

Host Tiffany Hanssen on WNYC's radio show, "All Of It with Alison Stewart," interviews NDI Artistic Director Kay Gayner and NDI Board member Daniel Ulbricht, who is also Principal Dancer at the New York City Ballet. Listen as they discuss NDI's mission, the legend of Founder Jacques d'Amboise, and its impact over the past five decades in bringing free, inclusive dance education to over 6,500 children in the NYC area.