Not long after seeing the movie Bohemian Rhapsody about the rock band Queen, World Dance for Humanity (WD4H) director Janet Reineck got a notion to choreograph dances to eight of Queen’s top hits. Since then, World Dancers of all ages and backgrounds have had a blast learning the dances and flash-mobbing them around town.
Their adventure culminated in an exuberant performance in Saturday’s Summer Solstice Parade.
Each year, World Dance honors the spirit of the parade by offering the dance practices free of charge to anyone interested. Participants are encouraged to conjure their costumes from thrift store finds. It’s all about inclusion, freedom, fun, individual expression, and the joy of community.
Only a handful of the World Dancers have formal dance training. For most, this is the first time they’ve learned choreographies, let alone performed for thousands of spectators. The result has been life-changing for many, joyous and transcendent for all.
Learning the Queen dances isn’t all WD4H has been up to. The local nonprofit is dedicated to helping people in need — in Santa Barbara, and halfway around the world in Rwanda.
Locally, the dancers volunteer daily at the Westside Boys & Girls Club, reach out to retirement homes, and give classes for free to low-income locals.
This summer, the group is taking on Shake, Rattle, and Roll, a dance class offered to developmentally disabled adults at the Carrillo Rec Center. WD4H also hosts a community-wide Halloween dance event.
At the core of it all are the World Dance classes — offered every day of the week — that bring together the best of world music and dance.
Beyond local borders, World Dance for Humanity is helping 11,261 genocide survivors in 28 Rwandan communities lift themselves out of poverty. In 2019 alone, World Dance has:
» Built a preschool in a remote Rwandan village and trained its teachers
» Donated 232 goats and eight full-grown, pregnant cows
» Given 250 mattresses to families who are sleeping on the ground
» Provided health insurance for 1,350 people
» Enabled 220 students to attend primary school, high school and college
» Hosted training workshops in agriculture and business
» Helped start five community-run businesses (beekeeping, beet juice, sewing, milk goats, and a craft store)
In July, 20 World Dance travelers will journey to Rwanda to visit the communities WD4H supports. The partnership is giving people in Rwanda the resources and confidence they need to rebuild their lives. The work is deep, personal and sustainable, and is changing lives every day – in Rwanda, and at home.
By dancing locally and acting globally, World Dancers are reaching beyond themselves and changing their owns lives, and the lives of those in need — one step at a time.
World Dance Parade video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZFe9pPoDYw&list=PLB7K4QajeAjcFepNjnIiwFip9Ciftuele&index=2&t=0s.
For more information, visit http://worlddanceforhumanity.org/.
— Janet Reineck for World Dance for Humanity.
