Movie Music Gets After Schoolers Moving at Manhattan Youth Concert

Peck Slip School 2nd and 3rd graders from the Jazz & Tap Class dance to "Singin' in the Rain." Photo: Carl Glassman/Tribeca Trib 

“Night at the Movies” was the theme of Manhattan Youth’s annual winter dance concert, with performances by its 18 after-school dance classes. Nearly 200 kids from six Lower Manhattan elementary schools plus the Downtown Community Center took the PS 89 stage Saturday, moving to the themes of popular films old and new, from “Singin’ in the Rain” to “Barbie.” 

“What I liked about this one is that it entails different kinds of music,” said Susan Kay, who has been directing the twice-a-year performances since 2010 and comes up with the concert themes and the music that go with them. For these performances, with costumes again by Constance Tarbox, she gave the dance teachers a list of movies to choose from. And now, she says, “I’m hoping that either the parents or the kids will get a little curious about the movies, if they haven’t actually seen them.

The entire one-hour show only comes together—including costume fitting and dress rehearsal—on the day of the show. That means a lot of moving parts to keep track of for Kay and co-producer Tasha Hunter. “Everyone has a certain function,” the director said. “But we’re watching all the pieces moving, the timing, getting off the stage, getting on the stage, getting up the stairs.”  

“But it all came together,” she added. “I felt really relieved and happy.”