Fuse Dance Group
An invigorating enrichment curriculum, your after school program needs!
We the dancers, faculty and staff of F.U.S.E Dance Group Inc., are a vibrant community of people who have high regard for each other, the art of dance, and the respectability and value of the work we do. We want to make dance accessible to young people and adults through dance training education programs build to mold and create exceptional performers. Students are offered the opportunity to follow a stimulating curriculum of diverse dance forms and the history behind it. A broad selection of dance classes will be available for the dance enthusiast. All who participate are requested to demonstrate the willingness to be held accountable to uphold the values and adhere to the ethics and guidelines of F.U.S.E. Dance Group Inc. F.U.S.E. has a proven track record of partnering with after school programs in the Metropolitan area and taking them to new heights with our dance and fine arts curriculum. Along with weekly doses of movement and exercise that are so imperative for today’s youth, our program is also designed to redirect disruptive behavior by giving students a positive, creative, and structured outlet to express themselves. Our students have so much to gain and look forward to as they are given the opportunity to share what they have learned when performing for their peers and parents; this gives them a strong sense of purpose, identity, and pride. F.U.S.E. not only teaches and creates; we strive to guide and provide a strong foundation for our students that foster their confidence and individuality. Those are two key aspects that they will undoubtedly carry with them for the rest of their lives.
“Creativity takes courage”
The Fuse Experience
For more content please click the youtube tab in the footer!
Our Story
Where It All Began
Whitney M. Jiggetts is an immensely talented performer and instructor who was born in Brooklyn, NY. She began her dancing career at the age of 4 at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM). Tap and Ballet is where her initial training started. Whitney studied technical dance and has studied Dance History for 2 years and the Art of Dance Therapy for 1 year. She has a knack for connecting with youth and inspiring young dance enthusiasts to nurture their skill and grow. She has been able to bring out creativity in her students by explaining, demonstrating and building self confidence to help them expand on their budding talents. Her forte is Hip Hop and Jazz, but has studied many dance forms and has excelled and continues to expand on diverse dance disciplines. Whitney is fully groomed in the urban settings and is comfortable with teaching in non-traditional spaces. Yet is able to transition to the stricter settings of a dance studio. She is able to share her love and passion for the arts with her students and give them the necessary skills to go above and beyond. No matter the surroundings, Whitney is able to execute the task at hand and give her students an outstanding dance and performance experience.
With all this experience, Whitney made it her mission to create a program where she could expand her love and passion for our youth by training and sharing her vision with teaching artist who wanted to work with the youth through enrichment.
About F.U.S.E Dance Group Inc.
This program was founded with the intention in mind to offer exciting dance disciplines and fine arts enrichments during the day or in after school programs. We customize our dance and fine arts program to suit the needs of your school. We will work closely with your school leaders to ensure you are receiving quality services. F.U.S.E. will surely provide an enriching extra curricular experience for your students. F.U.S.E. Afterschool Program offers dynamic enrichments that nurture the growth and development of our students. We aim to create a positive force that influences young people to expand on their interests and talents. They will be introduced to an abundance of mental and physical activities to ensure our students are well rounded. We will make it a priority that every child feels at home, by supplying students with the necessary skills to build a community within our program. Our enrichment program will be diverse enough for every student to be apart of an activity that is appealing to him or her.
The program promotes physical exercise and provides young people a positive and safe after school option. F.U.S.E. believes in correcting not criticizing our students from the beginning so no bad habits are formed. We also believe in learning while having fun! Our goal is to have each class taught in a fun and educational manner. We have taught many young and mature dancers many styles and will continue to inspire each and every student. Each dancer possesses creativity, but not everyone knows how to access it. Dance is a wonderful avenue to acquaint yourself with your creative side. Our classes are designed to give dancers a chance to experience dance in a fun environment, while improving strength, flexibility, coordination and technique. We are happy to share our passion with the faculty we've assembled. We share the same drive to teach and educate along with love of all the arts. F.U.S.E is confident with this faculty's incredible experience and wisdom that you will have a phenomenal experience!!!!
F.U.S.E. Dance Group Inc., an Extra Curricular Fine Arts Program
Program Description
F.U.S.E provides affordable dance classes to elementary, middle, and high school students within the NYC area. The organization focuses on students who attend schools that show great interest in the performing arts but are unable to accommodate those needs during the traditional school day. The program provides a unique opportunity for students to be a part of a fun, energetic and positive group within their school but outside of normal school hours. Throughout the term, the students learn basic dance concepts, work on choreography, and help coordinate costumes. At the end of each term, approximately 8-10 weeks, F.U.S.E. will hold an intramural dance showcase where the students show off what they learned to their peers, teachers, families, and community. These showcase events will be held at the school site. Parents, family members and friends are invited to see the students perform.
Goal
F.U.S.E.'s goal is to provide dance classes to students who might otherwise not have the opportunity to participate in dance classes outside of school. The students choose between various dance instruction possibilities including, but not limited to: Hip Hop, Jazz, Ballet, Modern, African, Music Video Dance and Step. They attend group dance classes with our exceptional " F.U.S.E " instructors 2-4 times per week. Our instructors are highly trained with a minimum of 3 years teaching experience. All instructors are required to keep up with dance education and attend our monthly staff development classes. Students will improve self-confidence, coordination, respect for themselves and others, and interaction (partner dance dynamic). The program promotes physical exercise and provides these young people with a positive and safe after school option. Instructors are willing to be assisted by program volunteers as well as parents and school teachers.
F.U.S.E. DANCE GROUP INC. goals include:
a. Help students achieve the creative capacity and understanding necessary to engage in dance choreography
b. Understand body form, alignment and basic dance vocabulary and etiquette
c. Improve students’ health, coordination and self disciplined. Enrich students’ lives with music and dance
Addressing the Issues
F.U.S.E is a dynamic program that nurtures creativity and is a safe outlet for students to express themselves through movement. F.U.S.E. creates a positive force that influences young people to expand on their talents. Once we get started with your school, you will decide which dance styles would be popular for your students.
ALTHOUGH DANCE IS OUR ORGANIZATION'S TOP SERVICE, F.U.S.E. IS DIVERSE AND NOT ONLY PROVIDES DANCE ENRICHMENT. WE PROVIDE SERVICES IN THE ENTIRE FINE ARTS DEPARTMENT!!!
*PLEASE SEE SERVICES TAB FOR MORE INFORMATION
Class Description and Services Offered
Whether you’re a current student of Fuse Dance Group or visiting us for the first time, this section can provide helpful information for you. Take a look below and check back often for the latest updates.
CREATIVE MOVEMENT
This class encourages free expression, while teaching basic elements of dance, including rhythm, movement quality, space, body, awareness and shape. The child's imagination and self esteem are encouraged and strengthened through dance.
BALLET
These classes introduce students to basic ballet vocabulary while developing strength, proper alignment, musicality, and the grace that is inherent in the form.
Hip Hop
A high energy class that uses the latest sounds in rap, R&B and pop music together with movement influenced by some of todays hottest choreography. Hip Hop encompasses movement that has elements of poppin', locking and breaking as well as freestyle movement to give students the opportunity to develop their own sense of style. Hip Hip is urban, it's street, it's diverse and forever changing.
Jazz
An exciting and ever evolving dance form full of rhythm, syncopation, passion and life. Steeped in the rhythm of jazz music, a true American art form, jazz brings energy and life to all those who dance it. Classes explore body isolation of the head, shoulders, ribcage, feet and arm and encourage individual expression and the development of personal style.
Modern
A contemporary dance form that has it's roots in ballet. It emphasizes the use of the floor for centering and grounding oneself in movement. Concepts of over curve / under curve, contraction / release, musicality and rhythm are explored.
Music Video
This class is the dance form combining jazz, hip hop and funk. This style of dance can be seen in videos by artist such as: Janet Jackson, Beyonce, Rihanna, Chris Brown and Usher to name a few.
All Boys Dance
This class introduced young male students to the fundamentals of dance in a nurturing, all boys classroom setting. Taking a diverse approach that mixes modern and ballet techniques with strength training, students will develop musicality, coordination, flexibility and physical fitness within a fun environment.
Afro-Caribbean
A full bodied exploration of African dances from the Caribbean and latin America. Offers a rich cultural heritage in the arts that has long been traditional sources of self-knowledge, community cohesion and spiritual communion. The class will learn traditional dances, rhythms and songs from Senegal and Guinea, West Africa and at the same time explore the functions of these dances in relationship to your own life. Class warm-up informs African dance technique and includes working on core strength, stretch, stamina, grounding, community building and rhythmic sensibility.
Cheerleading
This class provides instruction in tumbling, jumps, motions and conditioning for cheerleading. This is a way for young athletes to learn new skills, teamwork, sportsmanship, confidence, and build new friendships. This class will also be infused with various forms of dance to enhance performance highlights.
Step
A form of percussive dance in which the participant's entire body is used as an instrument to produce complex rhythms and sounds through a mixture of footsteps, spoken word, and hand claps. Though stepping may be performed by an individual, it is generally performed by groups of three or more, often in arrangements that resemble military formations.
Tap
Tap classes are designed to develop rhythm, style and sound. Students will learn a variety of tap styles from Broadway to Rhythm tap. Exercises focus on building flexibility of the knee and ankles, coordination, and speed of movement. The class emphasis is on developing proper tap technique, producing clear tap sounds, and having fun. As students progress through each level curriculum will become increasingly more complex and intricate.
Gym/Fitness
This class is a fun and unique blend of aerobic & anaerobic conditioning, calisthenics, and strength & endurance training. Games, relay races and an abundance of fitness regimens are included.
Additional Services Provided
Fuse Dance Group is committed to providing courses that not only fit every skill level and background, but also infuse our supportive and innovative teaching approach. Check out our current course offerings below.
THEATRE/DRAMA
Acting: Students focus on acting and character development through exercises, techniques, and improvisation. They also engage in intensive, script-based scene work to find deeper meaning in the written word.
Scene Study: Designed for a variety of experience levels, this class develops skill and confidence as students analyze, rehearse, and perform scenes from classic and contemporary plays. This class emphasizes working with other actors to develop relationships onstage.
MUSICAL THEATRE
The most dynamic of them all!! Musical Theater offers students a variety of skills. Our classes consists of monologues, skits, acting, commercials, improvisation, and “Broadway” style dance. This class will follow a jazz warm up and will have progressions and center floor work and combinations that combine acting with jazz dance. The students will enjoy interacting with eachother and seeking reactions from their fellow peers.
PERCUSSION
This enrichment is designed to cover the fundamentals of playing percussion instruments and the application of musicianship skills to the genre. It is designed to improve the playing skills and knowledge in the areas of mallets, drum set, beginning rhythmic reading, and percussion ensemble.
*Official drums are not needed for this enrichment!! Drums could be substituted for a medium sized hollow bucket.
POLYRHYTHMICS
A polyrhythm is simply two more independent rhythms playing at the same time. Polyrhythms can be heard throughout African, Indian, and Afro-Cuban music, among many other musical cultures. To create polyryhthms the use of props are not always needed! They can be accomplished by simply using the body as the instrument; legs, hands, feet and voice. For more intricate sounds props may be used. Any object that creates a sound could be incorporated. This enrichment goes hand in hand with Percusson and Afro Caribbean dance.
VISUAL ARTS
URBAN ART / FUN WITH CLOTHING
Urban Art differs from tradition art classes because it has a slight twist. Students will create cool crafts and DIY projects and/or create unique designs with clothing. Activities vary from designing sneakers, T-shirts, pillows, jewelry, denim embroidery etc. This enrichment is a hit with ALL AGES!
DRAWING
Students learn a realistic drawing program. Curriculum is varied to include teaching still-life, the figure, landscape, portraiture, cartooning, animation, clay sculpture, and more. This high quality fine art program offers art instruction that goes far beyond cut and paste, and arts & crafts. It teaches a student how to "see" in a new way, and offers basic understanding of how to draw
PAINTING
Beginning painters will learn to find and express their unique painting personality. Emphasis will be on understanding good composition and color harmony that relates to any subject matter, whether abstract or realistic.
PUPPETRY/PUPPETRY THEATRE
Puppetry is a form of theatre that involves the physical manipulation of inanimate objects known as puppets. Puppets mainly used are hand and finger puppets created by our students. This form of art can be used in the classroom to enhance the curriculum in many different ways.
CERAMICS
An introductory class that provides students with the opportunity to develop a basic knowledge of ceramics, handbuilding, and an introduction to wheel work. The course encompasses all ceramics related skills.
COOKING
This enrichment is a fun and educational class that will teach students essential kitchen skills, safety, techniques, food experimentation, while tasting and learning to prepare a wide variety of delicious foods along the way.
DOUBLE DUTCH / JUMP ROPE
An introductory class to the art of jumping rope (single and double). This fun class promotes coordination, balance, stamina, focus and also allows students to tap into a creative way to exercise and learn jump rope tricks.
Workshops
Exceed Your Expectations
Virtual Workshops
This past year allowed us to explore different ways to adhere to safety protocol and guidelines as we made some necessary adjustments during the pandemic. We happily offer virtual classes and workshops designed to support our stellar curriculum and will continue to while we navigate our way through the new normal.
Remote Classes
We can conduct dance, art and numerous enrichment classes via zoom for your remote convenience. Easily accessible to all participants and staff
Dance Intensive
This workshop consists of an up-beat and energetic center warm-up, concentrating on breath, isolation and undulation exercises, followed by across the floor and open dance combinations designed to work on dancers physical endurance, posture and artistry. The movement routines and internal rhythms introduced will invite dancers to creatively explore space, time and musicality. Can be enjoyed by beginners as well as more experienced dancers.
Drama Foundations
Students will engage in improvisation groups to perform in front of classmates in order to prepare for a day's work in scene study. They will participate in a variety of theatrical warm‐ups and exercises throughout the week. These exercises will help the students to develop a variety of skills, which include but are not limited to the following: listening, spontaneity, risk‐taking, group dynamics, concentration, following one's instincts, and emotional resonance. As well, the students will analyze the acting techniques used in a particular production and identify the correlation among the following members of a production team: actor, director, technical director, sound technician, costumer, lighting personnel and other professional teams.
Art Appreciation Workshop
The purpose of this class is to maximize and maintain the students art interest and expand on their creativity. This workshop consists of but not limited to many DIY Activities, jewelry making, painting and drawing projects. Students could suggest activities before the start of the workshop (Supplies fees apply)
Percussion & Music Theory Workshop
This course is designed to help percussion students further their musical skills outside of regular band class. Students will rehearse and perform with others. They will be taught music reading skills, musicality, music terminology, music history, and music theory. Students will also be encouraged to prepare short solos.
Leadership Workshop
This workshop is designed to improve the character and leadership traits among today’s youth. Topics will be based upon day-to-day life issues and will also incorporate on the spot topics the students may want to discuss. Students will explore the principles of relational leadership and learn to develop individual and group leadership skills to impact their lives and their communities. Content areas include decision-making, goal setting, effective communication, servant leadership, organization and time management skills, and concrete strategies to implement change
Anti-bullying Workshop
Bullying is an issue that happens everywhere in the world. No matter where you live, where you go to school or how popular you might be you have witnessed, caused or been the victim of aggression from your peers. It is our hope that this workshop will raise awareness about bullying and how it affects individuals on a daily basis. This workshop will have multiple role-playing exercises and give the students ways to cope and deal with bullying issues. The group will explore numerous ways to be an advocate and stop bullying in its tracks.
Fitness Workshop
This class is a fun and unique blend of aerobic & anaerobic conditioning, calisthenics, and strength & endurance training. Games, relay races and an abundance of fitness regimens will be included in this workshop
Health & Nutrition Workshop
This workshop emphasizes the fundamental concepts of nutrition with a focus on the relationships of nutrients to health, fitness, and athletic performance. Topics include basic dietary constituents, principles of body function, considerations for disease prevention and management, dietary regulation, dietary myths, food safety and weight management.
Contact
Get in touch today to find out more about our program and opportunities to partner with Fuse!
1 347 678 9244