To commemorate Hispanic Heritage Month, Hanley Elementary School welcomed the New Ballet Ensemble and School for their performance of ¡José!, a vibrant tribute to the life and legacy of José Limón, a Mexican-born American dancer and choreographer.
The New Ballet Ensemble and School dancers are shown after their performance at Hanley.
Inspired by the book José! Born to Dance, the performance highlighted a range of dance, music, and art genres from that era and history. It also integrated flamenco, the Spanish guitar, and modern art – all themes that inspired José Limón’s journey to becoming an influential modern dance choreographer in New York City.
Following the performance, Matthew Best, executive director of New Ballet Ensemble and School, offered words of encouragement to Hanley’s young students: “You have everything it takes to be great and do great things.”
Students actively engaged throughout the program, participating in comprehension activities and eagerly responding to questions that deepened their understanding of the performance.
At the heart of this celebration was Ashley Chapman, an interventionist at Hanley Elementary, who wrote a grant to bring the New Ballet Ensemble to the school. She successfully received the grant from the Tennessee Arts Commission.
Ashley Chapman was recognized for her work by Principal Zonja Glover.
Chapman, a former dancer herself, works closely with students performing in the bottom 25% in reading and understands the powerful impact of arts education.
“When we think about art – art education develops the whole child,” Chapman said. “I think a lot of people forget that because the impact that I see not only allows them to be creative, but it may teach them some critical thinking skills,” she added, referencing Mr. Best’s questions during the show.
Chapman also spoke to the importance of representation and opportunity: “We live in a world where we have put too many negative labels on what kids cannot do. We need to first expose them and give them an opportunity. We would be surprised at what they could do for us.”
Throughout the performance, students witnessed José’s triumphant success story after immigrating to the United States through resiliency. “This is a way to learn in a very non traditional way. And I think there’s beauty in that too,” Chapman said with a smile.
“I am always so honored that I am being used as a vessel to expose our children to real life things that go beyond their zipcodes and what they’ve been through. It gives them a glimpse of opportunity that I can set my life up to look how I want it to look.”
She ended on a high note: “I am humbled that I can provide these opportunities for our students”
Sometimes, it takes only one positive moment to create a lasting impact on an MSCS student’s life.
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