DANCECLEVELAND was established in 1956 as the Cleveland Modern Dance Assn. to promote modern dance in Greater Cleveland. A nationally recognized organization headquartered at 1148 Euclid Ave., it has, from the outset, focused its classes and programs on progressive concepts in dance and defined its purpose in public involvement and performance presentation. By donating its reference collection of books to the Cleveland Hts. Public Library, the organization made accessible the region's first substantial collection of dance materials. Since 1956 DanceCleveland has annually coordinated modern-dance concerts and related activities for students in local schools and universities. Its annual public workshops provided courses in techniques of modern dance, jazz movement, and dance composition and have been conducted by guest artists distinguished as principal dancers, internationally renowned choreographers, and accomplished teachers. Nationally recognized dance-therapy workshops for mental-health and medical professionals have been offered 4 or 5 times yearly since 1979. Also in 1979, DanceCleveland established an unprecedented annual subscription series, which presented 4 to 6 separate productions, including bookings of nationally and internationally recognized troupes, in the theaters of PLAYHOUSE SQUARE. Known as DanceCleveland since the 1980s, the society has been affiliated with all Cleveland-based modern dance ensembles. Institutions that have cooperated with CMDA have included CLEVELAND STATE UNIV., CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIV., the Beck Ctr., the CLEVELAND MUSIC SCHOOL SETTLEMENT, JOHN CARROLL UNIV., CUYAHOGA COMMUNITY COLLEGE, Univ. of Akron, Cleveland School of the Arts, and Shaker Hts. High School.
See also DANCE.