Tanner Dance’s Children’s Dance Theatre invites audiences to explore Utah and its seasons during this weekend’s performances of “Wild Ideas.” More than 190 dancers ages 8 to 18 from around the Beehive State will take the stage at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and at 2 p.m. on Saturday at the Cap itol Theatre in Salt Lake City. Two of those dancers are 7-year-old twins — Elise and Noelle Allred — who live in Heber City, and they are looking forward to the performances. “I like that I get to learn how to dance because learning how to dance is fun,” said Elise, whose class is performing as cacti. “We get to work together and make new friends, and in other dance classes we do things separately instead of in groups.” Noelle, who is in a group that dances as tumbleweeds, also enjoys preparing for the performances. “I like that you can make up your own dances with your groups,” she said. “We did different levels. We did high, medium and low, and I did medium.” The girls’ mother, Rachel, discovered Tanner Dance, a University of Utah program that was founded in 1949, through a family friend. “She had kids who were in Tanner Dance, and she invited me to a performance,” Rachel said. “I’m always up for a dance concert, and I was really impressed at how (the program) captured childhood.” Rachel, who earned a minor in cultural dance at Brigham Young University and was on the college’s folk dance team, loved how the Tanner program taught through child-appropriate movements. “I think a lot of dance teaches technique first and creativity later, and that’s a great way to make fabulous dancers early,” she said. “But I loved how Tanner would meet the kids where they were at, and you could see them grow into the technique and grow into the dance. It was a different approach than I had usually seen.” Rachel had been thinking of putting her girls in a dance program and happened on a Tanner satellite class taught by a Tanner alum, Melissa Holm. “It was love at first sight for my girls,” Rachel said. “Dance can be a brutal place, and this was such a breath of fresh air because it’s so good. It’s warm. It’s safe.” At the end of the season, Elise and Noelle were invited to audition for Children’s Dance Theatre. “At that time, I didn’t really want to drive my kids all the way to Salt Lake for dance,” Rachel confessed. “There was another family up here who was going to do it, so we talked about carpooling.” After signing up, the other family changed its mind. “So, we decided to still do it,” Rachel said.  Another reason why Rachel wanted to keep her twins in the program was how the girls took to the way dance is taught. “I will dance with my girls in the living room, and they’ll say, ‘Mom, don’t forget to use your back’ or ‘Don’t forget to go low,’” she said. “I can see the foundations of what they learned there. And they are getting to really move.” Rachel also pays attention to how the program’s director, Mary Ann Lee, works with the children. “She will give them a hug while correcting them,” Rachel said. “Wild Ideas” is the second performance for the Allred twins. “Wild Ideas” will be performed this weekend by dancers from all around Utah at the Capitol Theatre in Salt Lake City. Credit: Photo courtesy of Tanner Dance “They were in a show during the fall at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center, and then they started working in early November for this concert,” Rachel said. That meant Rachel would have to drive back and forth from Heber City to Salt Lake City for every rehearsal. She doesn’t mind because of how organized the company is.  “I got a packet with the full itinerary, and there are no last-minute stuff or hidden costume fees,” she said. “That makes it easier to make the sacrifice.” Rachel, who teaches middle-school choir, is also impressed that rehearsals are held with live pianists. “That is magical,” she said. “When you make art with other artists of different forms at the same time, it’s really cool.” Rachel’s own journey to music and dance stems with her parents. “I grew up in rural Idaho, and both my parents are extremely musical,” she said. “My dad didn’t work at it for his career, but my mom was a legendary band teacher. So, I grew up doing music.” Rachel began dancing in her living room. “We had an ‘Aladdin’ tape I would turn on and make up my dances,” she said. “When I was 13 or 14, some of the girls I was playing with took ballet. They taught me some of the things, and I went to my mom to ask if I could take ballet.” Rachel took ballet off and on throughout high school. “When I went to college, I wanted to do ballroom dance because I thought it was super cool,” she said. “I ended up taking a folkdance class and fell in love with it, and I danced on the International Folk Dance Team.” The folk dancing spoke to Rachel, who also has a degree in sociology. “(With that degree) community really matters to me, and I loved that folk dance is rooted in community and was (eventually) adapted to performance,” she said. Today’s culture sometimes puts a damper on children’s creativity, according to Rachel. “Schools are usually ranked and awarded only if students are performing at grade level, and that’s great,” she said. “But by prioritizing that we cut out a level of exploration and fun because we’ll then push our kids so hard and so early sometimes. So, with Tanner Dance and the Children’s Dance Theatre, I love there’s a place where they can learn to love dance and grow into being good dancers in an age-appropriate way.” Children’s Dance Theatre: ‘Wild Ideas’ When: 7:30 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Saturday Where: Capitol Theatre, 50 W. 200 South in Salt Lake City Tickets: $18.50, $22.50 and $27.50 for adults and $15.00 for children under age of 18 Phone: 801-355-ARTS Web: arttix.org  and tannerdance.utah.edu The post Young dancers from Heber City perform a celebration of Utah appeared first on Park Record. ...read more read less