Dane Dances! Background Information
Mission Statement
To provide a joyous social experience, through music, dance, and other activities that helps to facilitate improved race relations in the Dane County and surrounding areas. As a result of this social interaction, an appreciation and respect is developed for our diverse community.
Background
The concept of Dane Dances comes directly from former Mayor Sue Bauman’s Task Force on Race Relations. The Task Force was created in 1998, to develop a strategy for respecting diversity and undoing racism in the City of Madison where 16% of its citizens are African-American or Latino. Although Study Circles and other programs use facilitated small group discussions to address issues of race, other methodologies include activities that bring diverse groups together to learn about each other by working on projects together or simply coming together to have fun with each other, such as the case with Dane Dances.
Entertaining neighbors, families, and communities since 2000, Dane Dances has established a solid reputation as an annual event drawing thousands to rooftop of the Monona Terrace every Friday evening in August. The specific objective of Dane Dances is to provide opportunities that facilitate improved race relations in Dane County. Through music, dance, and food, we have created a quality program that has successfully brought people from all racial, ethnic, and social backgrounds together. We will continue this year with the fast growing tradition of Dane Dances offering an array of musical entrees consisting of Salsa, Jazz, R&B, Reggae, and Funk, for everyone’s listening and dancing entertainment.
Audience
Everyone is invited to enjoy Dane Dances activities! The Terrace rooftop along with its beautiful gardens and fountains comfortably accommodates the 3,500+ people in attendance each week. This breathtaking venue has allowed us to book very popular, high-energy bands who understand that the Dane Dances audience includes children and people of all ages, races, and ethnic backgrounds. Dane Dances provides an opportunity for individuals and families to experience the simple yet potentially transformative experiences of music, dance and camaraderie.
Dane Dances is different from other events and programs in that it has successfully brought together people from different races and distinct walks of life from the community to share in a common experience. The sponsors, hosts and other supporters of Dane Dances make concerted efforts to ensure that people of all races and distinct walks of life are welcome.
The Event
At the start of each evening, Dane Dances volunteer staff welcome attendees, provide guidance to the food and beverage designated areas, and distribute helium-filled balloons to the children. Scores of attendees come prepared with ready-fold chairs, sun glasses and their dancing shoes. The numerous chairs and tables uniformly placed on the Rooftop Terrace staff are moved and situated by attendees eager to clear space for dancing. Upon entering the Rooftop, there is often immediate gravitation towards the three ethnic food vendors to avoid the lines that quickly form. Vendors providing food at Dane Dances are required to have a restaurant license, a self-contained food cart, and must commit to serving each evening of Dane Dances. Last year’s tentative list of vendors include, Guantanamara (Cuban Food), Wei’s Food to Go (Asian / Vietnamese Food), and Mango Man (Latin Soul Food).
Community leaders and TV personalities are selected each year to host Dane Dances. They arrive filled with just as much enthusiasm as attendees prepared to help guide the evening along. As hosts, they are responsible for introducing the bands and DJ’s, acknowledging the sponsors, and keeping the crowd enthused during the Dances. Previous community leaders who have hosted Dane Dances include Lucia Nunez, Milel Chikasa Anana, Linda Baldwin, Juan Lopez, and Steve Braunginn. Past TV personalities include, Rollen Barres and Mitch Weber (WKOW 27), Sarah Carlson and Mike McKinney (NBC 15), Susan Siman (WISC 3), and Lisa Fielding and Jeremy Nelson from Fox 47.
After the welcome, introductions, and announcements, the DJ cranks up the music for the next half hour to help stimulate the crowd in preparation for the first featured band. The dancing area populates quickly as people get moving with the electric and cha-cha slide. The next 3 ½ hours breeze by with the danceable rhythm and diverse sound of the bands whose music continuously echo’s from the elevated stage, that has the Rooftop waterfall and State Capitol skyline as its backdrop. The warm summer evenings are filled with an undying energy and enthusiasm captured on film and on tape by a local television station. The Dane Dances organization has the pleasure of providing FREE of charge not one, but four unforgettable evenings of music, dance and camaraderie for the entire Dane County community.
The Music
Achieving a high level of diverse participation requires in part, the continued provision of quality and diverse bands. The Dane Dances Band Committee views a variety of bands throughout the year and makes selections based on their “dance-ability” and diversity (both in appearance and style of music). Each Friday evening features two musically diverse bands and two DJ’s.
Reaching Further into the Community – New Activities
As a result of the success we’ve had with the Dances, we expanded our activities to also include Dane Dinners. In January, Dane Dances offered this newest activity, Dane Dinners at the Catholic Multicultural Center. Modeled after a similar program in Dallas, Dane Dinners was developed to provide an opportunity for “everyday people” from all walks of life to come together for discussion and fellowship. Rather than unite people through music and dancing, Dane Dinners brings people together through sharing of food. The multicultural center was almost at capacity, with over 80 people in attendance, including our very own Mayor Dave. With the support of time-limited funding, we were able to offer both of these events to the community at no charge.
Promotional Activities
We have strong promotional activities to attract rural and urban, the affluent and not so affluent, and especially communities of color to Dane Dances activities. We aggressively advertise in a range of media including, 1). Print media: The Madison Times, Umoja Magazine, La Comunidad, the Isthmus; 2). Television stations: Fox 47, WMTV Channel 15, WISC-TV13, WKOW-27; and 3). Radio stations: WLMV-1480, WORT-89.9, and WKPO-105.9. Promotion for Dane Dances is also advertised through the Dane Dances web-site at www.danedances.org.
Organizational Structure
To maximize the impact Dane Dances has on the community, the process of incorporation was completed in the spring of 2003. There are several planning activities that must be carried out to ensure that the Dances run smoothly. Planning activities start in January and run through September each year. We have a structure of committees charged with completing tasks and assignments that support the overall program. The organizational structure includes a Board of Directors, an Executive Committee, the Program Director, and four working bodies that consist of the Band Committee, Logistics, Publicity, and the Fundraising Committee. With the exception of the Program Director, all membership is voluntary.
The backbone of the Dane Dances consists of a hard working, dedicated group of approx. 50 volunteers, 35 of who donate their time to work each Friday night concert. Volunteer staff are readily identified by their designated t-shirts and serve 1 ½ hour shifts. Volunteers are responsible for: 1.) Manning the greeting tables; 2.) Administering entrance and exit surveys. (Attendees are randomly selected upon entering or exiting, to answer questions regarding their experience with Dane Dances); 3.) Guiding band members, guests, and hosts to their designated area; and 4) Acting as “dance initiators”. Dance initiators are those with an outgoing personality who love to dance and are willing to immerse themselves amongst the crowd for the sole purpose of motivating those on the sidelines to get up dance!
As a result of our success, overwhelming community support, we have become one of the premier summer events in the city! We are proud our efforts have not gone unnoticed by the community. In 2004, Dane Dances received award recognition from the Madison City Channel and the YWCA Racial Justice Award.
Prorgram Outcomes
In August 2000, three Dances were held and crowds ranged from 400 to 1000 at each event. As the word spread, the Dances have gained more devoted attendees. Last year’s weekly attendance peaked at 4,256, with a cumulative total of approximately 10,000 attendees. Efforts will continue this season to achieve the following outcomes: 1.) Increase in the number of attendees to 4,500 per week with at least 35% of attendees being from minority populations; 2.) Increased utilization of the downtown area restaurants and businesses before and after the Dances; and 3.) Continuation and strengthening of the newest activity offered by Dane Dances, Dane Dinners.
Sponsorship
As a 501c (4) not for profit corporation, Dane Dances is operated solely by funds received from foundations, corporations, and individual contributors. It is our belief that supporting an event as Dane Dances 1.) Demonstrates strong engagement and support for the community in a highly visible way; 2) maximizes exposure to a large, diverse cross-section of the Madison area population; and 3.) provides an opportunity to encourage the building of friendship and cooperation among people of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Dane Dances extends several options of sponsorship and recognizes sponsors accordingly. Past sponsors have included the Cit of Madison, Madison Gas and Electric Company, Great Wolf Resorts, Starbucks, The Isthmus, the Madison Community Foundation, American Family Insurance, Alliant Energy, and United Way of Dane County.
Conclusion
Over the past seven years, Dane Dances has demonstrated a commitment to providing quality activities that has proven success in reducing racial and other barriers that separate people in the Dane County community. At the same time, we are able to showcase local performers, catalyze the downtown area, and promote central city businesses. The extraordinary music, outstanding food, and energetic crowd makes this event an example of what this community is all about, people throughout Dane County and other surrounding areas of diverse backgrounds coming together to enjoy our rich ethnic and cultural diversity.
