Newsletter Vol. 15 Fall 2008   The Art of Living a Joyful Life Table of Contents Recuperation, Rejuvenation and New Ventures 16th Annual Holiday Party Become a Donor BAXten Award Recuperation, Rejuvenation and New Ventures Dear Friends, As I sit down to write this newsletter I cannot help but reflect on the events of this past week. The election of Barack Obama to the presidency of the United States is both monumental and personal. As a Hillary supporter, I was a latecomer to the Obama camp. As much as I liked what he had to say, I truly believed that he could not win the presidency and there was no way that I wanted another four years of Republicans in control of our destiny. So it was with great relief and beyond thrilling to be proven wrong. This election has given me to a renewed faith in my fellow Americans and a restored hope for our country. His acceptance speech was moving in a way that I haven’t felt since I heard Mario Cuomo speak when he was governor of New York. Eloquent only begins to describe his style and demeanor. He is cool, calm, intelligent, direct, sincere, and inspiring. It quite frankly brought me to tears and made me proud to be an American for the first time in many years. On a more personal note, this year has been one for difficult decisions and new ventures. To begin with I accepted a full time position at Staten Island Academy, where I teach Pre-K thru12th grade. This was not an easy decision because it meant giving up my weekday classes at the Printing House, which I have been teaching for over 20 years to an incredibly loyal, dedicated, and fun group of adult students. Fortunately, I am still teaching there on Sundays and have been able to touch base with most of those students, though it is not quite the same as three times a week. Also this year, I finally tired of living in constant pain due to an arthritic hip, and decided to have total hip replacement surgery. For those of you who know me well, you know that this decision was a long time in the making. It came only after I had exhausted all means of physical and movement therapies to help relieve the pain. After consulting three different surgeons and discussing all the possibilities with my various movement specialists, I decided to have the surgery this past June. It was performed by Dr. Douglas Padgett at the Hospital for Special Surgery in NYC. I spent most of the summer recuperating at my sister’s house in South Jersey, to whom I am eternally grateful and who’s house was inundated with cards, packages, e-mails and phone calls from so many of you. The operation was very successful and my recuperation went smoothly, with the help of Ken, my sisters, and my niece. By the end of the summer I felt rejuvenated and ready to go back to school. As of this week, as a matter of fact on Election Day, I was given the go ahead by Dr. Padgett to do away with all movement restrictions and get fully back into teaching and dancing. As the country moves forward so do I with renewed vim and vigor and a hope that things can only get better. As for dancing and choreographing, I will be performing at our annual fund raiser in December and I have just been commissioned to set a piece on the Anna Sokolow Theatre Dance Ensemble. I will be collaborating on the project with my long time musical partner and composer, Marty Beller. As of today I have started working on the movement and will be showing some of the phrases at our fund raiser. The premiere of the finished piece will be at the Cunningham Studio in April. I am very excited about this project and am looking forward to working with the Sokolow company in the New Year. On a final note, this fall I took a workshop with Irene Dowd and Rebecca Deitzel on Enhancing Bone Architecture. I learned many facts about bone density and architecture. One thing that I took away from the workshop that had animmense impact on me was a simple phrase that they repeated over and over again as a way of maintaining healthybones. That phrase is “live a joyful life”. This summer, as I was recuperating, I re-discovered a joyful way of living. It involves reflection, adequate rest, productive activities, artistic expression, intellectual engagement, a little “agita”, close friendships and a loving family. I feel truly blessed to be surrounded by people who make my life a journey filled with joy every day.   As Always, Andrew   Return to Table of Contents       16th Annual Holiday Party and Fundraiser The Board of Directors of Andrew Jannetti & Dancers invites you to our 16th Annual Holiday Party, Silent Auction, and Performance Fest at the Village Community School, located at 272-278 West 10th Street in the West Village on Saturday, December 6th. The doors open at 5:00 pm and the performance starts at 5:30pm. One of a Kind Holiday Gift Items, Food, and Drinks Entertainment by Andrew Jannetti & Dancers and invited guests Suggested Contribution:$35 Seniors & Starving Artists:$25 Students & Children under 12, and $10 RSVP by Wednesday, December 3 by e-mail, snail mail, or phone 212-431-7313 info@andrewjannettianddancers.org If you would like to place a bid on line go to Silent Auction and follow the instructions. Most items are displayed on line. Have fun! Of Course, if you can't make it, you can still make a donation to support our artistic efforts. For more details, see Become a Donor   Return to Table of Contents Become a Donor   There are many ways to become a supporter of Andrew Jannetti & Dancers. Donations of all sizes are greatly appreciated and fully deductible to the extent allowed by law. Check the options below for the best way that you can donate. You can also double or triple your contribution by getting your company to match your donation. Your continuing support helps to keep us alive and vital.   How Your Donation Makes a Difference $15 Basic pays for whatever $30 Friend pays for 3 hours of rehearsal space $50 Supporting Friend pays for half a costume $75 Special Friend pays for 5% of the performance space rental $100 Patron pays for one minute of an original music score $200 Partner pays for 1/10 of the printing and mailing costs $500 Supporting Partner pays a dancer's salary for the performance week $1,000 Benefactor pays for Video & Photo documentation of a performance All contributions are fully deductible to the extent allowed by law. To make a donation on-line just click on the Make a Donation button below and follow the instructions. "Make Donations with PayPal - it's fast, free and secure!" For information on being a Benefactor ($1,000 +) and other giving opportunities, please contact us at 212-431-7313 or by e-mail at info@andrewjannettianddancers.org. To make donations through the mail: make checks payable to Andrew Jannetti & Dancers and mail to Andrew Jannetti & Dancers P.O. Box 350, New York, NY 10012-0006 Return to Table of Contents BAXten Award Last year Andrew received a BAXten Award for thirty years of teaching and mentoring students in dance. Mayor Bloomberg was there to congratulate the recipients Below are Marya Warshaw's presentation speech and Andrew's acceptance speeche. MARYA'S PRESENTATION SPEECH Andrew Jannetti What can I tell you about this man? I remember hearing about him before I met him. He was teaching near to where I was at the time and there were some students who took both classes. You have to meet him they said. his classes are incredible. Fast forward, to the founding of the Brooklyn arts exchange 1991. I was forming a staff and knew I wanted the kind of teachers who children would attach themselves to and teens and adults would be inspired by. Andrew was the natural choice. And so we began to work together, at first a couple of times a week and finally every day. A long relationship that spans more than twenty five years. Andrew could teach anyone. And the reason he could do that is that he is truly curious about everyone. The young woman who is strongly committed to and wants to dance professionally, the 3 year old who is entranced with tales of make believe, the adult who is grateful for his clarity and the depth of his knowledge. Andrew is one of the most versatile, gifted educators I have ever known and I have known many. I have heard Andrew articulate the profound impact falling in love with dance has had in his life & his choices. Not only is this the inspiration for his teaching, it has been a gift he has brought to the mentoring of now STOP (he started very young) generations of teachers. His methodology, ideas & passion can be found in studios & classrooms throughout this city & beyond. I am going to digress for a moment, because I have the honor of presenting this award and because I am Marya and I can. A word about the building and the maintenance of this house we ve created, The Brooklyn Arts Exchange. Andrew was an essential part of the group that made and grew BAX. His belief in its importance translates into a million memories big & small. Concerts, celebrations, planning, dreaming, endless reorganizing, hauling & schlepping. I cannot thank him enough. Andrew is sweet, smart, goofy, generous, loyal, sentimental. What a wonderful human being I ve had the honor to work with and to know. He s taught my children. He s taught me. He s been my partner in helping to create a nurturing & rigorous educational environment that endures and is wholly grateful to him. I congratulate him and am so happy to present him with an award that reads: for close to thirty years in the field as a gifted & generous dance educator who has mentored a generation and more. For his deep involvement in the lives of students, families and colleagues and his care and feeding of the whole person not just the plie. ANDREW'S ACCEPTANCE SPEECH Changing jobs, having knee surgery, the unexpected death of my mother, all within the same year made for a year that was an emotional roller coaster. So when I got the notice that I was nominated for this award I saw it as a sign that things may be turning around. I only wish that my mom could be here today because I know she would be very proud and would have enjoyed this entire event. I want to thank all of you who nominated me, and the staff at BAX for choosing me for this award. Receiving this award from my peers, who work and have worked beside me, and understand the daily challenges and rewards that this work brings, is both an honor and incredibly humbling. I sincerely thank you and all of my family, friends and colleagues, who are here tonight to share in this celebration. Now that the thank you s are out of the way we can move on to the real heart of the matter, who gets the money? Well this was a difficult decision. I actually made a list of the many people who I thought were deserving of and would benefit from this award. I began to think about what Passing It On meant, I had to think about who passed it on to me. What they passed on to me, and the importance of what they passed on. I am not talking about money, or learning steps, or book knowledge but the intuitive, visceral, kinesthetic response to movement and teaching that seems to come so naturally to me. I went back to my first dancing partner, my dad, who, when I was a baby, use to say cheek to cheek to me and when I put my cheek out like this, he would pick me up and dance me around the room. I am totally convinced that that was the moment I fell in love with dancing. But then I asked myself, when did I fall in love with teaching. And that is when I realized that my first dance teacher was my mother, who would spend hours with me in the basement of our home in South Philadelphia showing me different partner dances so I could dance with her at weddings, and it was that same woman, who when I told her I was going to college to study Theater and Dance, who said, are you crazy, at least get a teaching certificate so you have something to fall back on. So here I am being awarded for what I fell back on. My mom is no longer with us but her spirit is stronger and more powerfully felt than ever. So in the feisty nurturing spirit of my mother and my sisters, who are here tonight, I wish to pass this award on to my new family of students and co-workers. A group of young people whom I have come to love and respect and who despite what at times seems impossible odds love to dance and specifically love to dance with Mr. J(that would be me). It is truly a pleasure working with each and every one of them. I know that the money they receive will be put to good use as they prepare for their first ever dance concert this spring but more importantly I hope they will take away from the experience of studying with me a feisty nurturance that would make my mom proud. It is with great pride that I choose the The Staten Island Academy Dance Company as the recipient of my Passing It On Award. Return to Table of Contents   Andrew Jannetti & Dancers info@andrewjannettianddancers.org