Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre (ASDT)’s acclaimed dance education program, Notes in Motion, offers Community and Family Programs, Events and Performances on evenings and weekends. These programs include multi-cultural workshops in different dance styles and techniques, get moving programs, faculty engagement, professional dance performances from Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre with artist talkbacks, nutrition and lifestyle coaching — interactive learning that multi-generations experience together.

Programs include physical dance classes, small group creative exploration, critical feedback, work sharing, work time, props, costumes, live and recorded music, and writing exercises. Community programs can be linked to community goals, challenges, and social issues, or organized around the process of making dance theatre. Many community programs culminate in a performance presentation created by program participants. For more info, visit https://notesinmotion.org/school-programs/community-events-and-performances/.

Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre also performs selections from its rich repertory at its partner schools for school assemblies or as part of a Community Out-of-School Time Program. Some performances are followed by a workshop or discussion about the content of the performance, careers in dance, as well as training, rehearsing, and understanding the process of creating dance. Since 2000, Notes in Motion/Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre has partnered with 219 New York City schools to bring inclusive dance education programs to thousands of underserved 3K-12th grade students throughout all 5 boroughs. Each program is tailored to the specific needs and population of each school, guided by Notes in Motion’s singular approach to arts education: the Movement Exchange Method, which combines technical dance instruction with creative skill building and collaborative learning. Programs foster self-discovery, risk-taking, and leadership development — vital life skills which dance education nurtures by design and that have faltered during the pandemic.

In the 2024-25 school year, Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre partnered with 79 schools, offered programs in 34 city council districts, and presented 57 community events, 104 unique school programs, and 5,560 dance class sessions. Through these and other programming, Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre taught over 20,000 students last year. For more information, visit https://notesinmotion.org/school-partners/.

“From the inception of Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre, I have been driven by the vision that you cannot create dance in the now unless you are thinking about audiences of the future.”

–Amanda Selwyn, Artistic/Executive Director

Upcoming Events

MS 763K Brooklyn Science and Engineering Academy – November 19, 2025

MS588 Brooklyn Middle School for Art and Philosophy – December 17, 2025 & May 9, 2026

Astor Collegiate Academy, Bronx – December 13, 2025 & May 9, 2026

Multicultural High School, Brooklyn – December 23, 2025

IS 211K – January 5 & February 11, 2026

IS 581K, Bronx – The Middle School of Media, Law, and Fine Arts – January 26 & May 20, 2026

Mission

Notes in Motion provides dance education programs to the NYC Public Schools in styles including modern, ballet, tap, jazz, hip hop, Latin, African, and more. These programs are united by one singular approach to arts education, The Movement Exchange Method, which combines technical instruction with creative skill-building and collaborative learning. Programs foster self-discovery, risk-taking, and leadership development. Notes in Motion provides access to the art form of dance to inspire the next generation of dance appreciators.

History
Since 2000, Notes in Motion has brought dance programs to over 140 schools and 398,622 students in New York City. They have programs in all 5 boroughs and reach diverse student populations from 3K-12th grade. Notes in Motion is a vendor of the NYC Department of Education and all programs reflect the learning standards as outlined in their Blueprint for Teaching and Learning in the Arts. Notes in Motion creates long-lasting arts partnerships with schools and inspires the greater community of that school with the beauty, magic, and vitality of dance. They do not offer any cookie-cutter programs. Each program is custom-tailored to the specific needs and population of each school partner. Notes in Motion works collaboratively with classroom teachers at every stage from program planning, implementation, performance/community sharing, assessment, and evaluation. Teaching Artists guide students through a unique creative process, creating connections with other academic subjects and fostering active learning—students are creators, improvisors, and collaborators. Notes in Motion has an Education Ensemble of 65 experienced Teaching Artists with advanced degrees and extensive performance and choreography backgrounds in several dance styles and techniques. Press highlights include features in: Dance Magazine, Dance Teacher, Dance Enthusiast, NYFA’s Current: A Magazine for Artists, Queens Public TV, BronxNet, WKTU, Movers and Shakers Podcast, It’s in Queens, The New Yorker, Time Out, NY Times, Oberon’s Grove, Dance Informa, and Dance Talk.

Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre creates dynamic dance theatre that activates emotional expression in a rich and abstract collage. Through an interplay between athletic and articulate motion, they present theatrical and immediate works that engage audiences from start to finish and beckon a response of thought, feeling, and soul.

Founded in 2000, Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre has presented over 135 productions at NYC venues including Baruch Performing Arts Center, Tribeca Performing Arts Center, New York Live Arts, Dance Theatre Workshop, Dance New Amsterdam, Danspace Project, Ailey Citigroup Theater, The Kumble Theater, John Jay College, and Mark Morris Dance Center. The company has been presented twice at Jacob’s Pillow, WestFest Dance Festival, DUMBO Dance Festival, Dixon Place, Dance Teacher Summit, COOL NY, Movement Research, Wassaic Project, and Pushing Progress Series. Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre has toured to festivals, presented open rehearsals, interactive performance events and workshops, and offers arts education programming through Notes in Motion to students and families in the NYC public schools. For more information, visit https://amandaselwyndance.org/.

Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre/Notes in Motion programs are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. The company is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.

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