Our Roots
Co-founded by Lane
Alexander and Kelly Michaels in 1988 as Alexander/Michaels Future
Movement (am/FM), Deletion, the Chicago Human Rhythm Project
started in 1990 as a small workshop at the Gus Giordano Dance Center in
Evanston, IL and a single performance at the Theatre and Interpretation
Center of Northwestern University. Proceeds from the concert were given
to Open Hand/Chicago, a meals on wheels program serving people
affected by AIDS. 52 students attended the classes, and just over 200
tap and rhythmic dance enthusiasts attended the benefit concert.
Our Growth
Over the last 15 years, CHRP has grown from a
one-week summer festival into the first year-round presenting
organization dedicated to the American art form of tap. Our
annual audience attendance has reached some 14,000 persons as
compared to a humble beginning of 200. Our education and outreach
events touched some 5,500 participants, from an initial 52 students.
We have given $60,000.00 in scholarships to deserving local youth
in the name of great tap artists. Our performance venues have
grown from small (250-400 seat) venues like Ruth Page Auditorium
and Harold Washington Library, to flagship mid-size (1,000 seats)
theatres like the Athenaeum Theatre and major cultural institutions
like the Museum of Contemporary Art, Symphony Center and the Ravinia
Festival. |
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CHRP also co-produced "JUBA! Masters of Tap and
Percussive Dance" with Chicago's PBS affiliate WTTW and received
an Emmy nomination as well as national airings for this extraordinary
documentary about tap dance at the end of the 20th Century.
Our Commitment to Artistic Excellence
Illinois' finest tap artists (Especially Tap Chicago;
MADD Rhythms; Rhythm Iss..; Jump Rhythm Jazz Project, Ernest Brown;
Reggio McLaughlin; Jimmy Payne, to name a few) have concertized
with great tap artists from around the nation (Savion Glover; Jazz
Tap Ensemble; Dianne "Lady Di" Walker. These are the pioneers of
Broadway, movies and television, who nurtured the current rhythmic
dance renaissance. |
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Our Future
Our unflagging commitment to inclusion, bridge building,
long term collaborative efforts, education, performance, innovation and
economic investment in our local communities have been the keys to this
phenomenal growth. In our 12th year, we are proud to announce 2 new initiatives
- the first American Youth Tap Ensemble Conference and the first annual
International Tap Festival Presenters Conference.
CHRP has graduated from the Arts Bridge arts incubator
program and has moved into new offices in Lincoln Park and has evolved
into a year round presenter of tap and percussive dance . . . the first
presenter in the world dedicated specifically to year round presentation
of American Tap Dance!
Our Unique Value
| CHRP has lead Chicago, the nation
and the world as one of the oldest and most innovative presenters
of tap, percussive and rhythmic dance. Yet, this unique icon of
American culture is also one of the most under-funded dance art
forms at all levels. Through our commitments, we strive to address
this shortfall by educating and motivating funders about the historic
significance of this American art form and growing opportunities
for collaborative fund raising for the entire field. |
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