(Brooklyn, NY) – The Mark Morris Dance Group’s (MMDG) widely popular Open House returns to the Mark Morris Dance Center, in the heart of the Brooklyn Cultural District, on Saturday, September 12 from 9:30am-5pm. The annual event features a day brimming with free events open to the public.

Visitors will have the opportunity to sample the Dance Center's wide range of programming of dance and fitness classes for all ages and levels. MMDG will perform excerpts from The Hard Nut, which returns to BAM this December, and all Open House attendees will get a discount to the performances as well as the chance to win free tickets to a show. There will also be performances by MMDG, the MMDG Student Company and NYC street dancers Next Generation BBoys who are participating in It’s Showtime NYC, a joint program of Dancing in the Streets and MMDG. Also this year, MMDG’s acclaimed Dance for PD® Program Director, David Leventhal, former MMDG dancer,  will host a demonstration of “Moving through Glass,” a ground-breaking, augmented-reality app for Google Glass, created to provide 24/7 aid for people with Parkinson's.

In addition to the free classes and performances, the Open House will provide everyone a chance to meet and mingle with faculty and staff, dance with the dancers of MMDG, register for children and teen classes at The School, purchase discounted dancewear, and enjoy free food and refreshments provided by local vendors. The Open House serves as the kick-off of MMDG’s year-round commitment to community engagement activities and is an opportunity for everyone in the community to connect, dance, and learn.

“Come to our Open House,” says Artistic Director Mark Morris, “There’s plenty to do. Meet new people. Take a class. Watch a performance. Tour the building. Everyone’s welcome here.”

Visit mmdg.org/openhouse for more information.

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Schedule of Classes and Activities

9:30AM	Doors open. Coffee and pastries.
10-10:45AM	Parent and Toddler Movement (18mths-3yrs); Creative Dance (ages 4-6) Ballet Fundamentals (ages 6-8); Stretch/Core Strengthening (adults)
11-11:45AM	Creative Dance (ages 4-6), Tap Dance (ages 6-10); Modern Dance (ages 9-14); Open Ballet (teens & adults); Gaga.People (adults); Music & Singing (all ages)
12-12:45PM	Modern Fundamentals (ages 6-8); Tap Dance (teens & adults); Kukuwa (adults); Basic Pilates (adults); Dance with MMDG (all ages)
1-1:45PM	PERFORMANCE #1 (MMDG- Excerpts from The Hard Nut; Student Company – Company I and II; Music and Singing Students; Next Generation BBoys from It’s Showtime NYC). Special Kids Dance (for students with disabilities, ages 6-17); Jazz/Hip-Hop (all ages), Simonson Technique (adults), BollyX (adults)
2-2:45PM	Creative Dance (ages 4-6);  Breakdance Fundamentals (ages 6-10); Soca Dance Workout (teens and adults); Music and Singing (all ages), Dance with MMDG (all ages) Dance for PD® Moving through Glass demonstration
3-3:45PM	PERFORMANCE #2 (MMDG- Excerpts from The Hard Nut; Student Company I & II; Music and Singing Students; Next Generation BBoys from It’s Showtime NYC) Ballet Fundamentals (ages 6-8); Afro-Haitian Dance (ages 6-12); Afro-Caribbean (adults); 18th Century Dance (adults)
4-4:45PM	Modern Dance (teens & adults); Belly Dance (adults); Contemporary (adults); Salsa (adults); Jazz Funk (adults)
4:30-6PM	A Beer Garden, sponsored by Sixpoint Brewery, will be on the 4th Floor Terrace (weather permitting).  Live music by Richard Bennett’s Wildlife 3000.

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