
Courtesy Photo
The Emporia Granada Theatre will host the Emporia Arts Council’s feature show, “Tap Kids,” on Feb. 11 at 7 p.m. Through tap dance, the performance tells a story of the last few months of high school for a group of teenagers: the big dance, detention and finally graduation. The show is a New York original.
Tickets can be purchased at the Emporia Arts Council, The Sweet Granada, Granada Coffee Company, the Emporia Granada Theatre or the ticket office in the Memorial Student Union at Emporia State and are $24 for adults, $15 for youth and free for ESU students.
“We look at lots of performers around the country and this happened to be one that other organizations were bringing, it has a wide audience appeal,” said Melissa Windsor, executive director of Emporia Arts Council. “It is a wonderful art opportunity for the community.”
There are eight dancers whose ages range from 16 to 22 and according to their Web site some have experience in other tap shows like “Prodigy,” “Scrooge the Musical,” “Dream” and have competed in competitions such as “American Dance Idol.”
One dancer, Brittany Parks, has danced since age four and “appeared on The Grammy’s with Rihanna, Guy’s Choice Awards with Katy Perry, the ESPY’s with Justin Timberlake, the television series ‘Glee’ and films such as ‘Fired Up,’ ‘Janky Promothers,’ and ‘Fame,’” according to the Web site.
LIZ, studied under famous dance masters Buster Brown, Jimmy Tate, Lynn Schwab, Shea Sullivan and Lady Dianne Walker. She has earned over 75 awards over 13 years and the title of 1996 Jr. Ms. Dance of Ohio.
Windsor said the talent and accomplishments of the dancers are a major reason for selecting the show for the Emporia audience.
“I think it will be a wonderful show and the dancers have wonderful bios, they’re extremely talented,” Windsor said. “There are times when they are tap dancing on school lunch trays and doing different sports, I think it will be a performance with a variety of different aspects that can appeal to just about anybody in the audience.”
Executive Director of The Emporia Granada Theatre Jessica Buchholz said the show will add to the diversity of performances at the theater.
“I think it’s going to be a fun show for the whole community,” Buchholz said. “From what I’ve heard of it, I think it’ll be very energetic. It’s a new, unique form of performing arts to see at the Granada Theatre.”







The Emporia Arts Council and the Brown-Bennett-Alexander Funeral Home will host The Spencers Theatre of Illusion at 7 p.m. on tomorrow at the Emporia Granada, located at 807 Commercial St.




















