Fort Lee Dancers Take the Stage

Fort Lee High School students put on a beautiful dance recital Tuesday for a number of proud parents and instructors. The dancers from the Academy of Performing Arts' (APA) three classes held a short but sweet recital that ran just under an hour and included eight numbers:

• “Aurora” – Frederic Chopin
• “Body in Motion” – Tigger Benford
• “Samba Jazz” – Manhattan Rhythm Dings
• “Shall we Dance” – George Gershwin
• “Tango” – Astor Piazzola
• “Charleston” – Vince Giordano
• “Jar of Hearts” – Christina Perri 
• "Salem’s Handmaidens” – George Fox

“Jar of Hearts,” the popular song that can still be heard on the radio, was sung by Kimberly Moraes Barbosa – who was also one of the dancers – and played on the piano while three lovely dancers gave a haunting performance on stage.

But it was “Salem’s Handmaidens,” composed by George Fox, that highlighted the evening.

George Fox, husband of Dr. Shelly Fox, the APA’s lead director, has been composing music for decades. His piece was influenced by Arthur Miller's The Crucible, which tells a story of betrayal, hysteria and power battles in Salem, Mass. in 1692. Fox felt the play drew many parallels to the 21st century.

“I decided three years ago to start putting music – setting the play to music – and it kind of evolved into a dance piece,” Fox explained.

He saw it being a dance piece as he composed it. Tuesday was the first night his piece was ever performed for an audience, and Fox loved it.

“It was more than I envisioned,” he said. “A work is not complete until it’s been performed in front of the public. To see it come to life is really quite exciting."

The girls performed with a level of dedication and passion beyond their years. Every girl on stage gave it her all. Though the numbers were extremely varied both in style and era, the dancers nailed each and every performance with vigor.

“Salem’s Handmaidens” was especially beautiful, with the girls in long, 17th century white dresses and bonnets, telling red and blue ribbons that sparked visions of an America come and gone.

“What they did, dance-wise, was phenomenal for young people,” Fox said of the girls’ performance. “They put everything they had into it, I could tell. They had nothing left at the end.”

All of the dances were choreographed by Claudia Cutler, who has been the dance instructor for Fort Lee High School for years. Cutler was absolutely thrilled with how well the girls performed.

“[I have only seen this amount of dedication] in private schools, not in public schools," Cutler said. "It’s very hard [to do], what we’ve accomplished here.”

The beauty, grace, emotion and drive that hammered across the stage and into the hearts of viewers was an indicator of Cutler’s tutelage, as was the  unforgettable experience of watching art come to life.

It was clear to all the parents and other audience members that though songs grow old, and time may bring about changes, dance lives on forever.