Jalisa Brown dances in a Happendance Spring Concert.
Courtesy photo
By Deborah M. Walker
Waiting to pick students up from their lesson has gotten a lot more fun thanks to the new café located at Happendance said Missy Lilje, Executive Director, for Happendance. In the past parents, and students, were left with few options as to where to wait for lessons to begin or end.
“I’ve spent the last 10 years upstairs in the hallway, and I was fine with that, but it is really nice to be able to stretch out in front of a warm fire and work on my computer. My daughter will come down when she’s done, or my son will come down when he’s done. They’ll grab a snack and go chit-chatting before departing,” said Rob Stevenson, Happendance father. Stevenson is also the host and creator of WKAR’s Curious Crew and the 2010 Michigan Teacher of the Year.
The new café is perfect for parents like Stevenson. However, the café is not just for parents, students can enjoy the tasty snacks and live music as well.
“There are a lot of students who are there for long stretches if time. They’ll have a break in between classes and there’s really just no comfortable place for them to go and study or relax,” said Lilje.
John Dewey, Owner and Director for the Academy of Music at String Connection, said he had the same problem as Lilje. There was simply no place for his students to unwind. Both Dewey and Lilje felt they could serve their customers better if they had a special place set aside for them.
Lilje said the idea came about as a result of a series of conversations with Dewey. The two teamed up will Bill Gordon, Artistic Director from the Mid-Michigan Family theatre, and the trio set about the task of turning their dream into reality.
“We were all at the same area here at the corner of Hagadorn and Jolly. Missy and I work right near each other and we got to talking and thought that it would be kind of a neat thing,” said Dewey.
Lilje said she realized there was space right there in her building. After talking to the owner of the building, they got permission to get started.
“John Dewey, he’s the owner of the Academy of music, and I would pass each other in the hall way. We were just talking about things and we realized that space was vacant,” said Lilje.
To celebrate the new café, the organizations hosted 3 days of open-house events taking place on Friday, February 6, 2015, through Sunday, February 8, 2015. Stevenson, officially cut the ribbon, on Saturday, February 7, 2015.
Stevenson said he thinks the new café will do well. Something like this has never before been attempted by any of these organizations. Stevenson said he hopes the café will benefit the community and help the arts blossom in this area.
“I’m hoping this will be highly successful. I know that these organizations are coming together trying to do something somewhat experimental,” said Stevenson.
Lilje said the new café will benefit customers of the 3 organizations and add to a more enjoyable lesson experience. The space is open and inviting and gives students and parents a chance to relax from their busy schedules.
“It enhances what I figure is already an incredible lesson experience here and families are used to a great lesson program that we offer. It’s kind of icing on the cake to have a nice place to hang out,” said Lilje.
“It’ll be a nice place to just come and relax maybe check out the Wi-Fi, have a cup of coffee, something like that, while you’re waiting for you student to take their lesson,”
The new café was created for the students at Happendance, Academy of Music at String Connection, and the Mid-Michigan Family Theatre. It features a fireplace, Wi-Fi, movies, live music and a full service snack and coffee bar. Concerned about money, no problem, the snack bar takes donations only.
Dewey said feedback from the café by students and parents have been phenomenal. Since its debut the café has been getting rave reviews that are sure to continue.
“Since we opened the café, which was just this second week of January, I’ve seen students come in and have an after school snack, spread out their homework on a table. I’ve had a few families tell me this is a great thing,” said Dewey. “It’s better than a cold waiting area, or the show room, or the store, or something like that.”
Gordon said he hopes the café will give students a chance to explore other areas of preforming arts. The café gives students form these organizations a chance to meet and hopefully expand their knowledge and share information.
“The café itself will have a number of people just waiting for class to start… Some will be going to dance, some will be going to music, and some will be going to theatre,” said Gordon. “They’ll get to know one another and our hopes are as we move forward that kids are crossing disciplines and going into different areas maybe. There is potential for dancers to become actors, and actors to become musicians.”
The café is not the only big change taking place at Happendance. Gordon said he will be relocating his office to Happendance. This will give students of Happendance and the Academy of Music at String Connection a chance to get more exposure to the theatre.
“We’ve been running the office out of my home, so I will move all of the office material over there. We will move over our costumes and boxes and things like that. Have them in storage at [Happendance],” said Gordon.
Gordon said he will continue to use the Schmidt Community Center in Lansing for special events.
To get involved with one of the organizations all parents have to do is sign up. Happendance is a nonprofit organization, while both the Academy of Music at String Connection and Mid-Michigan Family Theatre boasts affordable rates.
The cost of the Academy of Music at String Connection is just $26 for a 30 minute lesson. Gordon said scholarships are available for families interested in the theatre.
“We’re not going to turn away anybody that really wants to take part in an activity,” said Gordon.
According to Gordon, in addition to scholarships, grants are also available to help families pay for the cost of tuition. The grants come from a variety of sources. Some grants come from the State, while other grants come from organizations such as The Arts Council of Lansing. Gordon said the competition is fierce so sign up early if looking for a grant.
Lilje says there are a number of programs at Happendance families can sign up for. Happendance hosts a summer festival called Dance Lansing, which is a collaboration between Happendance, Michigan State University and Lansing Community College.
There is also an outreach program developed by Happendance that goes into the schools each year. With Lansing schools cutting back on its arts programs, this is a great chance to keep students involved in preforming arts.
“Between the school programs and the Dance Lansing, we serve over 6,000 people a year free of charge,” said Lilje.
Whether a dancer, instrumentalist, or actor, there is something for everybody at one of these organizations said Lilje.
“Our mission is more than teaching dance class it’s really about making the community a better place for everybody,” said Lilje.
To learn more about Happendance contact them at 517-333-3528, or stop in 3448 Hagadorn Road (at the Jolly intersection). For more information about the Academy of Music at String Connection contact 517-664-1111. For more information about the Mid-Michigan Family Theatre call 517-862-6448.
This was printed in the February 22, 2015 – March 7,2015 edition.
