End of an Era! 1987 - 2010

The Last Dance is History.

final show photos by Andy Snow

After 23 years of making music and dance rooted in American cultural traditions, Rhythm in Shoes polished off the 2009-2010 Celebration Season by pulling out all the stops at the Cityfolk Festival this Fourth of July, in downtown Dayton. More than thirty performers, spanning the company’s long and fruitful history were on hand for what turned out to be a real fireworks show for the feet.

True to our master plan, the 2009-2010 Celebration Season was rich with the involvement of some of our favorite local partners: the Muse Machine, Carillon Historical Park, Cityfolk, the University of Dayton, Contemporary Dance Theater of Cincinnati, the Springfield Arts Council, and our fourth SuperPops collaboration with the Dayton Philharmonic.

Also part of the plan was ending with plenty of performances that were free and open to the public. Our last three performances were June 20th at Stubbs Park in Centerville, OH, June 24th at the Springfield Summer Arts Festival and finally, our final performance July 4th, at the Cityfolk Festival.

THANK YOU!

As we planned our final season, were determined to truly celebrate the work we’ve done over the years by recognizing the people we’ve worked with and the community we’ve helped to build. It’s been an incredible run and we want to say thank you for sharing these many great years with us. Rhythm in Shoes has always been about family and community and we are grateful that you’ve been part of it.

Heritage Award

RIS Co-Artistic Director, Rick Good was honored earlier in the afternoon of July 4th when the Ohio Arts Council presented him with the 2010, Ohio Heritage Fellowship, “In honor of lifelong achievements that have had a lasting positive impact on the excellence, vitality and public appreciation of the folk and traditional arts in Ohio.”

The award recognizes Rick’s 40 year career as a musician, actor, writer, educator and advocate of America’s musical roots, including his work with the Hotmud Family and Rhythm in Shoes.

see more of Andy Snow’s photos from the final performance