Cook County Department of Corrections
We believe that dance is a uniquely transformative art form. Our intention is to make voluntary dance classes inside CCDOC fun, accessible, challenging and relaxing for students, regardless of age or ability.
Over the course of each one-hour class, dancers move through a combination of contemporary movement techniques (including Horton and Graham), along with yoga-based breathing and stretching. The dancers also learn and build upon short choreographic phrases week by week. On a regular basis, we incorporate line dancing, salsa, and step dance into our classes.
Teaching artists from around Chicago are part of our programming. We list here some of the artists who have shared in this work with us by providing performances and master classes with Cook County Arts Collective:
Ayodele of Ayodele Drum and Dance
Professional dancer and Scoliosis advocate Paige Fraser
Professional Dancer Jana Barta
Elysia Banks of the Banks Performance Project
Dominique Atwood of Deeply Rooted Dance Theater
Joshua L. Ishmon and Sam Trump of Production: Colors
Members of the Deeply Rooted Dance Theater’s professional company
Nexus Performing Arts Company
Grace House
Grace House is a 40-bed residential women’s facility associated with St. Leonard’s Ministries, which since opening in 1994 has provided interim housing, emotional and spiritual support, and professional counseling to women who are exiting the Illinois prison system.
Cook County Arts Collective provided regular dance programming at Grace House during the period of lockdown due to the COVID 19 epidemic. Our involvement at Grace House has been and remains a major step in our goal of serving women who are detained as well as women who are returning citizens.
The photos included here celebrate a wonderful day in 2020 when we were joined by photographer Marc Monaghan, who recorded our time of gentle movement, laughter, touch and connection. We have shared these images with our friends at Grace House, and they have given us permission to share them here. We are so grateful to the women of Grace House for sharing themselves and this time with us!
Photo credit: @marcmonaghan
