As an educator and the founding director of Francisco Gella Dance Works, Francisco Gella has nearly 30 years of experience teaching at colleges, conservatories, studios, competitions, and conventions. Now, he is combining the best aspects of all these diverse environments in ROOTS Dance Summit. “I created ROOTS Dance Summit as a hybrid of sorts,” says Gella. “I want dancers to be able to have a competition opportunity, but also leave empowered with a better understanding of who they are as artists.”
Grounded in “the six C’s” (community, classes, competition, critique, celebration, college/careers), ROOTS Dance Summit is more than a competition or convention; it’s a holistic, all-in-one experience uniquely designed to ignite students’ passion for dance and help them to chart a path towards achieving their goals. The first inspiring, educational, performance-packed weekend will take place next year in Phoenix, Arizona, January 24–26, and the second in Montgomery, Alabama, February 7–9. And that’s just the beginning; Gella plans to expand to more weekends in additional cities as the program grows.
Providing Something Useful for Everyone
Gella designed ROOTS Dance Summit’s curriculum to engage dancers, teachers, directors, and parents alike. “All dance classes are open for teacher observation, and we’ll also have dedicated sessions for teachers on an array of topics, from motivational strategies and technical training to rehearsal direction,” says Gella. “We want to educate parents, as well, with seminars on planning for the future, managing expectations, and college prep.” All sessions will be led by ROOTS Dance Summit’s esteemed faculty: professional company directors and choreographers who are dedicated to mentoring the next generation of artists. Attendees will also get to hear from college representatives, as well as leading dance health and wellness experts on topics pertaining to each age category at the summit, from juniors (ages 10–12) to teens (ages 13–15) and seniors (ages 16–18).
Building Community
Gella has structured ROOTS Dance Summit to be both a great environment to meet new dancers, as well as for studios to attend together and bond and grow as a team. “We want them to use the feedback and strategies they learn from ROOTS as a powerful supplement for the rest of their competition season,” says Gella. The event will also enable students to connect across studio boundaries, blurring the lines between competition and camaraderie. “On Saturday nights we plan to host exciting social events, where attendees can step outside of their studio ‘bubble’ and build valuable connections,” says Gella. “Community is a core principle of ROOTS, and so at every turn throughout the Summit we want to demonstrate the importance of rooting for everyone’s success, no matter what team you’re on.”
Disrupting the Status Quo
ROOTS Dance Summit’s competition portion is thoughtfully designed to award a wide range of achievements—yet it’s refreshingly simple. “We award the top 5 soloists in each dance genre and age group, as well as the overall top 10 group routines,” explains Gella. “These top 10 routines are then all invited to re-compete at our final gala for the bronze, silver, or gold medal in each category.” In addition to medals, students will have the opportunity to win scholarships to esteemed college and summer intensive programs including Francisco Gella Dance Works events. “We will also have distinct judges’ awards that recognize dancers and teachers for artistry, rehearsal direction, outstanding training, etiquette, and more,” Gella adds.
Drawing Back the Curtain
High levels of invaluable critique and feedback are central to the ROOTS Dance Summit experience. By limiting the number of competition entries and overall attendance, each participant is guaranteed to receive highly personal and actionable feedback from the judges. In addition to giving participants recorded critiques from each judge, ROOTS Dance Summit will feature an open feedback forum that breaks down the fourth wall between judges, performers, and observers. “After the competition session concludes, the panel will have the opportunity to directly communicate any trends or issues they observed, and answer questions from dancers and the audience,” explains Gella.
Young Professional Guides, who are either college dance students or recent graduates, will assist ROOTS Dance Summit faculty and offer dancers relatable mentorship. “This way, students get a perfect balance of instructors who have shaped this industry over decades and young professionals who have been in the dancers’ shoes recently and have their finger on the pulse of what’s happening now,” says Gella.
Celebrating the Journey
ROOTS Dance Summit’s innovative programming melds community-building, competition, and education into one experience that elevates dancers to their full potential—and, Gella hopes, the industry as a whole. “Our aim is to combine the best aspects of both competition and concert dance, which are often on opposite sides of the field until dancers get to the professional world,” he says. “Competing is part of the fun, but beyond that, we want to help dancers discover aspects about themselves and their studios that make them unique.” ROOTS Dance Summit will inspire students to define their own artistry and voice, and, most importantly, feel truly seen and accepted.
Registration for ROOTS Dance Summit’s two 2025 locations (Phoenix, Arizona, and Montgomery, Alabama) will open on July 31, 2024. Sign up here to receive updates by email.
