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TIFFANY: Hi Brooke! Please tell us a little bit about yourself.


BROOKE: Hello I am L. Brooke Schlecte. I was born and raised in Waco, Texas. Upon graduating from Reicher Catholic High School in 1999, my supportive parents encouraged me to pursue a dance degree in college. I initially enrolled at Kilgore Junior College, where I auditioned and joined the Kilgore College Rangerettes. As a Rangerette, I was able to perform at a St. Patrick’s Day celebration in Ireland, at a United States Presidential Inauguration, and two Cotton Bowl Games. After graduating from Kilgore in 2001, I enrolled at the University of Texas in Austin to continue my dance education. In 2003, I graduated with honors from UT with a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Dance. After teaching at a dance studio in Fort Worth for one year, I decided to pursue a graduate degree in dance at Texas Woman’s University in Denton. I graduated with a Master’s of Fine Arts in Dance from TWU in 2007. During my final year of graduate school, I was the recipient of the school’s


BROOKE: The director of Waco Cultural Arts Fest contacted me about starting a festival 9 years ago. They have provided amazing support and encouragement for us to stay thriving!


TIFFANY: What has been the most challenging part of this project?


BROOKE:Continuing to give it what it needs and adjust expectations for those needs. It is also definitely


challenging to get choreographers


excited about coming to Waco for a festival. This obstacle has been getting easier and easier as we understand what the community of dancers need/ want in Texas.


TIFFANY: What has been the most rewarding part of this project?


BROOKE: The festival has provided a wonderful space for dancer artists to come and connect and share ideas.


TIFFANY: On your website you mention using the festival as a means to “promote the community’s diverse artistic and cultural life.” Can you define the


DANCE C NORTH


DANCER-FRIENDLY BUSINESSES


The following businesses and


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IN THE SPOTLIGHT


DISCUSSION WITH


L. BROOKE SCHLECTE A Sit-Down with {254} Festival’s Director 8 • DANCE NORTH TEXAS • AUGUST – OCTOBER 2019 Photo: Lynn Lane


“Excellence in Choreography Award.” In 2007, I founded Out on A Limb Dance Company and moved back home to Waco. While beginning to grow my professional dance company, I also taught


in the Health and Human Performance


Department at Baylor University. I developed two Dance Minor theory courses for the department, Dance Pedagogy and Dance Composition, while there. In 2012, Out on a Limb collaborated with Waco Cultural Arts Festival to create (254) Dance- Fest, a curated, multi-faceted dance festival.


In


order to coordinate and promote the dance festival throughout the state, I subsequently founded the Texas Dance Festival Alliance as well. In 2013, Out on a Limb expanded to include a creative dance class for children called Dot Buds and a pre-professional group for local emerging artists called Dot Vines. I have been choreographing, collaborating,


developing, teaching, TIFFANY: How did the festival get started? and


performing through Out On A Limb for 10 years now, locally, regionally, and beyond.


scope of that community? BROOKE: We are working to expand Waco’s idea of dance as a viable art form in the community.


TIFFANY: I noticed you added a Next Generation Choreography Series


to the event. Has there already been great interest in this program?


BROOKE: This program has been going for 3-4 years and is definitely slow growing. We are working very hard to cultivate young local choreographers however, it seems most of the interest is coming from all over Texas. Which is great too! I also hope it inspires local young choreographers as well.


TIFFANY: How else would you like to see the festival evolve?


BROOKE: We are restructuring the festival this year to be a smaller more powerfully impacting festival (for the choreographers, youth and audience). So our goal is to really to enhance a small festival.


{254} Dance Festival will take place October 4-5 at the Waco Convention Center. For more information please visit outonalimbdance.com/2019-schedule.


SAVE THE DATE:


DANCERS NETWORK JANUARY 12, 2020


9 • DANCE NORTH TEXAS • AUGUST – OCTOBER 2019


DANCEWEAR Capezio


Sandy’s Shoes & Dancewear Upstage Dancewear


DANCE COUNCIL NORTH TEXAS FACILITY RENTALS Sammons Center for the Arts


MASTERCLASSES Park Cities Dance Eisemann Educates


PERFORMANCE TICKETS Beckles Dancing Company Bruce Wood Dance


Collin County Ballet Theatre Dallas Black Dance Theatre Eisemann Center for selected


“Eisemann Center Presents” Shows Texas Ballet Theater TITAS


Check the website periodically for new additions!


Photo: Nikki Riggs


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