From Lydia Johnson Dance School:
Lydia Johnson Dance (LJD) School is excited to announce that its summer program for 2025 has been expanded to a full-day arts camp. The camp will run from 9:00am to 3:30pm at St. Andrew’s Church in South Orange, during the weeks of July 7-11 and July 14-18. The full-day camp is open to 6 years and up through early high school. Teen Internships, similar to CIT and counselor positions, are available.
Artistic Director Lydia Johnson comments, “We are so happy to be offering a full day of wonderful dance and visual art! We have wanted to expand like this for some time and needed a compatible art studio class. Finding Pop Blossom Studio feels like a perfect match, as Laura’s projects are so beautiful, and her philosophy is child-centered.”
Children and teens interested in dance, choreography and art will study with LJD’s professional dancers in the morning and after lunch take an art class with Laura Vesterholt of Pop Blossom Studio. The Camp traditionally includes joyful summer events like pizza days, dance parties, movement games, music sessions and outdoor snack and lunch.
LJD School Managing Director Laura Di Orio says, “We are so happy to be adding an afternoon art class with Pop Blossom Studio. The projects they offer are beautiful and process-oriented.”
Laura Vesterholt of Pop Blossom Studio adds, “Our workshops are designed to be a creative experience filled with art and exploration. We are excited to be partnering with LJD.”
LJD’s esteemed programs are all linked to the critically acclaimed professional company with Company dancers teaching ballet and modern dance and renowned New York Guest Artists providing workshops. The LJD School received a Maplewood Foundation Grant for 2025 to support programs for the teen level Student Company.
Photo by Elizabeth Zenobi
Johnson’s unique choreography curriculum for kids and teens springs from her own work. Her choreography has been critically acclaimed by The New Yorker, which stated, “Johnson is a craftsman and a poet.” Dance writer and scholar Marina Harss commented, “Johnson is adept at capturing the beauty and pathos in music. She translates harmony and texture into a narrative of human intimacy and empathy.” The New York Times commented, “What seems to count most for Ms. Johnson is music. The four pieces all showed uncommon skill at matching ballet movement to music, both at the large scale of structure and in small, felicitous details.”
Registration is open for 6 years and up through early high school teens. Space is limited. The camp will run July 7-11 and July 14-18. As a nonprofit, LJD gives $20,000 annually in Scholarships and is committed to allowing every child who wants to study dance to attend. Email to inquire about Scholarships, sibling discounts and payment plans: [email protected]
For more information on LJD School’s 2025 Dance + Art Camp, visit the school’s website.
Article in Dance Informa NY 2024 on Lydia Johnson
Review of 2024 NY Season by Philip Gardner
