Photo by Jaqlin Medlock
(MAPLEWOOD, NJ) -- An evening benefiting the community impact, performance and arts education programming of Carolyn Dorfman Dance (CDD) will be held on Thursday, April 23, 2026 at the Maplewood Country Club. The event, billed as REACH, is an evening that connects and builds “community through the Power of Dance.”
REACH features performances by CDD and “Spotlight Friendz” and honors long-time supporters including Ennis Carter, the Director of Social Impact Studios (SIS), who will receive the prestigious Encore Award, and Janel Brown and Helen Davis, who will receive Special Recognition Awards. Ennis founded SIS with her husband in the mid-nineties as a creative hub for engaging people in culture to collaborate, learn and work together.
Attendees will be treated to a full evening with an open bar, a spectacular buffet dinner, three awards, and performances of “Love Suite Love.” “Mayne Mentshn,” and “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.” The program will be emceed by Kitab Rollins and will feature signed art by James Yang, the illustrator for the “Love 2026 Forever” stamp.
You are invited to support the “Spotlight Friendz” including New Brunswick’s Jill Ford who has made an illustrious career in the tech industry; Newark dance teachers Ronnie Carney, who is on the dance faculty at Newark Arts High, former CDD dancer, Lara Friedman-Kats, who is on faculty at Bard High School; West Orange’s Betsy Sobo, who is an independent fundraising consultant; and Philadelphia residents Phil and Ennis Carter, who are the founders of Social Impact Studios and their music group is called The FlipCharts.
Sponsorships and Tickets, including donations to your favorite “Spotlight Friendz”, are available for purchase online. This fun-filled evening begins at 6:30pm at the Maplewood Country Club (28 Baker Street) in Maplewood, New Jersey. The evening begins with cocktails and a buffet dinner, followed by a stirring dance performance featuring our Spotlight Friendz and the presentation of the different awards.
Carolyn Dorfman Dance moves people to connect to our common humanness to build understanding and face barriers together through powerfully expressive contemporary dance. Through the powerful choreography of founding Artistic Director Carolyn Dorfman and diverse artistic collaborators, CDD celebrates the trials and triumphs of the human story. Their long history is a journey of growth, change, and innovation through storytelling and employment of multiethnic dancers skilled in reflecting our common social connections.Their one-of-a-kind dance experiences open dialogue, and create bridges between artist, audience, and each other.
The highly acclaimed ensemble is known for emotional resonance and artistic excellence in both performance and its interaction with audiences, students and community. Carolyn Dorfman Dance appears at major theaters, dance festivals, universities, schools, museums and galleries regionally, nationally and internationally.
