Photo courtesy of Julie Lemberger

(MONTCLAIR, NJ) -- New Jersey nonprofit Freespace Dance brings the first Montclair Dance Festival to Montclair State University (MSU) on Saturday, May 31, 2025. The family-friendly day-long ticketed event features a variety of dance genres performed by the best of New Jersey dance artists and ensembles.

The program is in two parts. The first is outdoors at the MSU Amphitheater from 2:00pm-5:30pm and is FREE although tickets are required. It features performances by NJ Dance studios and emerging artists: Ady Arts Center, Alexandra Williamson & Rebecca McGowan, Ava Rakowski & Molly Weidmaier, Beyond the Boogie Dance Studio, Bridget Ryan, Claire Porter, Cleo Mack, DanceWorks Studios, Delise Fusaro, Extensions Dance Project, Grooves Unlimited, Ian Kent and Company, Kelly Guerrero, Kiana Rosa Fischer, Kyle Marshall, Maddie McKnight, Maxine Steinman, Maywood Dance Center, McKenzie Brewer, Middlesex County Magnet School, Morris County Vocational School, Opus/The Company, Robert Mark Dance, Rock Dance Collective, Sharron Miller Academy of Performing Arts, Sheep Meadow Dance Theatre, Starz Performing Arts Academy, Steven Camacho, and Union County APA.

The evening portion of the program will be indoors at MSU Kasser Theater starting 7:30pm.  Tickets for the evening portion will be only $25.00. The program features Carolyn Dorfman Dance, Freespace Dance, Jason Samuels Smith, Leanna Cotton, Nai-Ni Chen, Nimbus Dance Works, New Jersey Ballet, Roxey Ballet, Sukanya, and Umoja Dance Company. 

The Montclair Dance Festival will be held Rain or Shine and parking is at the MSU Red Hawk Parking Deck.

Tickets for Both Programs may be obtained on line: Amphitheater tickets ( FREE) - click here. Kasser Theater performance - $25.00, click here.

The afternoon and evening programs feature multiple performances that showcase the breadth and high quality of dance in New Jersey, presenting a unique opportunity to connect many New Jersey dance artists and audiences. “Up to 30 dance groups will perform during the day and 10 professional companies in the evening,” explain festival producers Donna Scro Samori and Lisa Grimes Arndt. “Despite being home to 10 higher-level academic programs in dance, innumerable private studios, traditional and folk dance groups, and more than 40 professional dance companies, New Jersey does not have its own dance festival. We believe it needs one!”

Scro Samori adds “Montclair has been a long-standing cultural, artistic, and literary hub in the tri-state area. Only 13 miles from midtown Manhattan, it is home to more than its fair share of artists, actors, musicians, dancers, writers, and festivals celebrating the arts. There’s no better home to kick off the Montclair Dance Festival, held this inaugural year at Kasser Theater on the campus of Montclair State University, May 31.”

The generous festival sponsors include: The New Jersey State Council on the Arts, CAPEZIO, Cornerstone Montclair, Montclair Local, Dance Works Studios, Michael Aiduss Studio, Amy Owens Team at Keller Williams, Paul Gold and Kate McDonough at Sotheby’s Prominent Properties, The Barrow House, CHAR Fitness Club, Rock Dance Collective, Yoga Mechanics, and The MAX of Montclair.

For more information about the dance festival, go to www.montclairdancefestival.com.