TRUCKEE, Calif. – The Lake Tahoe Dance Collective is thrilled to announce the 12th anniversary of its summer festival, taking place from July 23 to July 26. Founded by longtime friends Christin Hanna and Constantine Baecher in 2013, the festival has established itself as a premier event for professional dance and dance instruction in North Lake Tahoe.

Entering its second decade, the festival continues its tradition of excellence with new commissions and performances featuring artists from prestigious institutions such as the New York City Ballet, Broadway, LA Dance Project, Boston Ballet, and many more.

The festival’s outdoor setting and emphasis on simplicity ensure that the focus remains on the dancers and their artistry. “Because it’s done outside, it’s not with fancy lighting on a proscenium stage, it’s really beautiful choreography danced by incredible dancers,” Founder Christin Hanna said. “There’s no pretension, it’s really dancing for the people”

A significant portion of the students, over one-third, attend on tuition scholarships and receive additional support like dancewear and carpool transportation. The festival emphasizes inclusivity and accessibility, ensuring that talent and passion are the primary criteria for participation.

“If you’re fortunate enough to get someone to engage in an art form for the first time, it’s your opportunity to snag them,” Hanna said. “This is an art form passed down from generations, from one human to another. If I don’t see a human soul on stage, it’s just not engaging.”

The festival not only showcases incredible talent but also offers a bit of a breather from reality. “There’s a lot of ugly and nasty in the world right now, and this festival provides a little bit of respite,” Hanna said. She believes that entities like hers couldn’t have survived without the support of the community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hanna’s personal journey is deeply intertwined with the festival’s ethos. Growing up on the West Shore of Lake Tahoe, she was inspired by dance performances on public television and live shows in San Francisco. Despite the challenges of pursuing dance in a non-traditional environment, her passion led her to study in New York at 14 and eventually to a professional career with the New Chamber Ballet in New York and Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival in Massachusetts. 

Returning to Tahoe in 2008, Hanna founded the Tahoe Youth Ballet, which later evolved into the Lake Tahoe Dance Collective in 2014. “If an average family in Tahoe City wants to take their kids to a dance performance, it often means a trip to San Francisco, which can cost around $1,000. An entry point of a $250 ticket is not an entry point. This art form should be accessible, something you could go see for 10 cents when live performance was the only entertainment available,” Hanna said. Hanna works hard to ensure that everyone can participate, removing financial barriers so that no one is turned away from pursuing their passion for dance.

The Lake Tahoe Dance Collective’s summer festival remains a beacon of hope and humanity, inviting audiences to experience the transformative power of dance.

“It’s very simple—I want people to put their phone in their pocket, engage in what they are seeing, and experience an hour and a half of beauty brought to them by a human,” Hanna said.