Support the Cast of ALICE: Dance Dreams Come True
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Greetings and thank you for taking a moment to review our Go Fund Me campaign! Moscow Movement Arts Center is a small locally-owned, female-led, rural community-based dance education program offering all-ages educational opportunities in dance technique and performance. As an organization, we have worked hard to build a kind, welcoming, supportive community of movement and performance-lovers based on the pillars detailed below.
Our Mission
1. To provide a quality dance program focused on classical technique and contemporary practices.
2. To welcome and support any student seeking to explore their place in the world of dance, movement, and/or somatic wellness.
3. To provide regular opportunities for students to study with visiting Guest and Professional Artists in the field of dance and theatre.
4. To develop respectful global citizens while encouraging healthy self-perception through student-centered pedagogy, community-building, and positive reinforcement.
Our Philosophy
Fusing classical technique and contemporary training practices, performers with Moscow Movement Arts Center benefit from age-appropriate lessons in a skill-based curriculum that encourages growth and embracing individuality and uniqueness. We believe in nurturing the whole student, prioritizing safety in practice through caretaking of students' physical, social, and emotional wellness in development.
Our Values
Movers of any age and walk of experience are invited to begin, or continue to cultivate, their exploration of dance and movement while building community and celebrating individuality. Whether you are new to dance, returning to dance, rehabilitating from an injury and seeking alternative training methods, have recreational interests, or are a dancer seeking a more routine regime–welcome, one and all!
About Our Go Fund Me & ALICE
We have always funded our performances through a combination of hosting fun events for the community, participation fees, sponsorship and donor contributions, ticket sales, and grant-writing. It has always been a priority to our Director to offer varied-cost ticketing to improve accessibility. This season we have been unsuccessful in closing the gap, despite our most earnest efforts. We need your support in this critical moment to help us build the bridge and ensure all 38 performers are able to cross and onto the stage for their end-of-year recital and community performance, ALICE. We seek your help to raise the remaining funding required to bring 38 performers (24 children and youth performers alongside 14 talented adult performers) in our spring recital, ALICE, to Fagerbakke Stage at the Hartung Theatre on May 31st.
Our Fundraising Efforts
As always, to help defer production costs, we make it a priority to use as many costumes and props from our existing collection. Yet, with every show, there are needs to acquire or produce a select few pieces. To cover these costs alongside logistical and staff expenses, outlined below is what we have been able to raise thus far:
$2,163.00 Performer Participant fees
$31.90 Interlaced International Screendance Festival 2025
$150.00 Movie Feature Pajam-o-rama
$2,344.90 TOTAL FUNDS RAISED
We had an additional fundraising event planned in April, but despite our best efforts to advertise the event, there were not enough tickets sold to justify hosting it.
Remaining Needed to Produce ALICE
Logistical Expenses
$1,300.00 Venue Rental Estimated by 3 previous events at this venue
$200.00 Program Printing Paper and ink (printed from home office)
$100.00 Marketing Printing Via Staples
$600.00 Specific Costumes Via AliExpress (Cheshire cat (1), waitresses (4), playing card costumes (4), Alice (2)
$300.00 Prop Materials To construct three roving doors and child-
sized teacup
Staff Expenses
$100.00 Event Staff Interlaced International Screendance Festival
$1,530.00 Production Staff ($15 per hour x 17 hours) per member (4)
$450.00 Professional Artist Fees Industry standard: $150 per
performance (4 artists)
$600.00 Guest Choreographers Industry standard: $100 per minute
produced (3 artists produced 2 minutes each)
$4,700.00 Lead Choreographer Industry standard: $100 per minute
produced (47 minutes produced)
$375.00 Assistant Director $15 per hour x 25 production hours
$1,875.00 Artistic Director $15 per hour x 125 production hours
$12,130.00 TOTAL to Produce
-$2,344.90 TOTAL Funds Raised
$9,785.10 TOTAL NEEDED TO SEE ALICE TO STAGE
-$2,400.00 Go Fund Me Support 5/2/25
$7,385.10 STILL NEEDED TO SEE ALICE TO STAGE
A Note From the Artistic Director
ALICE, inspired by Lewis Carroll's literary classic Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and is set to a score of music-favorites from across the decades. It was important to me to celebrate the diverse local talent and wide variety of performers in our region by creating a high-energy production that incorporated dance styles such as ballet, jazz, tap, whacking, bellydancing, theatrical caricature, contemporary, and so much more. I wanted our version of ALICE to harken back to one of Carroll's original themes--that of child exploring personal identity while trying to navigate an adult world.
Since January 2025, I have been humbled to support motivated performers while they have worked hard and come together in community in the most beautiful ways. Our cast hosts some of the most dedicated, talented, inspiring humans I have had the honor to work with in my 25 years teaching. With students, performers, and our community at the center of my heart, alongside a team of very special women (it surely takes a village!) helping to bring ALICE together, I am reaching out to any art-lover, community member, supporter of all-ages programming, asking to please help us get to the stage and ensure that our hard-working staff and crew are fairly and adequately compensated for their time, talent, and expertise. If you may know of any additional way to contribute, such as awareness of any local businesses or organizations that seek to support youth activities and may wish to sponsor our performance. If so, please connect directly at [email redacted]. I sincerely hope you will consider supporting our mission. No contribution is too small--any amount helps us get one step closer to stage. Thank you sincerely for your consideration.
With Gratitude,
Rachel Dodson, Artistic Director
Your donations are deeply meaningful to the cast, community, and entire organization. Please feel invited to peruse comments from some of the cast members below.
“ALICE is going to be an incredible show. As a major bookworm, I can’t tell you how excited I am to see this postmodern masterpiece come to life. As a dancer and a person, I am so grateful to be part of this community. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for supporting our dance family!” --Laura (adult cast member)
“Research supports the need for adults to engage in activities that help maintain their physical, mental, and social health. Being a part of Moscow Movement Arts and performing in ALICE fulfills that need for me. Like many middle-aged women, it’s easy to be caught between the responsibilities in our lives, spending hours each week on our careers and caring for our families. Dancing provides an outlet that allows for creative expression, encourages movement to care for my body, and has brought me a supportive community that encourages one another. Having an amazing amount of fun as we prepare for this production is a highlight of my week, with the side effect of feeling like my younger self!” - Sam (adult cast member)
“I am so excited for this year's performance of ALICE! The choreography is so joyful and the pieces are so fun, that I can't help but catch myself dancing them at my home throughout the week. The many callbacks to famous dance and music videos put a smile on my face every time. I mean, who doesn't instantly feel better after a little Beyoncé or Dolly Parton moment?!? I think audiences will enjoy the variety of dance styles that have been woven into a beloved classic story; there truly is a little bit of something for everyone. By far though, my favorite thing about ALICE has been reconnecting with the dance community in our region, including my fellow classmates from Moscow Movement Arts Center, the returning community cast members from The Nutcracker 2024, and new friends that are excited to put their dancin' shoes back on. I hope that you can consider helping us bring this exciting production to the stage- it would mean the world to the cast and crew that truly work magic in this world by spreading hope and joy through dance and movement.” - Katie (adult cast member)
"The teachers are really nice and I like how we get to do so many different performances." -Addilyn (youth cast member)
Your support truly means more than there are words to properly express. Our gratitude runs deep and we also hope to see you in the theatre on May 31st at 4pm!
100% of funds donated that exceed our campaign goal will be dedicated to ensuring our 2025-2026 season.
100% of ticket sales will be dedicated to ensuring our 2025-2026 season.
UPDATES!
We have been receiving some very special support we'd like to give shout-outs to
- Two incredibly inspiring, gentle and generously-hearted young cast members (ages 9 and 10), took it upon themselves to earn donation funds by weed-pulling and chores in their homes and neighborhood so that they could make their own contribution to our campaign. In 25 years teaching, this was perhaps one of the most moving moments I have been humbled to experience. Moving to the core. When I inquired with parents whether I may share this touching story, I additionally discovered that one little brother even contributed all of the change found in his eggs from the Easter Bunny (as he hopes to be in The Nutcracker someday). Moving feels understated. THANK YOU, dear Addilyn and Katie
- Our 2 hand-constructed roving doors and 1 rabbit-hole sized door have been donated to our cause by contractor, Omer Bowen. Thank you, Omer! This is a huge contribution to our mission and from the entire cast and crew--THANK YOU!
Organizer
Moscow Movement Arts Center
Organizer
Moscow, ID