In the Summertime, kids are finding ways to pass the time, whether it’d be going to the pool or going to summer camps. However, there’s a group of kids that are finding an alternative way to have fun, while learning something valuable at the same time. These kids partake in what is called Kids’ Co’motion, a dance production run by kids.

“Kids’ Co’motion is about not just learning dances, not just performing, no just technique, but how you create dances and how you make a production.” Says Valerie Williams, the founder of Kids’ Co’motion. “They learn what it’s like to put together a production. In the past, kids have helped with all sorts of things, like costuming and sets.”

Valerie Williams has been dancing for her whole life. She started out dancing in her family’s living room as her dad played music, and ever since, she’s grown up as a dancer and has continued to learn, even through the 3 week program of Kids’ Co’motion, which always runs in the last 3 weeks of July every Summer.

“Professional dancers do their job. We perform, we entertain the audience, we make art. It’s what we do, and we’ve been studying that for a really long time. [And yet,] some of the kids have been studying for these 3 weeks and they dance from their souls. They don’t necessarily have the strength, flexibility and control you find in professional dancers. They are dancing, and what Kids’ Co’motion taught me was the difference between “dancing” and “dance”. When we are dancing, it’s this 100% commitment to what we do.”

The production is mainly done by children, as Williams teaches them various dances, and then allows them to put together a dance routine of their own to use. In the end, the put it all together to make a unique “concert of dances” of their own.

“A recital is showing what people have learned through the year. We are making a concert of dances, so this is not about what we’ve learned over the year, and we aren’t perfecting a certain movement… Here, the kids are showing dances that they’ve created. Kids are committed to their movement, and it shows.”