Tag Archives: Millennium Park

Grand Rapids Ballet to perform outdoors at Millennium Park Aug. 5

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Nigel Tau (left) and Rowan Allegra of the Grand Rapids Ballet (Courtesy, Ray Nard Imagemaker)

By Deborah Reed

deborah@wktv.org

Grand Rapids Ballet (GRB), Michigan’s only classical ballet company, announces their first partnership event with Trail.Club, a nonprofit focused on propelling fun on West Michigan trails through grants that support unexpected events and experiences on community assets.

See Grand Rapids Ballet in a new light as it presents a unique outdoor performance at Millennium Park in Walker, Michigan, on Saturday, August 5, 2023. The performances will be held on one of West Michigan’s most pristine walking trails – the Hansen Nature Trail – and will feature three different duets ranging in length from three to five minutes. The entire outdoor experience will last for just under an hour.

GRB dancers will move through the trails and trees, giving the audience the feeling of being part of the performance.

James Sofranko, Artistic Director of GRB, said that he crafted the event in such a way that each duet is a progression to the next.

“You’re going on a journey down this path, but you’re going on a journey with the man and woman who are dancing the duets as well,” said Sofranko. “The dancers are different for each duet, but they represent the same couple at a different point in their relationship and their journey together.”


With the beauty of nature surrounding them, audience members can walk alongside the dancers and experience the ballet up close from a perspective like never before.

A new experience for everyone

While audience members will be gaining a new experience and perspective, so will GRB dancers.

“Usually we have a stage, and usually we are in ballet shoes or pointe shoes or jazz shoes, but we are going to be in sneakers now,” said Sofranko. “That will be a different challenge for us.”

Sofranko said that dealing with the limited space has been fun for him as a choreographer.

Rowan Allegra and Nigel Tau of the Grand Rapids Ballet (Courtesy, Ray Nard Imagemaker)

“It’s unusual and different,” said Sofranko. “In some ways, it’s fun for us as choreographers to try to fit an idea to a limitation. When you have a blank slate, you can do anything you want. That’s almost harder because there are so many ideas. But when you’re forced into a specific boundary like the trail itself or the terrain, you can’t do certain things. It gives you problems to solve which sometimes makes it easier in the creative process.”

Sofranko engaged two other GRB dancers to choreograph the other two pieces, something he does regularly so they can become attuned to what it means to be a choreographer.

“We need the next generation of artists to experience and to practice,” said Sofranko. “I try to give opportunities throughout the year for them to choreograph. I feel really proud of the talent that has been cultivated throughout the ranks of our dancers.”

Family-friendly and free

This event is great for adults and children alike. Attendees can plan to bring family and friends along to enjoy this free performance, sponsored by Trail.Club. The three performances will take place at 10:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., and 12:00 p.m. on Saturday morning.

“We are excited to bring this unique, one-of-a-kind performance to Millennium Park and the people of West Michigan,” said Sofranko. “Ballet is a living and breathing art form, which this community event aims to capture. We hope those who are able will come out to enjoy the beauty of the outdoors in a new and engaging way.”

For more information, please visit GRBALLET.COM/TRAILCLUB

Ottawa County Park Foundation’s Grand River Greenway Campaign gaining momentum

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Jessica VanGinhoven

Ottawa County Parks

 

Ottawa County Parks Foundation’s effort to complete its Grand River Greenway Campaign is gaining significant traction with two recent gifts from regional foundations.

 

The Grand River Greenway Campaign is the culmination of the 30-year vision to protect thousands of acres of high quality natural and recreational lands along the Grand River in Ottawa County and then connect these lands with a multi-use ADA accessible trail. The proposed trail also will complete a contiguous connection from Millennium Park in Kent County to Grand Haven beaches and other destinations such as Grand Valley State University, downtown Grand Rapids, and the Bass River State Recreation Area. In order to accomplish this vision, Ottawa County Parks plans to acquire 700 acres of additional land and construct 27 miles of new trail (with 13 miles of the trail along or near the river or other water features). This will require $21 million in funding, with the Parks Foundation seeking $7.2 million in philanthropic gifts to leverage anticipated public funding.

 

Recent grants from two West Michigan family foundations, Wege and Frey, totaling $860,000 help build momentum for the Greenway Campaign, which is still pursuing “lead” commitments from donors.

 

“The show of support from Kent County donors demonstrates that the Grand Rapids area philanthropic community understands the regional value and impact of our vision,” said Peter Secchia, who is co-chair of the Grand River Greenway Campaign Committee and a major donor.

 

Secchia has long been interested in revitalization of the Grand River as a leading contributor and supporter of Millennium Park as well as other initiatives such as the MSU Gran Fondo, a fund-raising bicycle race from Grand Rapids to the lakeshore near Grand Haven. “One of the things that I love about this project is not only that it will make the Grand River more accessible to thousands of families, but that it will also connect Grand Rapids and Grand Haven together with a river pathway route for the first time. People will be able to start from Millennium Park, travel from park to park, have ice cream or a burger in Jenison or Allendale, and end with a sunset on the Grand Haven Pier.”

 

It was this type of regional impact that drew the support of Wege and Frey Foundation trustees.

 

“The Grand River is an important ecological and recreational asset. Improving riverside lands in Ottawa County and connecting them to Kent County will add incredible value to the on-going work in Grand Rapids to restore the Grand River and the City’s namesake rapids” said Mark Van Putten, President & CEO of the Wege Foundation.

 

While the Campaign has been successful in engaging donors, Greenway Campaign committee members say broad community awareness of the value of the Greenway is not widely known. “This Greenway, with its tremendous green space and natural wildlife offerings, will enhance the physical, mental, and economic well-being of our community by increasing access to the river’s natural spaces,” said Monica Verplank, co-chair of the Greenway Campaign Committee.

 

Recent gifts represent great progress; still the Grand River Greenway Campaign is actively seeking additional partners. “We are very thankful for the support from our neighbors in Kent County and we hope to have more announcements to come in the near future, but our work is not done yet,” said Tom Werkman, President of the Ottawa County Parks Foundation and a member of the Greenway Campaign Committee.