Accidental encounters with the art of dance in downtown Overland Park

Gasps rippled throughout the audience.

Dangling from a silky gray rope was an aerialist wearing a glittering black leotard. Swinging in the air, she nearly brushed paths with the wine glass chandelier hanging from the loft-high ceiling.

Without warning, she slid down to the ground, using just one foot. Applause erupted.

It was a scene many of the shoppers in the audience found mind-boggling on a recent Friday evening.

After all, most of them weren’t expecting to see dancers flying mid-air inside The General Store, a popular curiosities shop in downtown Overland Park.

And they weren’t expecting to see hip-hop dancers free-styling in a parking lot or ballet dancers twirling down the street.

What was a pleasant surprise to passers-by in the shopping district was actually a carefully constructed cultural extravaganza, entitled HipHopCatWalkAerialPlie.

The dance celebration was a collaboration between InterUrban ArtHouse, Johnson County Community College and the Downtown Overland Park Partnership. It was to promote the college’s upcoming New Dance Partners performances, which premiered Friday and today at Yardley Hall and also downtown Overland Park’s Local Life event, in which area shops and restaurants stay open late and offer treats and special sales to patrons on the third Friday of every month.

Most importantly, however, it was about integrating the local arts scene into the community and opening people’s minds, organizers pointed out.

“We’re making people who would normally only attend a ballet performance accidentally come across a hip-hop routine, and vice versa,” said Nicole Emanuel, executive director and founder of InterUrban ArtHouse, a downtown Overland Park-based nonprofit organization. “We’re breaking the mold and mixing things up.”

Rachel McMeachin, the aerialist who captivated shoppers in The General Store, agrees.

“It’s about introducing different types of dance to people in a non-threatening way,” said McMeachin, founder of Voler-Thieves of flight, a Kansas City aerial academy. “It’s always nice to have a light-hearted environment where dialogue can cultivate.”

After her performance, the dancer was swarmed by new fans offering up compliments.

“What we do is dangerously beautiful, which I think is what draws a lot of people to it,” McMeachin continued. “We’ve had a lot of people say they want to take lessons now, which is exciting.”

Later that evening, in a parking lot near 80th Street and Santa Fe Drive, a kids’ hip-hop show entertained a large crowd.

Watching the stage proudly was Manual “Lukky” Harvey, who produced the showcase, which also featured a DJ, contortionists and a fashion show.

“Sometimes we just can’t express ourselves — our feelings — with words,” he said. “Movement is a key way of reaching out to people. A body becomes a canvas which can inspire others around them.”

Dancing near him in the audience were stunning models from the runway show.

Their edgy haircuts, glamorous makeup and trendy clothing selections were the hard work of Dana Burton, the owner of Hair Lovin,’ a salon located in downtown Overland Park.

She hopes the cultural event will generate more buzz for downtown Overland Park’s Local Life, which began a few years ago as a way to bring more people to the shopping district. Every third Friday, Burton keeps her salon open late, showcasing local art on the walls and offering up free food to those who stop by.

“Tonight the urban core came to Overland Park, which is awesome,” she said. “I’d love to see more events like this one happen downtown.”

She’s not the only one.

Overland Park mom Jenny Thomas brought her 12-year-old daughter, Samantha, and her daughter’s friend, Addison Carroll, to see the dance performances and stop into stores they normally drive past.

“I’m so impressed with all of these shops and it was really fun to see such amazing dance performances really up close,” she said. “I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect evening with my daughter. I’d come to something like this again in a heartbeat.”

The enthusiasm generated by HipHopCatWalkAerialPlie is encouraging to its organizers.

Artists are an important part of the community and the economy, Emanuel said. And people do not have to cross the state line to be cultured.

“There’s diversity in Johnson County,” she said. “It’s not cookie cutter or generic by any means. There’s an artistic identity underneath the surface. You just have to look.”

This story was originally published September 30, 2014 at 8:37 PM with the headline "Accidental encounters with the art of dance in downtown Overland Park."