In the summer of 2015, dancer Michael Apuzzo of Paul Taylor Dance Company, and event planner and former Broadway performer Eric Gunhus came up with an idea to create a dance festival in East Hampton. They set out to bring prominent dancers from some of the most prestigious dance companies in the world to the East End in order to raise funds in support of the arts and the local community.
Mr. Apuzzo and Mr. Gunhus presented their first Dancers For Good event in summer 2016 and incorporated the organization as a nonprofit in 2018.
On Friday, July 19, Dancers For Good comes to Guild Hall in East Hampton for a 7 p.m. performance featuring dancers from Broadway Bares, The Verdon Fosse Legacy, Paul Taylor Dance Company, Madboots Dance, Carolyn Dorfman Dance, Amy Marshall Dance and special guests Luke Hawkins (Hawkins Tap Company), Ari Mayzick (Buglisi Dance Theater), Sean Rozanski (“The Bodyguard”), Michael Cusumano (American Ballet Theatre) and vocalist Nedra Belle (NBC’s “The Voice”).
Dancers For Good benefits The Actors Fund, an organization that fosters stability and resiliency, and provides a safety net for performing arts and entertainment professionals over their lifespan. This year’s event honorees are: director and choreographer Jerry Mitchell (“Kinky Boots,” “Pretty Woman”) will receive Dance Humanitarian Award for creating Broadway Bares; Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon will receive awards for Lifetime Achievement in Dance, with Nicole Fosse, daughter of Fosse and Verdon, accepting the award.
Tony Award-winner Cady Huffman (“The Producers”) will host the event. Highlights from the evening will include a Jerry Mitchell Broadway Bares Tribute performed by Kristine Bendul, Waldemar Quinones-Villanueva and Chris Tierney. Bianca Marroquin, Nicholas de la Vega and Nicholas Sipes will perform Fosse’s “Mexican Shuffle” and “I Gotcha,” and Mr. Apuzzo will perform a world premiere piece choreographed by Eryc Taylor.
Guests will enjoy a spectacular array of dance performances followed by an after-party with the honorees (for VIP ticket holders) and an opportunity to meet the dancers.
Tickets for the event are $150 to $500. Guild Hall is located at 158 Main Street, East Hampton. Visit dancersforgood.org for more information and to purchase tickets,