Award-winning dancer to perform at ethnic festival

by Judith Kahn

At 14 years of age, Grace Lee Grant is making her name known in the dance world.

She will be the youngest soloist performer at the upcoming prestigious Ethic Dance Festival. In her dance, entitled "Brushing on My Heartstrings," she portrays a young girl writing a poem beside flowing water under the shadow of majestic mountains.

The dance festival takes place at the Palace of Fine Arts on four weekends: June 6 and 7, 13 and 14, 20 and 21, 27 and 28.

Rachel Howard, dance critic for the San Francisco Chronicle, considers the festival the largest and most prestigious gathering of its kind in the country. This year's program offers 13 world premiers - the most in festival history. The festival will feature 37 companies, with more than 500 of Northern California's most acclaimed dancers and musicians, presenting the dance traditions of more than 20 cultures. It is an unparalleled showcase of some of the area's top performers, who are accompanied by world-class musicians. It will be hosted by the legendary Rita Moreno and is directed by World Arts, which has been presenting and promoting the dance and music traditions of the world since 1978. Its goal is to promote the importance of cultural heritage by strengthening the community and building cultural understanding.

Grant has won many dance trophies, but the one she is most proud of is the Youth American Prix, which she won in 2008. She was named the champion in the China Multicultural Cultural Dance Festival and won an overall award while dancing with the Kids Artistic Revenue.

Grant starting dancing at the age of five at the Sunset Dance Academy and she enrolled with the San Francisco Ballet School at the age of eight. At 10, she started to dance competitively.

In 2008, she went to New York on a full scholarship to attend the Ballet School of America. This is the official school for the New York City Ballet Theater.

Until she sprained her ankle while playing Claire in a Nutcracker production, she was attending the San Francisco Ballet School on a merit scholarship. Dancing is in Grant's blood, so a sprained ankle did not stop her from continuing her training. Until her ankle heals, she has stopped taking ballet lessons and is learning traditional Chinese and modern dance.

Her favorite dancers are Maya Plitseskaya and Galina Mezentseva. She admires their flexibility, foot-work and the emotions they express in their dancing.

For Grant, dancing is a joy. She says it allows her to be in her own world and yet she never feels alone because of the applause and cheers she receives from the audience.

Aside from dance, Grant excels in academics as well.

To purchase tickets for the annual San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival, call the City Box Office at (415) 392-4400. To purchase tickets online, visit the Web site at www.cityboxoffice.com or www.tickets.com. Tickets to the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival range from $22 to $44. A subscription package for all four weekends of performances is priced from $80 to $158.