Slide Show: Dancing After-Schoolers in a Winter Concert for All Seasons

Students from the kindergarten and first grade ballet class at the Downtown Community Center perform to "To the Fairies They Draw Near," from the Walt Disney "Tinker Bell" series. Photo: Carl Glassman/Tribeca Trib

Dancing to a four seasons theme, Manhattan Youth’s 19 after-school dance classes from six elementary schools took the PS 89 stage on Saturday, moving to such tunes as Ariana Grande’s “Santa Tell Me,” “Cruel Summer” by Taylor Swift, and Frank Sinatra’s “Autumn in New York,” among others.

Photographs by Carl Glassman/Tribeca Trib

The twice-a-year after-school concerts, running since 2010, are coordinated by Susan Kay and Tasha Hunter, with costumes designed this year, for the first time, by Hunter and Alyssa Ashby. (Constance Tarbox, the costume creator from when the concerts began, retired from the role last year.)

Kay has her hand in many aspects of the production, including the sets (painted by Kaleigh Waters), music selections in collaboration with the dance teachers, and the choice of theme. As the creative force behind the shows for all 16 years, Kay says she continues to enjoy the work because it touches on her background in both dance and the visual arts. Plus, she said, “I love the kids. And I get a lot of joy out of seeing them having a good time.”

“They work the whole semester towards this day,” she added. “I think it gives them a great sense of accomplishment.”