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DANCE

Dancing Dreams, Queens
Blind/Deaf/Phys; ages 3 and up
Many of the students here attend mainstream schools and are dying for a chance to do what their classmates (and their sisters and friends) are doing in their after-school dance classes. Joann Ferrara, a physical therapist who has a background in dance, brings in high-schooler volunteers so that little ones who need it can get one-on-one attention. The major highlight for kids like nine-year-old Veronica Siaba, who has cerebral palsy and can’t walk and can’t stand up without support, is the annual spring recital. “She gets so excited about the glitter and the tiara and the tutu,” says her mom, Maria Siaba of College Point, Queens. “She has me xerox the flyers, and she hands them to everyone she knows—her principal, the kids in her class, her therapists.” Veronica’s fellow-dancers must have similar PR strategies: Last year’s performance drew more than 500 people. No established fee; families pay what they wish. Call Joann Ferrara for new location in Bayside (718-428-2600, dancingdreams.org).

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