Photography by Sam Fentress / courtesy of COCA
It’s a Friday morning, and COCA dance students are practicing in one of the community arts center’s new studios, part of a $45 million, 52,000-square-foot expansion that includes a 450-seat theater with an orchestra pit. The features in two of the dance studios are both romantic—floor-to-ceiling windows flood the space with light and overlook the city, inspiring more than drywall ever could—and practical. The springy new Marley floors will absorb the shock of all those jetés on still-growing knees. The expansion, which nearly doubles the University City campus’ footprint, was designed to include more multidisciplinary spaces and to ensure that COCA can accommodate future generations of budding artists.
This fall, thanks to COVID-19, COCA will adopt a new approach to classes: Some, like singing, will be totally virtual. Others, including dance, art, design, and acting, will take place live. (All of this is subject to change as COCA monitors local case numbers and new prevention recommendations.) It’s perhaps not the début anyone could have imagined in 2017, when COCA announced the project.
“It’s kind of surreal, because these kids have been going through the pandemic, and we were in construction before then,” says Antonio Douthit-Boyd, COCA’s co-artistic director of dance. He started his dance training with COCA when he was 16 and performed with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater for 11 years. “I think the students recognize how fortunate they are. A lot of studios are not this beautiful. I think it’s upped the level of commitment and dedication to their craft,” he says.
That craft might look different after 2020—this is the place where a new generation of artists will create works that document and bring meaning and understanding to the current experience.
“These kids have this experience that they’ve gone through, and now they’re going to be the leaders in their field,” says Douthit-Boyd. “I think they’re going to have stories to tell other than our fairy tales of youth and beauty. They’re going to have real stories to put onstage, real life experiences to show.”
FYI: COCA hosts a virtual celebration in honor of its grand opening October 11. Visit cocastl.org for more.
COCA by the numbers
More about the arts nonprofit
1986
The year the arts center was founded
50,000
The number of people it serves
1,300-plus
Arts classes, camps, and workshops offered by COCA
$1 million
Total scholarships, support services, and art programs COCA provides annually
202
Teaching artists/faculty on staff
