☞ MEET: Jacque d'Amboise

When the news came out that the National Dance Institute recently found a permanent home in Harlem at PS90, we were impressed by the organization's goal of getting children to dance but didn't know much about the man behind the mission.  After receiving a link to the Real Deal story that confirms that the institute founder Jacque d'Amboise has now become a resident of Harlem by also purchasing a unit at the same building, we were inspired to do a little more research: LINK.

Mr. d'Amboise (who will be 77 this year) turns out to be a legendary ballet dancer, had supporting roles in several major movies, was featured in the 1983 Academy Award winning documentary He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin and has been running the National Dance Institute for the past 35 years. The top photo from Life magazine taken sometimes in the 1960's shows Mr. d'Amboise at the peak of his career as the principal dancer of the New York City Ballet and we found that a google search comes up with many images of this celebrity of the arts.  Jacque d'Amboise's non-profit organization now teaches 40,000 New York City children every year from mostly low-income neighborhoods and the National Dance Institute's gala fundraisers attracts many celebrities to the cause (lower photo shows Mr. d'Amboise and Harry Belafonte at last year's event).  It's probably all old news for the dance world but those who want to learn more about the organization and their mission should check out the National Dance Institute website:  www.NationalDance.org