Photo of Sara Lawrence-Sucato

Sara Lawrence-Sucato

Dance/Movement The Dancing Wheels Company & School
Work Cuyahoga Cleveland Ohio Work Phone: (216) 432-0306
Website: www.dancingwheels.org

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Biography

Sara Lawrence-Sucato hails from Columbus, OH. She graduated with Honors and a degree in Dance Teaching and Choreography from Mercyhurst University (Erie, PA) and is currently studying for a Master’s of Science in Organizational Leadership from the same institution. Sara has worked in various capacities with The Dancing Wheels Company & School since 2006. She danced in the company for sixteen seasons performing works by noted choreographers Marc Brew, Nai Ni Chen, David Dorfman, Christopher Fleming, Catherine Meredith, Stuart Pimsler, David Roussève, Ginger Thatcher, Mark Tomasic, Michael Uthoff and Robert Wesner as well as by internationally renowned choreographers Donald McKayle and Dianne McIntyre. She served as the company’s Tour Manager for thirteen years and as Rehearsal Director for three years.

In her capacity as The Dancing Wheels Company & School’s Director of Education, Sara combines the roles of Director of Outreach & Community Engagement and School Coordinator, oversees the design and implementation of a new company traineeship program, and teaches physically integrated dance technique in residencies, workshops, and master classes for The Dancing Wheels Company & School. Her most recent teaching opportunities have included developing and teaching as a Master Teacher for the Dancing Wheels Teacher Certification program; Dancing Wheels Summer Dance Workshop 2023; masterclasses at VSA Intersections (Atlanta, GA, and Columbus, OH), “Counter Balance” Inclusive Dance Festival (Chicago, IL), and ACT Conference (Columbus, OH); workshops at ED@LEAD (Raleigh, NC), Ohio Dance Festival (Columbus, OH), Oglebay Institute (Wheeling, WV), Old Dominion University (Norfolk, VA), Point Park University (Pittsburgh, PA), and Festival Internacional de Arte Contemporáneo (León, Mexico); and residencies for Cleveland and Northeast Ohio-based organizations including Center for Arts-Inspired Learning, Cleveland Play House, City of Cleveland’s Neighborhood Resource and Recreation Centers (NRRCs), MetroHealth, Medicore Transport and Achievement Centers, Old Trail School, Laurel School, and Julie Billiart School, as well as MOMENTA’s “Chance to Dance” (Columbus, OH) and Arts Partnership (Findlay, OH). Sara is also a class instructor for Dancing Wheels’ professional dance company.

As a teaching artist for the Dancing Wheels Company and School, the classes that Sara teaches range from recreational to professional, and she works with students ages three to adult of all different experience levels in dance and often with a population of mixed abilities (with and without disabilities). Sara loves that she can share her art within an educational setting by performing as a professional dancer, advocating for dance and other arts within schools, and teaching dance in settings where young students may not otherwise have the opportunity to experience it.

As a teaching artist, Sara works alongside educators to enhance the learning process through the arts. She knows that the arts in learning provide benefits such as academic achievement, critical thinking skills, and social and emotional development. Sara’s own passion for dance is what draws her to encourage others to experience and build an appreciation for it.

The award of this badge shows that the artist participated in a two-day workshop at the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning that focused on understanding arts integration, domains of youth development, behavior management, academic and fine arts standards, outcomes and indicators, and learning strategies and activities. The earner developed a program plan to apply these concepts in their work with students, earning a score of 75% or greater related to specific scoring criteria.The award of this badge, “Program Implementation,” is the second module in the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning's (CAL) teaching artist professional development series and allows teaching artists the opportunity to apply their program created in Module One to students with one of CAL’s partner schools. Module Two takes the skills learned in Module One and sets them in a typical classroom the teaching artists would face in an arts integrated classroom setting.The award of this badge, “Behavior Management: A Guide to Creative Chaos,” is the third module in the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning’s (CAL) teaching artist professional development series that provides attendees an understanding of the ages and stages of all learners and adaptation skills for arts activities using the Universal Design for Learning. The earner has recognized physical, cognitive, social, and literacy development benchmarks specific to the different ages of students and has demonstrated an understanding of the students they will likely encounter to help determine ways to help manage their behaviors through the arts.The award of this badge addresses the needs displayed from the growing trend of out-of-school time programming. The unique challenges of out-of-school time programming present a need for teaching artists to quickly adapt in multiple roles as a mentor, teacher, artist, and caregiver. Through this Module 4 workshop, the earner gained tools to confidently provide and support creative programming to youth across multiple age bands and settings.The award of this badge shows that the artist participated in a workshop at the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning that focused specifically on building the capacity of teaching artists across Ohio to provide exceptional services to students with disabilities. Teaching artists received six hours of intensive training that imparted the knowledge and skills to effectively and confidently instruct inclusive, equitable arts programming.

Grade Levels/Age Groups

  • PreK-Kindergarten
  • Grades 1-3
  • Grades 4-5
  • Grades 6-8
  • Grades 9-12
  • Young Adults
  • Adults
  • Older Adults

Facilities and Resources Required

  • Distance Learning Virtual Platform (optional)
  • Audio System
  • Electrical Outlets
  • Chairs
  • Non-Carpeted Floors
  • Classes and programs can be adapted to space and tech needs and should be confirmed in advance whether teaching artist or presenter will provide.

Availability

The Dancing Wheels Company and I are available for teaching engagements in-person or virtually upon request.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Images courtesy of the teaching artist.