2010 Bay Area Tap Festival

Bay Area Tap Festival
Founded in 2003, the Bay Area Tap Festival celebrates the uniquely American art form of tap dance, and features Festival artists in a week of instructional workshop classes and a free panel discussion. Festival programming also includes a Tap Jam, Community Showcase performance, and Scholarship Program. The Festival culminates with the Bay Area Rhythm Exchange – a production which features Festival artists in concert with live musical accompaniment.

“...an infinite depth of talent displayed by true masters of this craft.”

-- Heather Desaulniers, Ballet ~ Dance Magazine, August, 2010

“...a love feast of tap in its many-faceted expressions.”

-- Rita Felciano, Dance View, Autumn 2008

“...an unrivaled and dazzling array of tap talent that invoked an appreciation of tap's history while inspiring an excitement for tap's present and future.”

-- Linda Ayres-Frederick, San Francisco Bay Times, 8/23/2007

“...the place for dedicated tap dancers to see the greats... Young tappers and old jam together... tappers who click across the stage like butterflies alighting on flowers, and tappers who slam into the beat like a big rig hitting a brick wall. Together they proved there are as many exciting styles in tap as there are rhythmic possibilities in a bar of music...it was also good to see that showmanship never goes out of style.”

“Top Ten Dance Performances of 2006 (Festival Artist Robert L. Reed)”

“Top Ten Dance Performances of 2005”
— Rachel Howard, San Francisco Chronicle

Nominated, Outstanding Individual Performance 2004-2005 (Festival Artist Sam Weber)

— Isadora Duncan Awards

“Although San Francisco is a great dance town, few would think it one of the hot spots of tap dance in the world today. Nevertheless, the 2005 Bay Area Rhythm Exchange Concert, hosted by STEPOLOGY and showcasing our tap virtuosi at the Herbst Theatre August 20th, made us see that tap is looking pretty good around here.”
— Paul Parish, IN DANCE, October 2005

“What was most unforgettable about this subtly structured, non-structured event was the momentary moments between the artists – timing, gesture, the warmth, affection, and genuine respect with which they embraced each other and their art form which splits apart rules and hammers new ones before one’s delighted eyes. STEPOLOGY…, let’s see more of this!”
— Renee Renouf Hall, Ballet.co.uk, 8/23/2005

“What astonished Saturday was the variety of attack and the caliber of musicianship... I haven't seen anything more exciting in a local dance this year.”
— Allan Ulrich, Voice of Dance, 8/22/2005