In celebration of its 20th year offering dance and art education for children, teens, and adults, the A&G Dance Company has kicked off a campaign to raise a $20,000 endowment. Two of the goals, the company owners said this week, are to offer more scholarships to families facing financial difficulties and to boost the adaptive dance and art programs for adults and kids with special needs.
A&G Dance Company, owned by Gail Baranello, a classically trained dancer and teacher, and Adam Baranello, a hip-hop teacher and multimedia artist, has a home base at the Southampton Cultural Center. The center will celebrate the couple, along with their supporters and other artists, on Saturday, Nov. 9, at the company's "Stepping Out and Stepping Up" fund-raiser.
"What we do is very art-and-theater based. It's very needed out here," Ms. Baranello said. The endowment "will give us the opportunity to have a stronger foundation to expand, and offer dance to people who can't afford it."
"We want the environment to feel enriching, nourishing, and happy — no pressure," Mr. Baranello added. "We encourage kids to create and build lifelong relationships through the arts."
The couple, who live in Hampton Bays, have also worked in East Hampton, Wainscott, and Bridgehampton over their two decades dancing on the South Fork. In addition to teaching and performing, Ms. Baranello is the creator of the Moving Through series, helping people cope with such feelings as grief and isolation through dance, and Mr. Baranello is an independent filmmaker, musician, and street artist. He has also worked on creative projects with the East End Special Players.
The Baranellos have opened up on social media to share their own stories as young dancers and artists for whom scholarships played an important role. "What A&G has stood for since day one is inclusion," they wrote on Facebook this week. "While many call the Hamptons their second home, there are many that know this as their only home, and for some that means a struggle to find solid footing . . . in a place synonymous with abundance and extravagance."
As of press time this week, A&G Dance Company had reached about 20 percent of its goal. Donations are tax deductible and can be shared with the Southampton Cultural Center via PayPal at bit.ly/3Ys9dUV. Tickets to the event on Nov. 9, along with more information on A&G Dance Company programs, can be found at scc-arts.org.
"We thank you for your support for the first 20 years, and we hope to celebrate the arts with you for 20 more," the couple says on Facebook. "We thank you for considering an endowment that not only elevates our school and our students, but our community and everywhere our students someday take their story of how they found dance and the arts with A&G."