WISH LIST $100: allows 4 dancers to attend a workshop with a master artist; $500: costumes 10 dancers for newly commissioned choreography; $1000: provides a full year's scholarship for 1 young dancer

Begun as a multicultural program at an area school, the group's dancers named themselves: Tappers With Attitude. Edgy and urban, they wanted to make sure they wouldn't be mistaken for an old Broadway touring company. They needn't have worried: Tappers with Attitude is all about soul. It honors tap's rich history and introduces young dancers to everything from Afro-Caribbean, to South African gumboot, to more familiar jazz dance styles. In-studio performances and open-mike events allow dancers to strut their stuff. Tap's past and future come alive in the Tappers' With Attitude Youth Ensemble whose members represent Washington's diverse communities. The company, which has performed at the Smithsonian and the Kennedy Center Honors, and at the Beijing International Dance Festival (an all-American, all-tap performance especially commissioned by the China Performing Arts Agency for this event), commissions new pieces from nationally known artists--and charges its company dancers with the responsibility of keeping each dance alive. Ensemble members become a piece of living history, "a link in the chain." With a program focused on both expression and discipline, it's no wonder that virtually all TWA graduates go on to college or that the program lists a Broadway star (Baakari Wilder) and a Grammy nominee (Mya Harrison) among its talented alumni. Think Tappers with Attitude ... and Imagine the Gratitude!

Victoria V Moss, Artistic Director 8700 Georgia Avenue, Suite B Silver Spring, MD 20910 301-495-0395 ext 3 www.knockonwood.org