Dance Center

1306 S. Michigan Ave.

The Dance Center provides students with a superior contemporary dance education in the context of a world-class, nationally recognized dance performance season. Since its doors first opened in 1969, the Dance Center at Columbia College Chicago has presented hundreds of professional companies and choreographers.

Visit the Dance Center site

Home to one of the nation's finest college dance programs and one of Chicago’s premier presenters of contemporary dance, the Dance Center serves the greater Chicago dance community and audiences. The center is hailed as one of the most important presenters of contemporary dance in the United States, bringing world renowned companies to Chicago every year. Columbia students have the chance to work closely with the visiting companies through master classes and discussions.

The Dance Center is a 33,000-square-foot, four-story art deco facility that includes a 268-seat performance space, six dance studios with sprung wood floors, dressing rooms, and locker rooms with showers. The state-of-the-art building with its highly-trained staff provides students access to the technical aspects of dance performance from learning how to work with a lighting designer to understanding video projection and producing events. Through its community outreach and education initiatives, the Dance Center seeks to deepen appreciation and understanding of contemporary dance and contribute to the health of Chicago communities.

    Upcoming Events:

    • Friday Dance Class
      Free Classes on Fridays this Spring! Carissa teaches Contemporary this week! Free Friday Dance Classes from 12:30-2:00pm continue in Studio 300 at the Dance Center this spring! This is a student initiative to include more dance styles, options to train, and ways to get connected to the dance community....Get the details
    • SPRING FORWARD: Student Performance Night
      Be inspired by the soaring creativity of student dance choreographers collaborating with Theater lighting designers on original, brand new, short works. Engage with multi-media performances that break the boundaries of the typical stage and tap into the palpable energetic lift of early Spring....Get the details
    • SPRING FORWARD: Student Performance Night
      Be inspired by the soaring creativity of student dance choreographers collaborating with Theater lighting designers on original, brand new, short works. Engage with multi-media performances that break the boundaries of the typical stage and tap into the palpable energetic lift of early Spring....Get the details
    • Chicago Artist Spotlight Festival
      Dive into the vibrancy of Chicago’s dance community with award-winning artists: dancemaker and poet J’Sun Howard, kinetic philosopher Ayako Kato, pop-fringe creator Erin Kilmurray, and artivist SJ Swilley. Experience their works in thoughtful, embodied conversation with one another as they activate and charge the full Dance Center as well as Grant Park’s Agora, A....Get the details
    • Chicago Artist Spotlight Festival
      Dive into the vibrancy of Chicago’s dance community with award-winning artists: dancemaker and poet J’Sun Howard, kinetic philosopher Ayako Kato, pop-fringe creator Erin Kilmurray, and artivist SJ Swilley. Experience their works in thoughtful, embodied conversation with one another as they activate and charge the full Dance Center as well as Grant Park’s Agora, A....Get the details
    • Chicago Artist Spotlight Festival
      Dive into the vibrancy of Chicago’s dance community with award-winning artists: dancemaker and poet J’Sun Howard, kinetic philosopher Ayako Kato, pop-fringe creator Erin Kilmurray, and artivist SJ Swilley. Experience their works in thoughtful, embodied conversation with one another as they activate and charge the full Dance Center as well as Grant Park’s Agora, A....Get the details
    • Chicago Artist Spotlight Festival
      Dive into the vibrancy of Chicago’s dance community with award-winning artists: dancemaker and poet J’Sun Howard, kinetic philosopher Ayako Kato, pop-fringe creator Erin Kilmurray, and artivist SJ Swilley. Experience their works in thoughtful, embodied conversation with one another as they activate and charge the full Dance Center as well as Grant Park’s Agora, A....Get the details
    • RE/VERB: Faculty Concert
      Celebrate the innovative and diverse styles and aesthetics that capture the pluralism of the Dance Center. The acclaimed professional dance faculty, including revered improviser Lisa Gonzales, draw upon their deep knowledge of each student’s unique and individual spark to forefront the present moment in embodied practice....Get the details
    • RE/VERB: Faculty Concert
      Celebrate the innovative and diverse styles and aesthetics that capture the pluralism of the Dance Center. The acclaimed professional dance faculty, including revered improviser Lisa Gonzales, draw upon their deep knowledge of each student’s unique and individual spark to forefront the present moment in embodied practice....Get the details
    • FOMENT: Senior Capstone Concert
      Discover next generation dancemakers: Lydia Jacobson, Joey Martinez, Gabby Sheets, and Seniyah Tribble! These four newly minted Bachelors of Fine Arts share their personal expressions of movement, building on their multi-year immersion in the many facets of dance as an ever evolving art form. The Dance Presenting Series is proud to invite you to witness...Get the details
    • FOMENT: Senior Capstone Concert
      Discover next generation dancemakers: Lydia Jacobson, Joey Martinez, Gabby Sheets, and Seniyah Tribble! These four newly minted Bachelors of Fine Arts share their personal expressions of movement, building on their multi-year immersion in the many facets of dance as an ever evolving art form. The Dance Presenting Series is proud to invite you to witness...Get the details