Connie Dienner believes in the power of faith. For years, she had thought about expanding Cavod Performing Arts, the nonprofit organization she founded in New Holland 20 years ago. "It had been on my heart for a long time to open a second location," she stated. "Lots of people would say to me over the years, 'I wish you were a little closer to Lancaster.' One day, God opened up the doors for an opportunity for us."
Cavod's second campus is located in Supply, 280 S. Oak St., Manheim. It will hold an open house on Sunday, Aug. 8, from 3 to 6 p.m. The open house will feature free food, games and prizes, tours of the facility and opportunities to meet the instructors. A ribbon cutting will be held at 4 p.m., and the open house will also showcase live performances.
Cavod moved into the Manheim location on July 1. The 1,000-square-foot space required some work to transform it into a performing arts studio, including replacing the existing floor with a dance floor, hanging new mirrors and installing sound panels.
"Our Manheim campus will be a micro-campus," explained Julie Haney, who will be the artistic director. While the New Holland location of Cavod offers more than 100 classes in music, theater and dance, the Manheim site will start smaller. "We'll be starting off with dance classes," Haney said, adding that Cavod will launch a new training program for dancers ages 18 to 25 called Ornate Dance Theatre.
Haney noted that the new space helps Cavod fulfill its mission of guiding students to "create with purpose" while also connecting with the community. "It's a great opportunity to expand into our community and build relationships with more people," she said. "I'm excited to welcome new students. I'm excited to see kids discover their passion."
Classes will begin at Cavod's Manheim location on Monday, Aug. 23. For more information, visit https://cavod.org or call 717-354-3355.
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