Dan Dance grew up in Shorewood, Wisconsin, on the east side of Milwaukee. Before graduating from Shorewood High School, he spent several years in Colorado, where he cared for and trained polo ponies. He began gigging throughout the Milwaukee area until Colorado pulled him back for another 6 years. Upon returning to what he calls "the central coast," he knew he'd stay for good.
Dan Dance has had a long and varied career throughout the Milwaukee area. He has contributed to live musical performance, been involved in the theatre, created original compositions for the city, and spent numerous hours in the recording studio. Dan has long been comfortable combining his talents in all of these arenas, bringing a multi-faceted perspective to the final product.
Some may remember Dan from his performances at the Blue River Cafe and The Coffee Trader, where he began his solo performing career. The Columns of Tuckaway, The Fleur de Lis, Cafe Melange, The Timbers, and Chip and Py's - both the Walker's Point and Mequon locations, have also been instrumental in allowing Dan's career as a musician to grow.
Several group efforts have included Dr. Heat (with Steven Cohen and Bill Stone) and Spike and the Eargoggles (with Mike Judy, Victor DeLorenzo, John Kruth, and others). Dan was a participant in the 1983 Ludwig Percussion Symposium, accompanying Butch Miles, Alan Dawson, and Ed Shaughnessy.
Dan's appearances on E-Town and The Prairie Home Companion have been highlights in his performing career. He appeared on The Prairie Home Companion with Claudia Schmidt, a well-known vocalist with whom he collaborated on more than a few CDs. In addition to recording with Ms. Schmidt, he wrote and recorded the theme used to promote Icebreaker, which has since been renamed Winterfest. Most recently, Dan has released his new CD, Live at the Py with the Dan Dance Trio. More information on the Dan Dance Trio CD can be found on the recordings page.
In the classical world, Dan was a founding member of the piano team, Quintessence. Quintessence was a finalist in the 2004 Gina Bachhauer International Piano Teams Competition. This involved five pianists playing five pianos at the same time, in what can be described as a piano orchestra. The literature was arranged by N. Jane Tan and pulled from the operatic and orchestral genres.
Milwaukee theatre organizations have been the beneficiary of Dan's musical, compositional, directorial, and acting abilities for over 35 years. He also contributed his juggling and accordionist talents to the stage! Throughout these years, Dan worked with Friends Mime Theater, Milwaukee Public Theater, Theater X, the Great Wisconsin Vaudeville Show, the Milwaukee Dance Theater, the Shorewood School District, and the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee Dance department. Nationally, Dan was a musical director and actor with the Dakota Theater Caravan and toured as the pianist with the Groucho Show, starring Gabe Kaplan and Bobby Hedges.
Currently, Dan teaches a full studio of piano students, ranging in age from elementary school to adult and in interests from classical to jazz. He can be found Fridays and Saturdays at Chip and Py's unless a private function has pulled him away for the evening. He frequently works on new musical projects, whether arranging jazz standards to work into his repertoire, working through classical pieces for his own knowledge and to share with his students, or arranging original compositions for a variety of events. Sundays during the summer find him in Merton, announcing the play-by-play action for the Milwaukee Polo Club, with whom he scrimmages and helps train horses throughout the year.
Please check the calendar to see when he'll be at the Py and feel free to get in touch with him at the contact page.