Eva Powers, dance department chairwoman at Wayne State University, is coordinating the dance portion of the Michigan Youth Arts Festival Thursday-Saturday, May 8-10, at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo.

The Michigan Dance Council is the lead organization for the festival's dance segments. Powers, a founding director of the council, says the event is a showcase opportunity for high school dancers across the state. "This compares with a statewide basketball tournament for student-athletes," she says.

Dance groups that successfully auditioned and will perform in the Dance Concert at Shaw Theatre include Milligan School of Ballet, Detroit; Center for Arts and Sciences Dancers, Saginaw; E'tudes, Big Rapids; M. L. King Dance Workshop, Detroit; Cass Tech Dance Workshop, Detroit; Osborn's Dance Company, Detroit; Kettering High School Dance Workshop, Detroit; LaPique Dance Studio, Kalamazoo; Motor City Tap Crew, Sterling Heights; Detroit Dance Theatre, Detroit; and Happendance, Lansing.

The festival presents the accomplishments of students, teachers and administrators in vocal and instrumental music, visual arts, theatre, dance, creative writing and film-video.

Joseph Maddy, founder of the National Music Camp, organized the first festival in 1963, the same year he inaugurated the Interlochen Arts Academy. Originally the event was a statewide musical talent screening that led to a festival in May as part of Michigan Week activities.

Within a few years other arts disciplines became part of the festival. Today it includes an eight-month adjudication process for 60,000 students and is one of America's unique multiple-arts events.

For more information call the dance department at (313) 577-4273.