Percussion Discussion Taps Into Happiness

The Knock on Wood Tap Studio in downtown Takoma Park has redefined tap dancing for more than two decades, and the studio’s resident ensembles will share their talents in a free performance at the Takoma Park Community Center on April 26.

Percussion Discussion includes three groups at different age and experience levels. Capitol Tap features youth tap dancers, Monumental Tap includes intermediate-level adult dancers, and District Tap highlights advanced adult performers. Each ensemble has their own repertoire, and they will collaborate in an intergenerational performance.

This event in the Takoma Park Arts series is free, and no tickets or reservations are required. Limited parking is available at the Takoma Park police station and the adjoining Piney Branch Elementary School parking lot.

Lisa Swenton-Eppard founded Capitol Tap in 2010, followed by District Tap and Monumental Tap. She grew up in her mother’s dance studio in southern Maryland where she learned to tap dance at an early age and started teaching when she was 15 years old.

“Tap was the one genre that spoke to me the most, and it’s been a mainstay in my life,” she said. “I’m now in my 38th year as a tap dance educator, not just for my own companies but also for other dance studios in the area.”

Percussion Discussion incorporates both historical and contemporary tap dance and has performed at the Kennedy Center, National Museum of African American History and Culture, Wolf Trap, and other venues.