Dancing Diane | Dance Stories Alive!

Diane McNeal Hunt

Dancer, Director and Master Teaching Artist – AZ Wolf Trap

Diane McNeal Hunt, director of Arizona Wolf Trap, is a highly respected Arizona and Southwest dance artist and educator with over 40 years of experience. A graduate of Arizona State University in education and dance, she has performed, choreographed, and taught throughout the region, specializing in modern-contemporary dance influenced by Martha Graham, Nikolais/Louis, Paul Taylor, and Merce Cunningham. Known as “Dancing Diane” since 1986, she teaches early childhood through 4th grade and leads arts integration residencies and professional development for teachers. She co-founded MarDi Duet Dance Company with her husband, performing across Arizona and Mexico, often collaborating with artist Zarco Guerrero for Día de los Muertos festivals. As founding artistic director of ELEVATE DanceWorks, her choreography has been showcased nationally, and she has performed with and choreographed for numerous companies. Diane’s work emphasizes STEM Arts Learning, Arizona academic standards, and community engagement, while family remains central to her life.

Lesson Description

Dance a story alive with this two-part lesson. Students will travel to the farm where they will wiggle, roll, and clap their way to learning about habitats.

Part 1

Learning Objectives

Students will:

  • Name animals that may live on a farm.
  • Demonstrate different movements of the farm animals.
  • Recall the words that correspond to the animal movements.
  • Vocalize the animal sounds for the different farm animals.
  1. Lesson 1

Part 2

Learning Objectives

Students will experience:

  • How dance may be used as a form of expression. 
  • How dance movements help you become a different character. 
  • How dance helps to make a healthy body and helps you feel happier. 
  1. Lesson 2