Empty is like throwing up. Empty is like being lonely. Empty is like a well, a deep and scary place. Or perhaps emptiness is a wonderful place of possibility. Imagine pondering this topic for nearly a year. That is what Danelle Helander and her Empty Spaces comrades Michael Zekonis and Nina Rolle did.

This is the philosophy of Haitian-born Boulderite Rico Changeux, dancer and owner of Streetside Dance Studio. His philanthropic spirit is one of practice and consistency, believing in his students' desires and dreams, believing that youth need real skills to be productive and successful citizens in the world.

When you are the son of a living legend, like, say, Carlos Santana, anything is possible — you could turn out to be a downright raunchy and selfish individual who could care less about the world, ignoring everything you were ever exposed to … right? Not. We are talking Santana. Salvador Santana, whose extraordinarily diverse upbringing has inspired a signature musical style featuring the oft-underappreciated keyboard.

Dancing with beings seen and unseen, connecting with nature, culture, and activism are all a part of what you may find in one of the Brazilian dance offerings in Boulder. Ask anyone what the word Afro-Brazilian means and you will surely hear a concoction of definitions, a melting pot of meanings which all are based on the idea that the Afro-Brazilian is a Brazilian-born black person — which in itself turns out to be a diluted classification.