Dance people--Questions about picking a studio.

[snickelfritz]

How important is the particular studio at the younger ages? We have taken at 2 different studios and dd enjoyed both and I thought that both were age appropriate.

1. 5 min from home. Smaller and newer. Fewer class choices (pretty much ballet/tap at her age. Have a pretty good dance floor (floating??) This was their first year with a competitive dance team at the older ages.


2. 25 min from home. BIG. Lots of dance choices. This is her current studio (switched to be with a friend and b/c they had a concurrent mommy & me music class for younger dd) She now says she wants to be a dance teacher. Teacher recommended either all ballet, ballet/tap, or ballet/jazz and said that she's talented (whatever that means at 5.) dd thinks she wants to do all ballet. They have a MUCHO expensive floating dance floor that they ordered from out of the country. I see all kinds of trophies for the dance competitions they attend.

For obvious reasons, I would love to be closer to home. But, long-term.....would the other be a better choice? Does it matter? What should I think about in making the choice? Let convenience decide?

[Dee22]

she will get the best training. You want her to be taught correct technique as if she isn't it will cause injury and/or bad habits that could hurt her later in life. Check out the teachers and find out where they have been trained and if they have danced professionally.

[Antonia]

My 15yo dd has been dancing for 11 years. I would say that if your dd has any real interest in pursuing ballet seriously (and my dd knew at five that she did!), go with the best studio you can even if it's inconvenient or more expensive. We drove an hour each way four to five days a week for three years, and finally just ended up moving closer to the studio.

[abbeyej]

Are there options for studios without "competitive dance teams"? I would avoid "dance studios" with "competitive teams" like the plague, so both of those choices would concern me.

Are there any classical studios in your area that focus on training and technique over competition?

And yes, this would matter to me even with a very young students, as I believe it impacts the whole tone of the studio -- and it also tells me something about the instructors...

[Perry]

Are there options for studios without "competitive dance teams"? I would avoid "dance studios" with "competitive teams" like the plague, so both of those choices would concern me.




Why do you not like them?

[Pegasus]

I guess it depends on your goals. I wanted a place where my DD could have fun while learning dance. It is not her goal or mine to pursue professional dancing so the serious dance studios scared me off. I also asked around and got lots and lots of recommendations (e-mail loops are great for this). The same name came up over and over again. We toured and attended their open house day, met some of the instructors, etc. This has been DD8's first year of dance but so far, she is loving it and I have no reason to regret our choice.

Good luck!
Pegasus

[my2kidsmom]

I would find out what music the kids dance to. There is nothing grosser than see a group of 4 year olds dancing to "You Can't Touch This".

Ask to look through last year's program.

[snickelfritz]

for this year's recital...they are butterflies doing a ballet piece. Younger dd in creative movement is a frog dancing to Laurie Berkner. :)

They posted the costumes and the only ones that concerned me were the older hip-hop classes. They showed WAY too much stomach (high and low.)

We do have some Christian dance studios. The classes were much more limited and I was a little worried about whether technique was lacking in the name of dancing to Christian music.

I live in a large city, so there are many dance studios. There is also a dance program associated with the Tulsa Ballet. If she's into ballet, perhaps that's something I should look at? I hadn't looked much at it, because it is only ballet w/o the tap/jazz. I just don't know many people to ask.

So, competitive isn't necessarily good? I had assumed that was what you did if you were serious. I don't necessarily have in mind that she get serious. I just want her to be learning properly, if she remains interested.

[GailV]

Do look into good technique. It really stinks to have to relearn dance when you've been taught improper technique.

If she wants ballet only, respect that. We have had teachers who insisted on a year of ballet before pursuing any other classes, since ballet is the basis of jazz and tap. Also, one instructor bluntly said she couldn't properly warm up the student for ballet, teach it, then switch gears to a tap (or whatever) warmup, then teach it, all within the space of 45 minutes to an hour.

I can't say anything about competitions, since we're now in Irish Dance, which can be highly competitive (as in, "oh, are you flying to Ireland to compete in Worlds this year?").

In the end, some teachers and studios can suck the life right out of your desire to ever dance again in your life. So even if they have wonderful technique and the most fabulous floor in the world, you sort of have to go with your gut.

[Jenny in Florida]

For example, my son takes dance at the school run by our local professional ballet company. It is, apparently, considered one of the best regional schools in the country (and is especially good for boys/men). They do not participate in many dance competitions, and actively discourage young students from doing so on their own. As I understand it, their policy is based on the idea that, especially for young students, training should be about learning technique and good habits and so on, not about doing things glitzy enough to earn trophies.

The school does send students and ensembles to the Youth America Grand Prix, but only once they have reached a certain level in their training.

My son's school starts younger students with only ballet, because that is foundational. They add a jazz class once they move up from the "prepatory" to the "pre-professional" levels (about age 8 or 9). And tap is offered as an extra for those that are interested.

[Krista in LA]

Are there options for studios without "competitive dance teams"? I would avoid "dance studios" with "competitive teams" like the plague, so both of those choices would concern me.

Are there any classical studios in your area that focus on training and technique over competition?

And yes, this would matter to me even with a very young students, as I believe it impacts the whole tone of the studio -- and it also tells me something about the instructors...
:iagree:

We started out at one of those type of places. After a couple of years, we switched to a classical school that follows the Royal Academy of Dance syllabus. The teacher works on technique and most of the girls take the RAD exam each year. The big difference I noticed is that the entire year was spent working on a particular dance for the recital at the first place we went to. Now, most of the year is spent on learning ballet with only the last couple of months working on the recital. My dd actually knows ballet now instead of knowing a particular dance. She loves it too.

[snickelfritz]

the program with the Tulsa Ballet. It does creative movement for ages 3-5. Ballet starts at 6. They do offer tap/jazz when they are older. I'll have to check to see if I can observe. I do want it to be fun for her.

[GailV]

The big difference I noticed is that the entire year was spent working on a particular dance for the recital at the first place we went to. Now, most of the year is spent on learning ballet with only the last couple of months working on the recital. My dd actually knows ballet now instead of knowing a particular dance. She loves it too.

Oh, that's a good point. The ballet-first-one-type-of-class-at-a-time place we went to also emphasized actually learning to dance rather than just learning a recital piece. Other places we tried before that were all about the recital. So, yes, you might learn a pas de bourre in the context of the recital dance, but you weren't specifically taught that step as a sequence of learning. Ugh.

[PiCO]

Are there options for studios without "competitive dance teams"? I would avoid "dance studios" with "competitive teams" like the plague, so both of those choices would concern me.

Are there any classical studios in your area that focus on training and technique over competition?

And yes, this would matter to me even with a very young students, as I believe it impacts the whole tone of the studio -- and it also tells me something about the instructors...

I have to say that there are studios out there that do competitions that also do a good job teaching dance. I agree that you should have your eyes wide open- I think good dance studios that compete are still the exception. However, if a studio does a lot of non-ballet dancing (jazz, lyrical, hip-hop, tap) there aren't many performance opportunities that don't involve competition. Many competitions also have workshops associated with them, so the kids can take classes from master teachers and get some great feedback.

To the OP-
If you do go to a competitive studio, make sure the dance teachers are well trained and are teaching proper technique and basic skills. Also know that there are studios out there where the kids are putting in 20+ class hours per week in order to perform. Talk to the parents in the advanced programs and see what's going on at each studio. At the newer studio, talk to the owner about her goals for the program.

[DollyM]

You already got some good feedback and thoughtful input. I just want to add that you do NOT have to find or drive to the best program in the early years. You can: But you don't have to ... not in K-4grade. Nope.

DD did a once/week recreational pta sponsored school program all the way thru 5th grade. It was cheap, down the street, no competition, modest costumes and she had a blast. It was 1/2 ballet and 1/2 jazz.

By the end of grade 5 it was apparent to us that 1-she was a talented kid, 2-she needed a good program. So we found that, but it came at great expense, so enjoying those early "low fee" years were a blessing to us. When she went to a preprofessional school in middle school the sticker shock about killed us - she took ballet mostly, with jazz, modern and character there.

As a high schooler she attended a school affiliated with a ballet company - but a small regional one where talented students populated many of the "solo" roles in the major productions and professionals danced the principal parts. She gained much experience there with performing and repetoire.

Between that experience and her high-end summer ballet intensives, I'd say she definitely caught up. She'll attend college in the fall on a hefty scholarship that in part is for "talent in the fine arts" (ballet) - Yes, ballet/dance PAYS OFF at college admissions time. Yes, it does. ;)

Just be wary of the competition schools where technique/training is sacrificed in order to over-rehearse one piece per year. That's not a good investment of time or money.

Hope you find the right place for your dancer.

[Carmen_and_Company]

she will get the best training. You want her to be taught correct technique as if she isn't it will cause injury and/or bad habits that could hurt her later in life. Check out the teachers and find out where they have been trained and if they have danced professionally.

I totally agree.

My dd has been dancing since 3. She currently attends classes 3x a week through a professional dance company. But since Storm also wants to dance with her friends, she's also in a competition dance troup through a neighborhood studio. So, Storm has the best of both worlds--preprofessional training in ballet, lyrical, and contempory through Zenon, which only allows level II/III students perform in winter & spring concerts. Level I/II students have a annual recital. The other studio is your typical dance studio with lots of classes and where every child hopes to make it onto one of the competition teams.

Since your dd is so young, I would sit in on several classes at each studio & observe how the children are taught in regard to proper position, etc. What is the goals of each studio in regard to teaching/training dancers?
Is it just a business, or does the studio provide pre-performance classes for gifted dancers with possible futures in the art?

In closing, just have fun. Between 10 & 12 you'll know if you must switch studios to meet your dd's needs.