Class Descriptions

​We know if this is your first time looking into dance, all of these class names can get confusing! So we put this page together to help you understand what classes we offer, what the different styles of dance are, and what kind of expectations we have for our dancers as they advance through our levels.

Class Levels

Classes for students 10 and older are given a level, Beginning, Intermediate, or Advanced
Level advancement reflects the skills that dancers master as they grow at our studio.
​Most dancers will spend 2-3 years in each level.

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Dance With Me
​Ages 2-3

Our Dance With me class is a 30 minute, adult involved class where 2-3 year old dancers are introduced to the classroom setting and start to work on building their gross motor skills. This class will use a modified version of the first 30 minutes of our 3-5 year old combo class to introduce new dancers to how our classes are run and help them make a smooth transition into taking class without the help of mom, dad, or another adult when they move into our 3-5 year old combo class.

​​**This class does not participate in the year end recital.**

Click here to check out our Dance With Me page for more information.

​Ballet/Jazz or Ballet/Tap
Ages 3-5

Our combo classes are designed for younger dancers who are not quite ready for a full hour of a single dance style. These classes start with 25-30 min of ballet, learning ballet positions and basic techniques. After a short bathroom and drink break, class resumes with learning tap or jazz steps as well as working on gross motor skills. Most classes end with a game of freeze dance and a stamp or sticker to reward good classroom behavior.​

Ballet
Ages 6+

Ballet is the foundational dance form characterized by precise movements, formalized steps, grace and precision.
​All classes strive to teach ballet class etiquette as well as proper ballet technique. 
As students progress into higher levels of ballet, classes become more intense and focus on correct posture, exceptional balance, and perfecting technique so that they can learn more challenging steps.​
​Our teachers primarily teach a mixture of Cecchetti and French methods of ballet.

Jazz
​Ages 6+

​Jazz is a dance style that has been developing into new and interesting iterations in the past few years. Our jazz classes are centered around classical jazz technique which allows for the leaps, turns, and tricks that wow audiences. When choreographing dances, we encourage our teachers to introduce our dancers to all sorts of jazz styles including Broadway/musical theater, jazz funk, character, and classical jazz. 

Tap
​Ages 6+

Tap is a dance form that teaches rhythm and musicality through the use of fine motor skills, coordination, and balance. Our classes aim to provide our dancers with the ability to learn combinations of classical tap steps from the dance style's rich history as well as allowing the dancer to develop an understanding of timing and the aesthetics of sound and how they are used in modern tap dancing.

Contemporary
Ages 6+

This dance style is one of the newest and fastest evolving styles of mainstream dance. Starting out as a natural movement alternative to ballet, modern was the jumping off point for dancers to express themselves through dance in a way that ballet didn't allow. Lyrical soon followed as songs with lyrics, rather than the classical instrumental songs of ballet, were used to choreograph more emotional dances. Contemporary sits somewhere in between. It can encompass techniques from a great variety of different dance styles.
Our contemporary classes aim to teach our dancers how to listen to music and connect to it and share the experience with their audience.

Lyrical
​Ages 6+

As it's name suggests, lyrical dancing is strongly tied to the lyrics and emotions of a song. Rather than the classical instrumental music of ballet, lyrical dancing strives to tell a story through the lyrics and emotions of the song. This dance style has a very strong base in ballet techniques but allows for more expressiveness, creativity, fluidity and innovation within the movements. 
​Our lyrical classes aim to teach dancers to listen to music, find an emotional connection and tell a story with their dancing.

Pre-Pointe
​Ages 10+

Pre-Pointe is an hour long class in regular ballet shoes that is designed to teach dancers what they need to focus on if they would like to continue their ballet training on pointe. Class time will be spent teaching dancers what muscles must be strengthened, what technique is essential to going on pointe, and putting that knowledge to work at the barre.

This class is open to dancers 10 and up but please be aware, pointe-work is very hard on the body and in order to protect our dancers, it is very rare for a dancer to start pointe before 12 or 13 years old.
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​**This class does not participate in the year end recital.**
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Pointe
​Ages 13+

Pointe is simply the continuation of ballet technique. Once a dancer has developed solid ballet technique, she is eligible to be considered for pointe. Dancers will spend some time in regular ballet shoes warming up as they would in a ballet class and then they will put on their pointe shoes and continue their ballet training on their toes.
This is the style that comes to mind when someone says "Ballerina" but it is not a step to take lightly. When deciding to begin pointe work it is important to understand the physical demands of the class.
If you are interested in beginning pointe, please ask your ballet teacher and honor their opinion. Pointe can be a very dangerous dance style when not approached with caution and experienced support.

Stretch & Strengthen
​Ages 10+

Stretch & strengthen is an hour long dance focused workout and stretch class.
Dancers will focus on building strength and flexibility in areas that will most benefit their dancing.
This class will learn to stretch safely, build muscle, and retain strength in order to avoid injury.

This class is open to dancer 10 and up. Dancers must be able to remain focused for a full hour long class, be able to maintain correct exercise form as provided by instructor, and have enough body awareness to know when to slow or take breaks to avoid overexertion. 

​**This class does not participate in the year end recital.**

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