The foundation of all dance forms. Body placement, flexibility, alignment, strength and technique are achieved through barre and center floor work based on a variety of techniques. At the more advanced levels students must take several classes per week. Class will have a strong emphasis on classical technique with advanced levels incorporating contemporary movements. Students will also learn ballet vocabulary and a basic introduction of dance kinesiology. Advanced classes will include optional work en Pointe.

Teen Ballet level 1 and 2 is a once-a-week class however, students may take the Beginning Ballet Technique Tuesday 7:15-8:15 as optional.

Teen Ballet 3, 4 and 5 is a twice a week class and is required.

BALLET TECHNIQUE

Required and assigned: Teen 5, 4, 3B, Pt/Tn 3A & PreTeen 3 

Optional: Teen 2, PreTeen 2

Class length: 1 hour - 1 hour 15 mins

This class is an additional class for the higher level ballet students to hone in on their technique. Students in Level 3+ are required to take this supplemental class. Students who are enrolled in a Teen Level 2 class have an option to enroll. This class will not present any work at recital time as its main focus is to enforce ballet barre & center work. 

This popular form of dance incorporates many styles such as theatrical and contemporary. Jazz is the dance style of the stage, screen, and music videos. The classes include a warm-up, isolations, across-the-floor work and technique ending with choreography set to contemporary music. 

 Jazz I    

PrePointe/Conditioning: is a class for students who are interested in dancing en pointe. This class is taken barefoot.

A portion of the class is spent on doing toe/foot/ankle exercises incorporating a variety of props to target specific muscle groups. Students will also do strenuous core strengthening exercises and other strength building exercises. PrePointe is required before being considered to dance en Pointe. Taking the Pre Pointe class is not a guarantee to be granted permission to begin pointe class. Teachers will evaluate over strength, ballet knowledge and technique, maturity and the successful passing of the pointe assessment. Dancers should have a minimum of 2 years taking ballet classes twice a week.

Pointe is a specialized ballet class where dancers use special shoes to dance on the tips of their toes.

A pre pointe class must be completed and successful passing of the pointe assessment must be met before considering a student for Pointe. The student must be enrolled in a ballet technique class twice a week plus the pointe class. Students must be able to show sufficient strength in core, turn out and proper alignment. as well as foot/leg strength and flexibility in feet. 

This form of dance teaches the student the basic fundamentals of tap sounds and steps leading to advanced rhythms and syncopation. Students develop coordination of mind and body and a more perceptive sense of rhythm, timing and phrasing.

Contemporary dance provokes, expresses, and reflects through movement the point of view of the dancer and/or choreographer. It capitalizes on the universal language of dance by using all types of movements, from stylized to pedestrian. Some “thread elements” visible in contemporary dance include modern, ballet, jazz, gymnastics, and world dance forms. Movement images, ideas, and emotions are set to a variety of sounds, from music to spoken word to the richness of silence. It is dance that crosses frontiers on many levels.

A high energy, high impact class exploring current styles of movement seen on TV and in music videos. Inspired by the urban hip hop music.

Shuffling started in the 1980’s and is now mainly used to dance to house music. Shuffling consists mostly of two main moves: The running man and the T step, while Cutting Shapes involves more intricate steps! We will be learning moves from both of these styles, and putting them into fun and challenging combinations!

Introduces the three basic skills of musical theatre: acting, singing and dancing. Combines those three skills to produce scenes and musical numbers. Emphasis is placed on following stage directions, developing self-confidence and cresting characters for acting. Focus is placed on breath, tone and projection for singing. Also, we begin to understand how to use the body and learn basic movement for dancing.

This class is perfect for students that want to try out the theater arts, or just love theater games and improvisation! No experience is required. Through games, exercises, improvisation and some scene study, students will gain confidence and poise onstage as actors. There will be a brief education on theater history, and basic theater terminology will also be introduced

Acro 1 - This class serves as an introduction to Acro skills that can be a great asset in a dancer’s training, while enhancing self-esteem, coordination, balance, flexibility, strength, form and focus. Students will fine tune their basic tumbling skills while focusing on their form through weekly strength and flexibility training to ensure injury prevention and technical execution. Students will be introduced to preparation drills for the following skills: front and back walkovers, side aerials, chin stands, shoulder stands. 

Acro 2 & 3 - Acro classes incorporate gymnastic-based tricks with fluidity and flexibility of dance technique. Students work on enhancing self-esteem, coordination, balance, flexibility, strength, form and focus through their weekly strength and flexibility training. Students will build upon their Acro skills through different variations and more complex progressions. The strength and flexibility progressions prepare the students to execute skills, such as: Valdez, Rose Plop, Flip flop variations, Tinsica, front aerials. 

 (Must be enrolled in a second year ballet or jazz; placement approval is needed)

This non-recital dance class is a supplemental class geared toward dancers interested in taking their technique to the next level by working to increase mobility, stability, balance, muscle flexibility, stamina, and overall strength. It will also work on advancing skills for all turns and leap progressions. We want our dancers to focus on all the tender, love, and care their bodies need to succeed when executing the power jumps and turns at the higher level.