Dance

Ballet Technique emphasizes  the simultaneous development of strength, limberness, neuromuscular coordination, spatial orientation, musicality and stylistic clarity.

The curriculum takes the students from a basic understanding of the principles of ballet to the technical mastery needed for full artistic expression, through their development in barre work and progression on to center practice. Their advancement in technical expertise allows them to develop an understanding of and feeling for complex movement, timing and line in their dancing.

Men’s Class is a studio course designed to focus on the physical strength, power, and brilliance of male dancing with particular attention on elevation, pirouettes, and beats. There is a concentrated focus on preparing the dancer for male variations. This involves using all the technical and artistic elements learned in class while combining them with the stamina and endurance required to complete the variation.

Character Dance is an important part of Classical Ballet training and is used in almost every full length ballet performed in the world. Character Dance is important to learn because of the muscle development and coordination and style it teaches. It allows students to develop a sense of strength in their back and arms, and explores different rhythms and styles of Character Dances that are tied culturally to different countries.

Character Dance allows students to explore dancing with a pride and weight not usually asked for in classical ballet, therefore allowing different personalities of the individual dancer to emerge. These attributes will enhance the student's training and progress within their classical ballet classes and performances. 

The Character Dance curriculum takes the students from a basic understanding of the Character Dance principles to the technical mastery needed for full artistic expression, through their development in barre work and progression to center practice. Advancing in technical expertise allows students to develop an understanding of, and feeling for, complex movement, timing and line in their dancing.

This course focuses on improving core strength for health and performance. The core work begins with core stabilization exercises and builds in intensity. The stretch portion of the class emphasizes lengthening techniques and improves range of motion in overactive or tight muscle groups.

This technique class is a studio course in which the physicality and principles of contemporary concert dance will be executed, expanded upon, and refined.

Class consists of a short core connecting warm-up on the floor, a standing warm-up with a weekly variation of arms relating to the larger movement phrase. Students also move across the floor with turns and larger body/leg sequences, and experience a jumping sequence along with a weekly movement phrase which builds in length and physical challenge throughout the semester.

Pointe 1 is an intermediate class for ladies to execute previously learned ballet techniques on pointe. The student must develop appropriate strength and the mastery of such technical skills before advancing. Each class includes barre work and center practice. 

Pointe 2, 3 and Variations are advanced classes for ladies to execute previously learned ballet techniques on pointe. This class will broaden skills and techniques by learning excerpts from classical ballets and repertoires. This experience enhances dancers’ journeys from students to artists.

This course is designed to help dancers learn the skill of partnering. Usage of the hands for men, finding core support, balance and the use of weight for coordinated movement quality are addressed.

Proper lifting technique is emphasized, with the goal of safe, injury free interaction. Students acquire partnering technique with the ability to work cohesively for maximum artistic and technical results.

This is a resistance training class where the student uses their own body weight to load a certain muscle group for a desired result. Movement, flexibility, strength, stability, coordination, power and cardio are blended together to form a unique and functional training format. Utilizing all three planes of motion, training principles can be tailored to achieve specific results such as improved balance, core strength, cardiovascular endurance and muscular connections.

This dynamic form of cross training bridges perfectly into dance training as the information and results gained increases progress and reduces injury in students’ dancing.