Special Report

Things every parent should know BEFORE selecting a Dance Studio

If most dance schools seem to have qualified, friendly teachers, experience teaching children and a big show in the spring, aren't they all pretty much the same? Does it really matter which place you decide to enroll? YES, it does. There are several things that can make a huge difference in the quality of instruction your child receives, the amount of extra work and expense and hassles the parents must deal with, and the overall enjoyment and satisfaction of being involved with a dance program. Listed below are the things that every parent should know before deciding on a dance studio for their child.

What Type of Floor is Used

Dance is a very physical activity that requires a lot of jumping that can put stress on bones and joints. Most dance footwear does not provide any cushioning or support, so the shock of dance movement can place a lot of pressure on the knees and the back of a dancer. The best way to prevent potential injury is by choosing a studio that has a professional floating floor that is designed with the dancer in mind. Synthetic floors, while less work to maintain, do not offer the true sound when taps are used that a hardwood floor gives. Much like a drummer who only plays on a practice pad without ever hearing the true sound of the drum, tap needs the full rich sound that a wood floor can provide.

At Little Theatre all of our floors have a ?give factor? that was designed into them, which allows the stress of the movements to be reduced. All of our floors are hardwood floors.

Costume Selection for shows

Some dance schools have a policy of having the students purchase or make their own costumes for shows. This cost can easily exceed several hundred dollars for a single performance. If the student is involved in several classes, this cost can skyrocket.  Little Theatre has a low annual costume fee for the student that allows them the opportunity to be costumed for the shows without any additional costume expense or work on the parent?s part.

 Many dance schools today are following the trend to dress young children in very suggestive and revealing costumes. The attempt to have young girls look like pop stars can be very uncomfortable for many of these young students. The desire to fit into the group creates a great amount of pressure on these young minds. Seeing a 5 or 6 year old costumed the same as a 21-year-old pop star is a good indication of what the objectives of the school are.

 We at Little Theatre take the high road in this area and costume the students in age appropriate attire. Our goal with the costumes is to provide very stylish and theatrical costumes without the need to showcase the body underneath.

Choreography

There is an alarming trend with some dance schools to provide music video type choreography for young students. Some schools have found this to be an excellent way to attract students. Students see it on TV and want to learn how to do the moves they see.

The art of dance has a long tradition of graceful movement that accentuates graceful and flowing choreography. In jazz, the rhythm of the beat has given rise to many a spectacular performance highlighting both the music and the choreography. Performed with either classical or contemporary music, the elegance of dance shows not only the stylish power that is possible with good choreography, but the training of the performer as well. At Little Theatre, we provide choreography that is stimulating to learn and artistic in nature. The students learn solid fundamentals along with movements that are exciting to perform and are stylish and elegant.

Tiny Tot Program

Often dance schools seem to feel that the youngest dancers are not ready for real dance. Instead, they provide a semi-structured environment that is more play than technique. Proper placement and a good foundation for dance are ignored in favor of just providing a play opportunity.

At Little Theatre, our Tiny Tot program for students 3-6 years of age is fun and educational. As a fully integrated part of our total student learning, we believe that good training in dance starts even with the youngest students. The notion that young students can?t learn good technique is just not part of our philosophy. We have taught young students real dance for many years with great results. The training they receive as Tiny Tots carries forward into the rest of their dance training. We keep it fun, but make sure that we are really teaching.

Performing Opportunities

Some schools spend the whole year getting ready for one performance, then take the summer off. This performance can be very expensive for the parents and involves extra rehearsals and costume expenses. This cost of costumes should be considered before selecting a dance school as a student that progresses into several classes may be required to have a costume for each performance. The cost of these costumes can exceed several hundred dollars for the show season.

We, at Little Theatre, offer our students the opportunity to perform in several shows throughout the year. We have a stage at our main school with full lighting and sound system. At each of our schools, the teachers will often turn on the stage lights and have the students work on their dances. The smaller shows given at each of the schools provides the students with the opportunity to perform in front of an audience under a low-pressure format.  We do have a big spring show at a large theatre, this year it will be held at Loretto Heights Theatre. Our annual costume fee of $40.00 covers all the costumes used by the student for the whole season.

Dance is a performing art. We provide opportunities to allow the students to showcase their talent in a friendly atmosphere without a great amount of pressure. One of the most difficult things for adults to do is to get up in front of a group of people. We have found that the performing opportunities at Little Theatre have given our students the necessary edge to succeed in many endeavors. The dancers first step to success in any arena is taking that momentous leap onto a stage with an audience waiting to see what you are about to do. It can be very unnerving the first time, but just like anything else, the more you do it, the easier it becomes. That is why we offer as many performing opportunities as possible. The end result is a higher level of confidence in whatever endeavor the student pursues.

Gymnastics

The amount of effort, time, and money that it takes to develop a champion gymnast is staggering. The hours in the gym, the travel, the isolation from life with friends and family are all part of the development of a champion. Many gymnastic schools have teams that are the logical growth from classes. The competitive teams require a substantial amount of time, both on the parent?s part, as well as the student?s. The higher the level the more time ? up to 4 or more hours per day plus weekends.

At Little Theatre we have taken a different approach. We offer quality gymnastic education without the pressures of a team. We do have meets within our own schools. However, we have found the joy of gymnastics can be enjoyed without the pressure of a team. We focus on learning skills rather than on the rigors of competition.

Teachers and Instructors

The credentials that a teacher has may have nothing to do with the ability to teach. Many schools are very proud, as they should be, of the credentials that their teachers have attained. The unfortunate part of this process is that the level of skill that a teacher possesses may be no indication of the teaching skills that the teacher has. The credentials, which are mainly recognized by other dance professionals, are not the true indication of what kind of experience that a student should have while learning dance.

At Little Theatre, we have highly skilled teachers who have trained for many years and have attained high levels of skill in both dance as well as education. The main difference at Little Theatre is that we focus on the whole student not just the achievements in class or on stage. The caring and personal touch that we offer is unique among dance schools. From the very young student to the adult performer, we incorporate our philosophy of being part of our extended family and are genuinely concerned about each student. This philosophy is a part of all of our staff members.

Little Theatre? Where refinement is a way of Life?

To get you started, we offer 2 free lessons. To get you outfitted, each of our schools has a dance supply shop. To start enjoying the benefits our schools have to offer, call Camille in the office at 303-233-2970.

website: http://www.4littletheatre.com email: office@4littletheatre.com