Academy Dance Classes

We provide dance instruction for both boys and girls of all ages, skill-levels, and learning abilities.

With over 100+ years of combined professional dance instruction experience, our staff brings both veteran instruction and new choreographers from full-time professional dancers. We can’t wait to provide you with some of the best available dance classes in Grand Rapids.
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2022-23 SCHEDULE

We have three dance studios for classes. They all have professionally sprung floors for the safety of our dancers and teachers. We have a lobby area in which parents can wait for their dancers. Our one way windows on each door to our classrooms allow parents to observe the class without causing a distraction.
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FAQ & General Information

Combination Classes (Ages 2-6)

Combination classes are a great way for students to experience different types of dance
in a forty five minute to one-hour instructional time. Classes are available for students 2-6 years
old. Classes placement will be based on age, experience and skill level. Class options are
Ballet/Tap, Ballet/Tap/Jazz. The main focus of combination classes is on students having fun
and enjoying dance as an everyday activity.

Tap Classes (Ages 5+)

Tap classes are designed to develop rhythm, style and sound. Students will learn a variety of tap styles from Broadway to Rhythm tap. Exercises focus on building flexibility of the knee and ankles, coordination, and speed of movement. The class emphasis is on developing proper tap technique, producing clear tap sounds, and having fun. As students progress through each level curriculum will become increasingly more complex and intricate.

Ballet Classes (Ages 2+)

Ballet is a classical dance form demanding grace and precision and employing formalized steps and gestures set in intricate, flowing patterns to create expression through movement. It is an artistic dance like no other, that can be used to express different emotions or to tell a story. Traditional classical ballet dance was choreographed with elaborate costumes and staging. More modern ballet dance styles create room for a variety of expression and artistic freedom. At the Academy of Dance Arts, we use a variety of Ballet methods, including terminology to ensure the dancer has a broad knowledge of Ballet technique, which is necessary in today’s world. Our younger dancers learn the Cecchetti method and as they progress we introduce concepts from Vaganova, Balanchine and the ABT curriculum.

Jazz Classes (Ages 5+)

Jazz is a genre of dance matched to musical rhythms, with roots in jazz music of the early twentieth century. Jazz dance builds on strong technique and flexibility while using syncopation, grounded movement, and isolations. A variety of styles are used ranging from swing, to Broadway, to pop, including high-energy modern music.

Hip Hop Classes (Ages 5+)

Hip-hop dance refers to street dance styles primarily performed to hip-hop music or that have evolved as part of hip-hop culture. It includes a wide range of styles primarily breaking, locking, and popping which were created in the 1970s and made popular by dance crews in the United States.

Acro Classes (Ages 2+)

Acro dance is a style of dance that combines classical dance technique with precision acrobatic elements. It is defined by its athletic character, its unique choreography, which seamlessly blends dance and acrobatics, and its use of acrobatics in a dance context. It is a popular dance style in amateur competitive dance as well as in professional dance theater and in contemporary circus productions such as those by Cirque du Soleil.

Musical Theater (Ages 6+)

A musical theatre performer is an actor, a singer, and a dancer (known as a triple threat). Musical theater dancers are, first and foremost, actors and place a high focus on musical interpretation to tell a story, while incorporating technique from ballet, jazz, tap and other genres. This class will not provide any vocal coaching, however, students will be expected to learn lyrics in order to lip sync to pieces. This helps convey the story they are telling. Our goal in this class is to help students become believable characters using dance, combined with acting, to create more captivating performances.

Progressing Ballet Technique (Ages 7+)

Progressing Ballet Technique is an innovative program developed by Marie Walton-Mahon for students to understand the depth of training muscle memory in achieving their personal best in classical ballet.
Marie has been known for her creative teaching skills for almost 4 decades and has trained many professional dancers and teachers’ worldwide. She has experimented with outstanding success the use of muscle memory to improve students understanding of core stability, weight placement and alignment for many decades. Safe Dance training has been a passion of Marie’s as an educator for over 40 years. It is difficult for students to feel what muscles initiate the correct alignment in ballet training, however, as the fit ball is continually mobile under the students’ body, it gives the students a sense of posture and weight –placement whilst feeling each correct muscle group.

Pointe (Invitation Only)

Beginning pointe class can be taken on flat or in pointe shoes at the instructors discretion. All pointe classes are designed for students with previous ballet training. Students will utilize previously learned ballet technique while working in pointe shoes. Exercises will focus on strengthening the feet and ankles.

Variations (Invitation Only)

In ballet, a variation (sometimes referred to as a pas seul, meaning “to dance alone”) is a solo dance. In a classical grand pas de deux, the ballerina and danseur each perform a variation. This class will introduce more advanced ballet students to the famous choreography of ballets such as Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, etc. Students will gain knowledge of famous ballets while learning to perform these variations. This class builds strength, poise and awareness of the artistic aspects of performance.

ABT Classes (Ages 3+)

Academy of Dance Arts is proud to include the AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE® National Training Curriculum, a breakthrough 9 level program that combines high quality artistic training with the basics of dancer health and child development. The ABT® National Training Curriculum consists of a comprehensive set of age-appropriate, outcome-based guidelines to provide the highest quality ballet training to dance students of all ages and skill levels. Pre-Primary through Level 5 will be taught by ABT® Certified Teacher, Dawnell Dryja Black who has successfully completed the ABT® Teacher Training Intensive in Pre-Primary through Level 5 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum. Pre-Primary through Level 3 will be taught by ABT® Certified Teacher, Jessica Pollack who has successfully completed the ABT® Teacher Training Intensive in Pre-Primary through Level 3 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum.

Contemporary (Ages 7+)

Contemporary dance is a style of expressive dance that combines elements of several dance genres including modern, jazz, lyrical and classical ballet. Contemporary dancers strive to connect the mind and the body through fluid dance movements. It is a popular form of dance which developed during the middle portion of the twentieth century and has since grown to become one of the dominating performance genres for formally trained dancers throughout the world, with particularly strong popularity in the U.S. and Europe

Lyrical (Ages 6+)

Lyrical dance has been defined as a dance style that embodies various aspects of ballet, jazz, acrobatics & Modern dance while still maintaining its autonomy. According to Jennifer Fisher, “It has been strongly associated with clearly displayed emotional moods, fast-moving choreographic strategies, emphasis on virtuosic display, illustration of song lyrics, and, in group form, exact unison.” The style is usually danced at a faster pace than ballet but not as fast as jazz.

Performance Teams (Ages 5+)

We offer competitive dance teams for students ages 6 and up in all disciplines. Teams travel to regional dance competitions and also perform at local festivals, charity benefits, parades, and nursing homes. We are very proud of our dance teams using their gifts to benefit others! Please ask for more details.

Choreography (Ages 7+)

Imagine, create, and share your vision of dance with the world. A theoretic and applied study of the basic elements of choreography will be introduced and explored through the creation of original works. Choreography will be approached through the exploration of resources including improvisation, use of ideas, knowledge of forms, and development of the craft. Students will be exposed to various choreographic processes, terminology, and potential performance venues. Students will receive weekly assignments directed toward specific problems and dance elements; then begin to develop works with an emphasis on the relationship between manipulation of musical phrases and choreography. Students will learn to move from phrase development to the completion of a dance. They will learn to critique dances through the workshop process by observing, reflecting, discussing, evaluating, and making recommendations for revision. music, props, sets, and professional staging.

Ready To Sign Up?

We are excited to have you into our academy and join us for our amazing variety of dance classes in Grand Rapids, Michigan!

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