Message from Miss Vanessa:
How is it already April? We are making plans for the senior dance, finalized recital show orders and dress rehearsal schedules, and are getting ready to wrap up our 2018 competitive season. Our Company dancers and recital classes are making great progress in their routines, and technique classes are really working to push through and keep improving through the rest of the year!
We are humbled and excited that our community went out and voted for us as the #1 Dance Studio in the Corridor on KCRG’s A-List. If you took the time to vote for The Pointe – THANK YOU! We are all so thrilled to see the support from our dance families – and motivated to keep doing what we do: safe, healthy, and positive dance education for every student that comes through our doors. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. ?? We just earned YPAD Certification this month – and are proud to be the only studio in Iowa who has invested in this training and certification to keep kids happy, healthy, and safe in dance.
I’d love to extend an invitation for you to come and see our Company dancers (and a few select recital classes) perform at the Inferno Dance Competition at the Paramount in downtown Cedar Rapids on April 20-22. We always get dance competition schedules about one week in advance, so don’t have performance times yet – but will send those home to you when we get them in. We are so proud of our Company dancers – they’ve had a great season so far – and would love to have you stop by and cheer on our team! There’s no admission charge to stop in and watch some great dancing for a little while if you’re free. Dancers who are thinking about auditioning for Company may love the chance to see our groups in action!
We are on track to finish our first year as The Pointe with incredible recitals – thank you for being a part of our dance family!
–Miss Vanessa
Calendar:
April 14 – 16: Easter Weekend (no classes Friday through Sunday)
April 15: 2017-2018 Registration opens online for any families enrolled this year AND this summer
Apri 20-22: Inferno Dance Competition – See our Company dancers in action (and a few recital classes, too) at this competition at the Paramount in downtown Cedar Rapids. Schedules are usually set one week in advance and we’ll let you know when you can watch dancers from The Pointe perform! There is no admission charge to watch some dances at the competition, and we’d love to see you there!
April 25: 2017-2018 Registration opens online for any families currently enrolled this year
May 1: 2017-2018 Registration opens to the public online!
May 21 – 25: Studio Dress Rehearsals & Recital Pictures – at the studio this year! Click Here for the Schedule
June 4: 2017-2018 Company Audition Information Meeting (1:00 at the studio) & 2016-2017 Company Banquet (exact time and location TBA)
June 6-8: Paramount Theatre Dress Rehearsals – Click Here for the Schedule
June 11: RECITAL 2017!
June 13: 2017-2018 Company Auditions (interested in auditioning for Company? Learn more about our performance-focused competitive groups and register for your audition here)
The Pointe is now YPAD Certified!
Our complete staff attended 10+ hours of intensive and comprehensive training in best practices to implement and maintain a happy, healthy, and safe dance environment. Every single teacher and office staff member passed this training in age-appropriate and positive movement, music, and costuming choices, healthy communication, how to encourage positive body image and self-esteem through dance classes, and more. We are the FIRST and ONLY dance studio in Iowa to earn this Certification! Give your dancer’s teacher and our office staff a high-five for completing and passing this important training!
30 students ages 7 – 18 also took YPAD classes AND Hip Hop Master Classes from Leslie Scott, the founder and director of YPAD (and one of Miss Vanessa’s closest friends!). We are so proud of these students, who signed creeds to be YPAD “Youth Ambassadors” and spread positivity in dance! Our goal is to keep youth happy, healthy, and safe in dance – this staff and these dancers are a big part of accomplishing that goal.
Recital Costumes are Coming In!
As recital costumes arrive to the studio, we will pass them out in class. Each costume that requires tights will include a voucher for a free pair of the required tights + a discount for purchasing an extra pair (or two!)
Please label each costume piece as it comes home, and make sure that costumes are hung up and kept safe until dress rehearsal and recital. We may not be able to replace lost costumes – it’s important that costumes are not used as dress up or play clothes until after the recital.
Summer Registration is Open Online NOW!
We’re thrilled about our schedule full of classes and camps! Recommendations were mailed home mid-March – so dancers should know exactly what classes to register for. If you have a question about classes or camps for your dancer, please don’t hesitate to call or email the office! Camps are based on age – and camps are likely to fill! (some only have a few spots left already!)
We have 8-Week and 4-Week class sessions, week-long dance camps, and one-day dance camps. There is a class or camp for everyone!
We will make sure we have a space available for every student in the right class for them over the summer!
A few notes about summer classes:
NEW! Leveled Acro classes: We are hosting an Acrobatic Arts certification course in our break between recital and summer classes – Miss Josie will take the class to earn a full Acro teaching certification. We’re going to offer two Acro classes based on level – we have one for levels 3/4 and one for level 5+. Dancers should enroll in the Acro class that correlates with their ballet level.
Building Ballet, Tap, and Jazz: For recreational students and beginners (or beginners to a specific genre) over age 11, our “Building” ballet, jazz, and tap classes will tailor the curriculum towards the enrolled students and work to provide a great recreational class and/or funnel students into our Graded Technique programs.
NEW! Fitness Program: Our new fitness program offers a monthly unlimited rate (classes Monday through Friday – and we’ll add on if we need to!), a drop-in rate, and a class card rate. Anyone is welcome – though these classes are dance-based, no experience is required. Early morning times make our fitness classes a great fit before heading to work in the morning! Anyone enrolling for the unlimited monthly option in our fitness program this summer will receive a special thank-you gift for being a founding member of Fitness at The Pointe!
Our 2017-2018 Class Schedule is ONLINE NOW! Click here to view the schedule.
Registration will open for families enrolled both this year and this summer on April 15. Dancers currently enrolled but aren’t enrolled in summer yet may enroll April 25. Registration opens to the public May 1.
Referral bonuses will continue into next year – if you refer a friend to dance at The Pointe (that’s the best compliment we can get!) – please tell them to list your name in the “How Did You Hear About Us?” section at online registration. Both you and your friend will receive a $20 gift certificate to the Dance Shop (within 7-10 days of their registration)! There is no limit to the number of referral bonuses you can earn!
NEW! Mini Movers Class for Independent 2+ year olds: This 30 minute class for independent 2-year-olds is a great bridge in between our Dance With Me class and our more formally structured Dance & Discover Program. Mini Movers is a ballet-based creative movement class for 2+ year olds who can take the class on their own.
NEW! Ballet 5+ Technique: Our Jazz and Tap Technique classes this year were such a success, we have added a ballet technique class with a similar format. This class will not be in the recital, and will be 75 minutes of pure ballet technique instruction. For the best success in dance and ballet, multiple ballet classes per week at an advanced level are highly recommended. Any dancer in Level 5, 6, or Advanced can add this technique class to really hone in on ballet technique and get more time in exclusively technique training. If a dancer has a schedule conflict with their Graded Technique ballet class, this class could serve as a substitute.
NEW! Adult Jazz Technique: Our adult program is growing! This 30 minute jazz technique class is great as an add-on with Adult Ballet, or is a great way to start (or restart) dance as an adult – no routines, no recital performance, just a great workout in an upbeat 30 minute class.
Reminders: As we are learning our dances for recital, it is so important to have consistent attendance in dance class. Please make attending each class a priority!
If you must miss a class, we do offer a makeup lesson (this goes for snow days as well) – please email us to learn about the best options for making up a missed class.
March Wrap-Up:
