Author: The Center Dance

Pop-up Perch!

It’s April Break, and YOU deserve a break. If you’re looking for activities to fill this vacation week, look no further than The Center Dance Studio’s Perch & Swoop program. Join us on Thursday, April 21st from 9:30-11:30 AM for a FREE morning of dance and play

Perch & Swoop offers the best of The Center’s Pre-K creative movement curriculum, bookended by simple art activities, a wholesome snack, and play time.

Recommended for toddlers 18 months – 4 years. 

Space is limited; to register for this free trial class, email thecenterdanceschool@gmail.com or call 413-230-1944.

A new session of Perch & Swoop will begin Thursday, 5/5.

Hope to see you there! 



 

Spring Forward at The Center!

Watch your child blossom in The Center Dance Studio’s Pre-K program!

Since 2015, The Center has offered outstanding programming to the Valley’s youngest dancers. Our interactive, developmentally appropriate approach nurtures children’s enthusiasm for dance (and literature!), and celebrates the creative spark inside all of us.

New Spring ’22 Sessions start soon. For more information, visit the following pages:

Class Descriptions

Schedules

To register online, visit our Square Store, or click the images below. 

Perch & Swoop

Garden of Verses

Word Play

Story Ballet

 

 

 

Weekly Flex at The Center Dance

Welcome to Weekly Flex: A ballet-inspired adult dance class designed to develop core strength, lengthen muscles, improve posture and increase stamina. Barre exercises provide a meditative strengthening and toning routine, then it’s down to the mat for some Pilates-based floorwork. Uptempo cardio dance rounds out the hour. Each component of Weekly Flex can be practiced throughout the week, wherever/whenever the mood strikes.

Tuesdays, 7:30-8:30 PM; January 13th-February 24th (no class 2/17)

REGISTER for a 6-week session, OR drop-in for single classes ($20/class)

Flex BIG at The Center Dance! Enroll today. 

Register ONLINE or in-studio. For more information, email thecenterdanceschool@gmail.com.

Center Stage Winter Intensive

Curtains up!

The Center Dance is thrilled to announce our Center Stage Winter Intensive: a marvelous medley of musical theater, jazz and improvisational dance styles. Students will work with the fundamentals of theatrical dance, learn choreography straight off of Broadway, and master a “step, ball change!” In this week-long session, students will explore various popular character tropes (the hero, the villain, the dreamer, etc.) as they are depicted in such musicals as Hamilton, Little Shop of Horrors, Annie and Newsies. Yoshi Sanders (a licensed Dance Education Laboratory master teacher and National Dance Education Organization award winner) instructs. 

Whether your child is an aspiring performer, a Broadway enthusiast, or simply looking for some fun physical activity, our Center Stage Winter Intensive is the place to be! 

When: January 4th-7th, 4-5:30 PM (on Thursday, 1/6, class will meet from 5:45-7:15 PM)
Where: The Center Dance Studio, 321 Main Street, Amherst, MA
Tuition: $100

Recommended for kids ages 10-13.

To register, email thecenterdanceschool@gmail.com.

It’s YOUR turn in the spotlight; enroll TODAY!

Ballet, Unbound.

Introducing Counterpoint Ballet: a rigorous but joyful technique class for the ballet enthusiast, the ballet-curious, even the ballet skeptic. 

In Counterpoint Ballet, we embrace the powerful beauty of this iconic dance form, investigate the conventions that puzzle us, and respectfully release that which no longer serves us. We know that ANY body is a “ballet body,” that the language of movement need not be gendered, and that pointe work is optional. We care for our bodies and nurture our minds. We challenge ourselves and we encourage one another. 

In our weekly classes, students will be supported at their level, gaining strength, flexibility, artistic agility and musicality. 

Schedule: 
  • Counterpoint Ballet 1 (grades 4-6): Sundays, 11:30 AM-12:45 PM
  • Counterpoint Ballet 2 (grades 7-12): Mondays, 5-6:30 PM
Location: The Center Dance Studio: 321 Main Street, in Amherst

Our 16-week session begins January 9th (classes will not meet during Amherst Regional Public School vacation weeks). 

Counterpoint Ballet: it’s ballet, unbound. 

Gettin’ hygge with it…
hyg·ge

/ˈh(y)o͞oɡə/

n. 1. a quality of coziness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being.

Book & Bar(re)
/bo͝ok/ /and/ /bär/

n. 1. a combination book club, dance party and cocktail hour. A short but robust dance warm up followed by light stretching, adult beverages and low-stakes literary discussion.

Book & Bar(re): Hygge Edition: 

Coziness: check
Conviviality: check
Well-being: check

Wednesday nights at The Center Dance are brimming with hygge this winter, as we gather for movement, conversation, libation, and celebration of all things cozy. Whether you love winter, despise it, or fall somewhere in between, treat yourself to a healthy dose of midweek hygge in Book & Bar(re).

BYOBook*, BYOBottle**…We’ll provide the Barre***. Wool socks encouraged; hilarity guaranteed.

Location: The Center Dance, 321 Main Street in Amherst
Dates: Wednesdays, 1/15-3/12 (no class 2/18)
Time: 8-9:30 PM (or until we get sleepy)
Cost: $125-$175 (sliding scale)

*A book has not yet been selected; we will decide as a group during the first class.
**Bottle of wine, box of tea, thermos of coffee. Your version of liquid hygge.
***We may do a plié or two at the barre; mostly we move where we wish!

Register online at our Square Store. For more information, email thecenterdanceschool@gmail.com

Snow Boot Ballet

Swirl like a snow storm!
Sparkle like ice!
Ballet in snow boots?
Do we have to ask twice??

Take winter fun to the next level in Snow Boot Ballet: the COOLEST dance class around. Open to kids in grades K-1 and 2-4; no previous ballet experience necessary. 

Our 6-week sessions will culminate in a casual, outdoor performance featuring choreography inspired by Addie Boswell’s enchanting picture book, The Snow Dancer. 

Ages 4-8: Fridays, 3:45-4:30 PM; 1/14-2/18
Ages 6-10: Mondays, 3:45-4:45 PM; 1/10-2/28 (no class 1/17 or 2/21)

Classes will meet at Groff Park, in South Amherst. Snow pants and snow boots strongly recommended.

Due to the current surge in local COVID cases, masks will be required. 

To register, visit our secure Square Store or email us at thecenterdanceschool@gmail.com.

There’s no such thing as bad weather when you’re DANCING in it, so enroll today!

Celebrate winter with The Center Dance!

There’s no such thing as bad weather when you’re DANCING in it!

The Center Dance will hold a full lineup of outdoor Pre-K classes this winter, at Groff Park in South Amherst. Designed for children ages 2-6, The Center’s unique curriculum promotes creativity, connection, literacy and play! 

Visit our Class Descriptions page for detailed program information. 

 

 

 

If you’re in the market for indoor classes, those will be offered, too! A full schedule can be found HERE.

To register, visit our Square Store or email us at thecenterdanceschool@gmail.com. 

Center Stage Mini-Session

Curtains up!

The Center Dance is thrilled to announce Center Stage: Taste of Tap, a spin-off of our popular musical theater dance class. Like the original, this class will introduce kids to choreography straight off Broadway; a new highlight: foundational tap technique! Get your tapping toes ready to learn steps such as the Buffalo, the Shirley Temple, and the Cramp Roll; pull on your thinking caps to invent some steps of your own! 

Whether your child is an aspiring performer, a Broadway enthusiast, or simply looking for a fabulous way to kick off the weekend, Center Stage: Taste of Tap is the place to be!

Recommended for kids in grades 4-6. No prior experience necessary. 

Classes will meet on Fridays at 5:15 PM, 11/19, 12/3, 12/10 and 12/17 (no class the week of Thanksgiving), at The Center Dance Studio: 321 Main Street, in Amherst. Tuition is $65.

It’s YOUR turn in the spotlight. Enroll today!

Rhythm & Rhyme Mini-Session – Enroll NOW!

Tap. Snap. Flap. Clap; Snap. Flap. Clap. Tap!

Welcome to Rhythm and Rhyme, The Center Dance Studio’s inaugural tap technique class for elementary schoolers! Get your tapping toes ready to learn steps such as the Buffalo, the Shirley Temple, and the Cramp Roll; pull on your thinking caps to invent some steps of your own! Together, we will find our rhythm, and tap the time away!

Instructor Carson Kelly, a UMass Dance major, comes to us fresh from the Joffrey NYC Jazz & Contemporary summer intensive…and with close to a decade of competitive tap training under her belt!

This class is recommended for kids in grades 1-3. No prior experience necessary. Masks are required. 

Our fall mini-session will meet on Fridays from 4:15-5:15 PM, 11/19, 12/3, 12/10 and 12/17 (no class the week of Thanksgiving), and will be held at The Center Dance Studio: 321 Main Street, in Amherst. Tuition is $55. 

Register now!

For more information, email thecenterdanceschool@gmail.com.