Classes

Studio Location - 2363 Commonwealth Dr, Charlottesville (Directions Here)


Click here for the Fall 2009 schedule (Registration dates to be announced)

Click here for summer 2009 semester schedule and information

Summer registration is on-going throughout the semester. Pay only for the weeks you attend, however pre-registration is required. Please call ahead for space availability. Payments are required prior to participating in any class and we accept cash and check only.

Important Studio Policies:
  • All students (including drop-ins) MUST provide a registration form to an instructor prior to participating in any class. Students less than 18 years of age are required to have a parent or guardian sign the registration.
  • Students who arrive 10 minutes after the start of their class time are only permitted to observe. Warm-ups are imperative to the preparation of the student’s body for activity, and eliminating this portion of the class can cause injuries to occur.
Attire:
  • Please see course descriptions below for attire requirements. The Hip Joint is located on the downtown mall for your dance supply needs. Some classes have a specific leotard, tights, or shoes which they will have in stock. The staff there will direct you to the proper outfit for the designated class.

Course Descriptions

Early Childhood Program Course Descriptions (ages 3-4)
Parent and Me
Enjoy exploring dance with the security of mom or dad in the classroom! Parent/caregiver participates the entire class. For budding dancers who have not been in a classroom or preschool environment before, this is a great start to your child's dance education. Students will develop gross motor skills, coordination, and movement imagination while introducing basic dance skills in a fun environment with props, song and dance!
Attire: Girls- pink leotard, pink footless tights, barefoot, hair secured back. Boys- white t-shirt and black cotton shorts, barefoot.
Exploring Dance
Designed for the young dancer, this class develops gross motor skills, coordination, and movement imagination to boys and girls while introducing basic dance skills in a fun environment. Students expand their creativity by utilizing props, song and dance.
Attire: Girls- pink leotard, pink footless tights, barefoot, hair secured back. Boys- white t-shirt and black cotton shorts, barefoot.
Youth Program Course Descriptions (ages 5-12)
Pre-Ballet and Tap Combination
Students explore ballet, tap, creative movement, and song and dance concepts in a structured but fun environment by learning terminology, technique and movements appropriate for the young dancer.
Attire: Girls-During the summer children can wear a solid colored leotard and pink tights, pink ballet shoes (not bedrooms slippers), black tap shoes, hair secured back. Boys- white t-shirt and black cotton shorts, black ballet shoes, black tap shoes
Jazz and Tap Combination
Students progress through learning basic, high-energy jazz and tap technique with fun, age appropriate music! Warm ups, progressions and routines.
Attire: Girls - During the summer children can wear a solid colored leotard and black jazz pants, black jazz shoes, black tap shoes, hair secured back. Boys - Solid color shirt with black track or sweatpants, same shoes. T-shirts or other clothing not permitted.
Hip Hop Jazz and Tap Combination (ages 8-12 only)
This class features the structure and technique of jazz along with the exciting, hip hop and jazz styled choreography that is age appropriate. Students also learn tap technique, progressions and routines.
Attire: Girls - During the summer students can wear a solid colored leotard, black jazz pants, black jazz shoes, black tap shoes. Boys - Solid color shirt with black track or sweatpants, same shoes. T-shirts or other clothing not permitted. Hair must be secured back.
Ballet
Learn the techniques of classical ballet in an expressive environment! Students will build their skills through barre exercises, adagio, progressions, and fun routines. Fun props are utilized to help students discover the importance of good posture and balance.
Attire: Girls-Mirella M207 black camisole leotard (available at the Hip Joint) , pink tights, ballet shoes, black skirt, hair secured back. Boys-white tshirt, black leggings, black ballet shoes.
Hip Hop (ages 8-12 only)
An upbeat class that familiarizes students with street hip-hop. The class builds weekly on the dancer's skill through warm-ups, exciting choreography, and the freedom to freestyle. The emphasis in this class is on individual style, musicality, and having fun!
Attire: Black track pants and solid colored tops only. Jazz shoes or clean sneakers for footwear and hair secured back.
Teen and Adult Program Course Descriptions
Adult Dance
The perfect class for adults who want to learn several dance forms and have a blast! No experience necessary, but quite welcome! Perhaps you are an actor/actress looking to improve your stage movement skills, someone who danced in their youth, or simply an adult looking to ignite the dancer in yourself! The class will include warm up, progressions, ballet and jazz based technique, and choreography in various dance art forms! Students participating in this class are welcome to provide feedback on what they would like to learn!
Attire: Exercise appropriate clothing.
Ballet
Learn the techniques of classical ballet based on the Russian Vaganova style through barre exercises, adagio, progressions, and floor barre for core strengthening. Upper level class will explore learning various classical variations.
Attire: solid leotard, tights, ballet shoes, skirt optional. For Level III+ solid leotard, black or pink tights, white waste band) Hair secured back. No tshirts or loose clothing permitted. Upper level class must wear a white elastic waist band.
Ballet Variations
Ballet III+ experience required. Each lesson will be focused around learning ballet variations from well-known classical repertoire. This class helps students develop a stage presence, practice learning and retaining choreography, and provide a means to express themselves using the movements they learn from technique class.
Attire: Adults: solid leotard, black or pink tights, white waste band, ballet shoes, skirt optional. Hair secured back. No tshirts or loose clothing permitted. White elastic waist band.
Ballroom/Social Dancing
Explore the art of social dancing with Waltz, Rumba, Swing, Foxtrot, Tango, Salsa, and Cha-cha. The class focuses on dancing with a partner, recognizing styles of dances by the music, and expressing the character of each dance. Upper level classes increase existing skills, learning more technique, complex patterns, and styling. During the summer, a different dance will be covered each week. Partner welcome but not required.
Attire: Comfortable clothing that does not restrict movement, shoes with leather soles and no tread on the bottom.
Belly Dance Jam
A 45 minute, low impact workout to strengthen and stretch the whole body with a focus on the abdominal "core" muscle group using basic Belly dance movements. Gain confidence and sculpt your body with graceful yet powerful dance moves.
Attire: Exercise appropriate clothing, bare foot.
Breakdancing
An exciting element of hip hop, breakdancing expands your dance vocabulary by taking it to the floor. Get a workout while learning moves like the six-step, backspin, freezes, and many more! This class will include stretching, strengthening, breakdancing progressions, and basic choreography. All skill levels are welcome!
Attire: Exercise appropriate clothing that does not restrict movement or body visibility, and clean sneakers.
Conditioning for Dancers
For students at an intermediate to advanced level. This challenging class is designed for a full body workout focusing on the stretching, toning and strengthening the various muscle groups. Pilates based exercises, floor barre and classical ballet based center movements for toning work included.
Attire: Leotard and jazz pants or tights, jazz or ballet shoes or bare foot. Yoga mat and theraband needed. T-shirts or other clothing not permitted. Hair must be secured back.
Contemporary Dance
A fusion of all main dance techniques (ballet, jazz, modern, lyrical) this new category of dance allows the dancer and the choreographer to exist in a space with no limits. strong technique in as many different styles/disciplines help shape this evolving dance movement. whether purely abstract or expressively lyrical, this style of dance is always captivating and unpredictable. this class will focus on developing strength in various techniques while exploring many different styles of dance through choreography to include partnering, floor work, and expressive and abstract movement.
Attire: Dancers should dress comfortably, but with close-fitted clothing, allowing for all ranges of movement.
Contemporary Jazz
Dance experience required. Students must be currently enrolled at Dance Explosion in ballet and/or an additional jazz class. This unique class is a fusion of jazz, lyrical, hip-hop and contemporary style dancing. It begins with a 30 minute warm-up and study of jazz technique to create focus, mobility, and centering for the dancer, with the remaining 45 minutes devoted to learning choreography. Choreography provided is dynamic, physically demanding, and emotionally and technically challenging. The class choreography and music genres (pop, rock, urban, hip-hop, alternative, etc.) incorporated change drastically from week to week, providing the dancer with stylistic range and an understanding of performance connection/quality.
Attire: Dancers should dress comfortably, but with close-fitted clothing, allowing for all ranges of movement.
Hip Hop
An upbeat class that familiarizes students with the street hip-hop style dance. The class builds weekly on the dancer's skill through warm-ups, toning, stretching, exciting choreography and the freedom to freestyle. The emphasis in this class is on individual style, musicality, and having fun!
Attire: Exercise appropriate clothing that does not restrict movement or body visibility, and clean sneakers.
Hip Hop Cardio and Tone
This fun, upbeat class involves 45 minutes of cardio, toning and exciting dance combinations for adults! We'll do interval work for your heart, strengthening exercises for your body, and popular dance moves to the latest music. No dance experience is necessary but is quite welcome! Just slip on your sneakers, some fun comfortable clothing and come join the fun!
Hip Hop Essentials
All dance art forms require skills and techniques to become proficient. This class is open to all skill levels and will focus on enhancing the students control, precision, and execution of hip hop choreography. Students will explore hip hop choreography, popping, breaking, freestyle, and club dancing. Leave your inhibitions at home and come learn all the essentials you need to further develop your hip hop skills.
Attire: Exercise appropriate clothing that does not restrict movement or body visibility, and clean sneakers.
Jazz
Training includes jazz technique study, terminology, placement, and rhythmic awareness development. Students progress through core techniques and skills from beginner to advanced levels. Class level placement is based on specific skill sets. Students are required to master specific skills before moving on to higher levels. Stretching, toning, floor progressions, core conditioning, center work, and choreography included at each level. Students participating in Jazz IV by permission of Director only and must be currently enrolled at Dance Explosion in Ballet III+.
Attire: Leotard and jazz pants or tights, jazz shoes. T-shirts or other clothing not permitted. Hair must be secured back.
Jumps/Kicks/Turns
Students must be currently enrolled at Dance Explosion in ballet and/or an additional jazz class. This class begins with a 30 minute jazz-style warm-up to center the dancer and increase awareness, control, and flexibility. For the remainder of the class, dancers are taught challenging jazz skills including leap, battement and pirouette combinations utilized in competitive and other high level performance dance routines. Minimum of intermediate skill level required.
Attire: Dancers should wear appropriate dance attire conducive to seeing body placement, no loose clothing permitted.
Latin
Explore the traditional form of Mambo and Cha-cha-cha with a simple study on how to recognize the rhythm in music. This course teaches the basic steps, timing, and improvisational styling while it also teaches dancers how to interpret the music and recognize the rhythm (in clave). Partners welcome but not required.
Attire: Comfortable clothing that does not restrict movement, shoes with leather soles and no tread on the bottom.
Modern
Based in a strong ballet foundation, modern technique introduces new levels of movement that challenges the dancer to move past the basics of ballet technique. levels, linear precision, and strength are emphasized in all styles of modern along with development of stamina within the movement. the focus of this class will include basic horton technique along with exploration of modern dance movement within choreography.
Attire: Dancers should dress comfortably, but with close-fitted clothing, allowing for all ranges of movement.
Stretch, Tighten, and Tone
A gentle workout for adults wishing to focus on the stretching, toning and strengthening the various muscle groups. Pilates-based exercises, floor barre and theraband work.
Attire: Exercise appropriate clothing, bare foot. Yoga mat or towel and theraband needed.
Tap
Includes tap technique, terminology, placement, rhythm, musicality, tonality, and good posture. Students will learn about different tap styles--from focusing on a whole body aesthetic to becoming a musician with taps as you utilize different parts of the tap itself. Progressions, improv and acapella work will be explored. Broadway tap covers a style more conducive to tap for theater/musical theater, and "rhythmic tap" focuses on more complex musicality with tap with additional emphasis on acapella style and tone.
Attire: Exercise appropriate clothing that does not restrict movement, tap shoes, hair secured back.