Six Greenwich-based schools and studios offer dance instruction
from the classical to the contemporary, from vocational to
recreational, for all ages and skill levels. The establishments
are among at least 75 such locations in Fairfield County,
independents and franchisees.
The Greenwich Ballet Academy, a nonprofit established in
2005 based in the Greenwich Arts Society’s downtown
venue, offers an eight-year course in classical ballet for
dancers age 9 to 21, mirroring the traditions of the Royal
Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet and Kirov Ballet. For those who advance
there is an extension in modern dance. There is also a pre-academy
for children starting at age 7. Admission to the academy is
by audition.
The basic curriculum runs through spring and fall semesters
and an abbreviated summer school. Tuition ranges from $700
for pre-school to $1,750 for middle school to $2,200 for upper
school.
Dance Adventure also features spring and fall semesters—18
weeks each—and half-day and full-day summer courses
over 10 weeks, plus one-week camps at the winter and spring
breaks and one-day activities for special occasions like birthday
parties. The training covers ballet, tap, jazz and hip-hop
in group sessions and private lessons.
The instruction is designed for students from kindergarten
through teens and even incorporates special classes for parents
and children from six months of age to 2 1/2 years. Yoga Forms,
an adult yoga center, is also based at the studio. Nola Van
Alstine, the founder of Dance Adventure in 1991 and the school’s
director, is an accomplished performer herself and award-winning
teacher.
St. Saviour’s School of Dance in St. Savior’s
Episcopal Church in Old Greenwich, runs under the direction
of Scott Sisbarro, a certified dance master of America, designed
for students from age 3 to adults and has been in operation
since 1990. The training extends from youngsters to adults
and covers everything from tap to jazz to ballet and hip-hop.
Claudia Fletcher DeVita, the director of the Allegra Dance
Studio, founded the studio in 1972 and operates today from
its own West Putnam Avenue location and the Greenwich Arts
Society venue. The curriculum adds bellydancing, tai chi and
karate to the standard range of jazz and tap through ballet
for toddlers up through adults.
The Arthur Murray Dance Studio on central Lewis Street, part
of an international chain of studios for adult recreational
dancing, is a family owned business allied with studios across
the New York State line in White Plains and Yonkers. A free
lesson is available to new students.
MagicDance Toddlers meanwhile is an outgrowth of the MagicDance
format of instruction Audrey Appleby set up in 1983 for students
and adults, covering creative movement and everything from
ballet, jazz and hip-hop to aerobics, Irish dancing and yoga.
The activities still function in 25 grade schools in Greenwich
and Westchester Counties and are available single-session
for birthday parties and special occasions.
Now a toddlers dimension has been added in creative arts—movement,
music, tumbling, art, drama and an introduction to the French
and Spanish languages—for children 1 ½ to 3 with
parents or caregiver, limited to 10 toddlers to the old manor
home Greenwich Garden Education Center in Cos Cob.
List of dance schools:
Allegra Dance Studio
37 West Putnam Avenue
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.629.9162
Web site www.allegradancestudio.net
Arthur Murray Dance School
6 Lewis Street
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.983.5546
Web site www.trydancing.com
Dance Adventure
36 Sherwood Place
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.625.0930
Web site www.danceadventure.com
Greenwich Ballet Academy
299 Greenwich Avenue, Floor 3
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.856.7953
Web site www.greewnichballetcaademy.org
Magic Dance Toddler
697 Steamboat Road
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.622.0744
Web site www.magicdance.com
St. Saviour’s School of Dance
350 Sound Beach Avenue
Old Greenwich, CT 06870
203.637.8555
Web site www.stsavdance.com
