Frequently Asked Questions about Our Dance Studio
What are Your Qualifications?
We have been in the business of teaching dance for over 30 years. Our owners are professionally trained teachers and former professional dancers. Both Candy and Mark, have post-secondary degrees and training in dance. Mark has a Bachelors in Dance, a Bachelors of Education, and holds an Alberta Permanent Teachers' Certificate. Candy, before coming to Canada, graduated from the Corona School for the Performing Arts in London, England. In addition our other highly qualified instructors also have post-secondary degrees or professional experience in dance. Those that are Danceworks' teacher trainees are under the supervision of our owners and staff.
Do you have a Registration Fee?
Our fees at Danceworks fees are upfront with no surprises. When we state the cost of taking a class at Danceworks that is what you will pay. We never charge registration fees, ever. We believe that registration fees penalize families - especially returning students. Some say a registration fee is an administration fee. We think if it costs a school to register someone it should be built into the yearly fee. Not added on top.
How Much Does it Cost to Participate in a Festival or Competition?
To participate in a competition at Danceworks is almost free. The only cost you pay is whatever the competition company charges as an entry fee and costume rental from us. You could pay $70.00/routine or less for the year. Our philosophy about competition is that it should be available to everyone that is interested and can commit to it. It should not be exclusive to those that can afford it or become a burden to those who cannot afford it.
We never charge additional class fees, choreography fees, rehearsal fees or private fees associated with doing competition at Danceworks. Your commitment is your Saturdays. We take dancers ages 8 and older with at least 1 year of dance experience to competition. Dancers are grouped for competition by age and ability. We create a rehearsal schedule that will prepare students to compete. And that's it. Because competition is free at Danceworks, we do limit the number of solo and duos that we enter. In the interest of keeping cost low, we prefer to enter group routines.
Competition is optional and not required for our students. When you enroll in a class from us, you learn the technique and style of the dance. Eventually, you will also learn the routine that you will perform at our recitals. This means that when you take a tap class we focus on teaching you proper technique. This means you are not required to take extra classes to work to focus on technique while preparing for competition. Again, saving you money!
Are There Opportunities to Travel?
As a rule, we do not travel. We believe that families shouldn’t have to be responsible for the extra cost of travelling to competitions. Extra costs include meals, gas, hotels on top of the cost to compete. We feel that the experience of doing the competition is important and there are locally based competitions in Lethbridge. In general, we commit to only 1 local competition per year. Our philosophy is that competition should be available to anyone who is interested and committed to perform. It should not be exclusive to those that can afford it or become a burden to those who cannot afford it.
What is Your Costume Policy?
We believe that a costume should enhance the performance and not outshine it Spending $100.00 or more on a costume that is worn for 3-4 minutes once or twice a year is unreasonable. This is why we reuse, repurpose or purchase most of costuming for competitions, festivals and performances. We spread the cost of new costumes over a number of years and pass the savings on to our students. The cost to use a costume would be as low as $5.00. In addition, we make a special effort to keep costuming age appropriate. Low cut tops, high cut shorts, bare midriffs are inappropriate for children and teens. Therefore, not part of Danceworks costuming or class attire.
Am I Obligated to Fundraise?
Like most studios, Danceworks is a business. Therefore we feel that additional fundraising is not appropriate to our business model. While we welcome assistance from our parents and supporters with various tasks such as sewing costumes or working with children during shows, volunteering is not required. Your job as a parent it to drive your child to and from classes.
