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NEW! FREE Mens/Boys Only Ballet/Dance Class!
For the first 6 months offered, we are offering mens/boys ballet classes FREE OF CHARGE, starting this July through December! For ages 11 through adult. This is a great way to try dance in a fun and safe environment, no girls aloud! Many professional athletes take ballet because it improves their game by leaps and bounds! Ballet improves strength, agility, flexibility, coordination, reflexes and so much more! Take advantage of this offer while it lasts!
Class will begin July 8th. See our summer schedule for details.
Please join us for our upcoming Musical!
Saturday, June 15th 2 & 7 pm
Silverton High School, Pine Street Theatre
$10 Adults/$8 Seniors & Kids under 13
Tickets sold in advance and at the door. Seating is limited to 300 per show, as per license agreement with MTI.
For more information call us at 503-873-0464.
Ballroom Workshop & Dance Parties!
Second & Fourth Saturday's of every month!
Special Guest Instructor, Andy Long, from Portland!
Andy Long (pictured below on the left) with workshop student Kelly Hilton, learning west coast swing!
Workshop @ 7:30-8:30 pm. Dance Party follows the lesson 8:30-10 pm.
$8 per person (first timers) / $5 students & returning ballroom workshop attendees!
No RSVP - No Experience Required - No Partner Required - ALL Levels welcome! Already know some ballroom? We'll help you "kick it up a notch"!
March - Swing! March 9th is East Coast Swing and March 23rd is West Coast Swing
April - Waltz on the 13th & Fox Trot on the 27th
May - Salsa on the 11th & Cha Cha on the 25th
June - Rumba on the 8th and Night Club Two-Step on the 22nd
July - Swing Dancing (east and west coast) Tentatively there will be a LIVE 17 piece Big Band playing!
August - Country Line Dancing
September - TBA
October - TBA
November - TBA
December - TBA
Learn any of these Ballroom Dance Styles!
- West Coast & East Coast Swing
- Rumba, Salsa, Cha Cha
- Waltz, Fox Trot and Tango
- Night Club Two-Step and Casino Roulette
- International and American Styles!
Personal Hygiene for Performers
There has been a reoccurring pattern recently of hygiene issues that I wanted to just share with all parents as an FYI. Of course not all things listed apply to all people, but it is certainly food for thought for every parent one day.
Issue #1 Feet hurting: Ballet and Jazz shoes are designed to be fitted tight like a glove. This is so that you can feel the floor as if you were bare footed but have protection for your feet. Recently I've had several students complain that their toes hurt. After examining their feet and shoes to see what is causing the pain (i.e. are their shoes too small, etc) I have noticed that their toe nails are too long. Continuous use of "fitted" shoes with too long of toes nails can cause either bruised or ingrown toe nails, both are very painful. To prevent this pain or potential injury, dancers need to cut their toe nails shortly than the general public. Cut them short enough so that when you press a finger to the end of the toe it doesn't touch the toe nail. Be sure to cut them straight across and just file the sharp corners off. Don't cut them rounded (inward) because this encourages ingrown nails. If your child is complaining of their feet hurting this is the first thing I'd check on before purchasing new shoes. You can also always ask myself or Christine to have a look to, to be sure they are fitted correctly. No two feet are alike!
Issue #2 Body Odor: Each child matures at a different rate and every body is different and responds to exercising differently, so its sometimes hard for parents to tell when is the right age to begin using deoderant. Some children begin getting body oder as early as the age of 8. Its a sensitive issue that we try not to "embarrass" the kids as individuals so we just in general try to gently remind the classes to be conscious of their personal hygiene. As a general rule of thumb the levels of ballet 4 and higher should keep a stick of deoderant in their dance bags to apply before class. There are natural deoderants available too for those who have sensitivities to perfumes or chemicals.
Issue #3 Body hair: As with issue #2, this occurs at different ages for everyone, and as kids get older they get more "private" about their body's changes, so it can be hard for parents to keep tabs on. But in general if leg hair is poking through their ballet tights or if their arm pits are getting visibly hairy, it might be time to introduce a razor to their bathing routine. Of course each person has a right to choose not to shave (like the French!) :) but in my experince, most dancers adhere to this standard of shaving their legs and arm pits.
Issue #4 Supplies in their Dance Bags: I find that its extremely helpful for ALL dancers (and actors and singers too for that matter!) to have a "class bag" that is stocked with certain supplies. Being prepared is a life lesson in responisibility that doesn't hurt to start learning young. As you progress through the levels and get older, the need for more items in your class bag increases. Even for the "Little ones" I recommend having a bag with their dance attire, hair/bun supplies, warmers, water bottle and a healthy snack for either before or after class. The older kids its not a bad idea to have "conversion tights" (allow you to get to your feet without getting naked!), hair supplies, bandaids, medical tape, toe nail clippers, tiger balm, a travel sewing kit (for shoe ribbons or emergencies), dance shoes, a skirt, warmers, ibuprophen, deoderant, water bottle, energy snacks, a note book/pen to write down choreography, etc. This is a good habit to get into now and makes you prepared for anything, just like the professionals!
 At left: Ballet Level 8 ballet dancer Hannah Simpson's well equiped dance bag!
Thank you and I hope this is helpful to parents and students. The physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well being of our students is the most important to us at the Academy.
Congratulations!
To Kjersti McAllister, Lily Worden, Hannah Simpson and Cecelia Petrik who auditioned and were accepted into the Euegene Ballet Co. Nutcracker!
(Above, L-R: Lily, Kjersti, Marta, Cece, and Hannah)
Too Many Teachers +Too Many Techniques = Conflict of Interest
I know what you're saying, "What?! Too many teachers, too many techniques; can that even be possible?!" To answer your question, in some cases yes. You might also be thinking, "Well, isn't that contradictory to your motto to diversify as artists? Now you're telling me the opposite!" Let me explain and give an example.
On occassion our instructors get requests for private lessons from students who are from other teachers or studios. This is a delicate scenario for a couple reasons. First of all it raises a red flag: Why are they seeking lessons from someone other than the teacher/trainer/mentor? If they are not getting what they need from that teacher then why are they continuing to train with them and not seek to change instructors/studios completely? Secondly, each teacher has a different philosophy or technique that they teach. If the two do not line up with each other, then what the student is learning from each teacher is contradicting each teacher's method's, which could be potentially undoing each teacher's efforts and creating re-work for the student at each lesson, or in the worst case injury.
Diversifying your technique and knowledge IS important. However, it is just as important to seek teachers that have common goals, techniques, and philosophy.
Here is an example as it would relate to a Ballet student. A couple years ago I had a student from another local studio come and ask me for private lessons. I wasn't apposed to meeting with her and discussing the possibility but I needed to interview her, adjudicate her technique and figure out if it was a good fit for both of us. Upon further evaluation I discovered that her instructor had different philosophies in their teaching methods. Turn out was forced (whereas I strongly disagree with this; it should always come from the hip and never be forced). Certain Stretches were encouraged by her other teacher, that were actually injuring her and setting her improvement back. Certain exercises were given by the other teacher that were over developing her quads and creating hip problems. Certain technicalities were over looked completely like correct posture and alignment.
At this point a teacher has a difficult decision to make. The differences are too big for this to be a beneficial arrangement for anyone. I don't want to waste the students time, waste the parents money, or contradict another teacher's work with a student they have trained. It angers and frustrates their primary instructor, the student struggles to please everyone and can't, I would experience having to re-fix all of the technical issues at each lesson and the student could be at risk for injury.
Safety and the well being of every student is our number one priority. As much as it pains me, sometimes I have to give a student and their parents my professional opinion which isn't always what they want to hear. In the case above, I had to explain (in addition to all that I mentioned in this article previously) that I would be happy to teach this student if they were to come to me and our studio and make the switch completely. I explained that I believed that how the other teacher was training them was harmful physically and I explained my plan for reversal of the damage should I be given the opportunity to continue this dancers training. This student had trained for years with this other teacher and felt a great deal of loyalty to them, so they chose not to make the switch. (Since then I've learned that this dancer sadly did suffer a major injury that ended her dance training completely).
At the Academy all of our instructors are interviewed and auditioned extensively to ensure that their philosophies are all in alignment with the Academy's so that there is no conflict of interest in our training.
When seeking additional instruction it is important to keep this all in mind. Interview the instructors thoroughly or even asking to observe them teaching, make sure that they can offer what you are looking for, and be open to being interviewed and auditioned before an agreement is made. These are signs of good teachers who are looking out for everyone's best interest, not necessarily with the intent of being an eletist.
Event Rental Space & Parties
Birthdays * Parties * Weddings * Events * Performances * Recitals * Fundraisers * Auctions *
...and more!
Use our beautiful space for your upcoming event!
   
Includes:
Use of over 6,000 sq ft space: 3 classrooms, 3 restrooms (separate men’s & women’s), and kitchen/bar area.
- Space includes use of two stereos; one has a mixer and 2 amplifier speakers with iPod capability. Both stereos accept CD’s and audio tapes.
- Use of refrigerator, microwave, sinks, 12 folding chairs, 10 cushioned lobby chairs, one 6-foot Rubbermaid folding table, 2 card-sized tables, 1 TV with VCR/DVD player, electric piano, 2 different sound systems that have mixing and microphone capabilities, complete with stereos that have iPod functions. Cleaning supplies are also available.
- Excludes use of spaces: office, boutique fixtures, and costume/prop closets
Pricing & Payments
- Payment varies depending on the amount of space used/rented.
- Entire facility is $175 hour. Including load in/set up and clean-up/load out time.
- Downstairs only is $80 hour. Including load in/set up and clean-up/load out time.
- One room only is $35 hour. Including load in/set up and clean-up/load out time.
- Pricing includes one meeting with the Executive Director for a tour, resources available to you, and planning.
- If your event requires more than one hour of preparations of the Academy to complete, there will be additional charges per hour.
- Renter will be required to estimate the total time of rental for contract. If renter goes over more than 30 minutes of the agreed contracted rental time, they will be billed for that additional time.
- We require payment in full 24 hours or more prior to the day of rental. We accept cash and checks. You may also pay using credit via PayPal on our website, otherwise we do not accept credit cards.
Rules
- Academy staff member will unlock and secure the building at the conclusion of the rental. A staff member must also be on site for the duration of space rental for liability purposes.
- Oregon State Fire Marshal code states that we cannot have anymore than 150 people in the building.
- Renter is responsible for returning the space to “as it was” condition (upon arrival). Any items that were moved or rearranged (i.e. tables, chairs, stereos, etc) must be placed back in their original places.
- Renter is responsible for cleaning the space. This includes removing all garbage and recycling, taking down/disposing of decorations (balloons, streamers, etc), wiping down counters/tables, sweeping and spot mopping any spills.
- Renter is responsible to pay for or replace any broken, damaged, lost or missing AAPAC property.
- AAPAC is not responsible for lost or stolen property of renters or their guests.
- Renters must follow all Oregon state and federal laws.
- Renters and guests are expected to show respect for all AAPAC property and follow all AAPAC handbook rules and policies including not hanging on ballet barres, leaning on or touching ballet room mirrors, etc.
Food & Beverage
- Renters of space are considered “private parties”. They are allowed to bring in and provide their own food and beverages. Food handler’s permits or catering is not required.
- Serving alcohol is at the discretion of the renter. We recommend having a licensed server if you plan to serve alcohol, so that you are not liable. Guests of legal drinking age are your responsibility and you are liable for the safety of your guests, not AAPAC.
Our Party Packages
Let us do the hard work for you! Just show up and let us host a fabulous party for you that your friends will talk about for years to come!
“Princess Package”
Includes:
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Studio space rental (see Space Rental agreement) and equipment use for a maximum of 4 hours.
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A 45 minute ballet dance workshop for you and your guests, instructed by one of our qualified staff members
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Fun costuming and music provided to the workshop participants. Can specify if you’d like “ballerinas”, “Fairies” or “princess” costumes.
Pricing & Payments
- Studio room rental of $30 per hour, for a total of 4 hours (including load-in/set-up and clean-up/load-out time)
- Plus, $5 for each workshop participant (not to exceed 15 children).
- Renter will be required to estimate the total time of rental for contract. If renter goes over more than 30 minutes of the agreed contracted rental time, they will be billed for that additional time.
- We require payment in full 24 hours or more prior to the day of rental. We accept cash
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