Answers to Your Questions

Our name change from Dance and Voice to Creative Arts reflects our emphasis on the artistic qualities of all dance styles as well as our plans to offer more experiences with music and other art forms in the future. We see the new name as a broadening rather than narrowing of our focus.

Angela and especially Amelia do have strong backgrounds in ballet, so we are excited to bring more ballet opportunities back to the studio. At the same time, we have no plans to cancel or reduce focus on any programs. In fact, we are actively adding classes and performances.

When Amelia was dancing in Baldwin she had an opportunity to train with Ashley Dangos Brittingham a former professional dancer from Tulsa Ballet. There were a number of advanced ballet dancers, including Miss Mara, and the experience prepared Amelia for dancing at the Kansas City Ballet School and the nationally recognized Oklahoma Festival Ballet at the University of Oklahoma. She credits her ballet training with providing a strong technical foundation for other styles of dance required in these settings like jazz, contemporary, and modern. 

We hope that an enhanced ballet program can grow interest and participation in ballet as well as create stronger dancers all around. Examples of our continued focus on non-ballet programs include:

• We work with Baker University cheer, dance, and music education programs to identify excellent instructors for our classes

• The All Stars competition team will continue under the leadership of Maddy Evenson

• Our winter holiday performance offers opportunities for students across our programs

• Student teachers will only be teaching Foundations level classes, will have regular supervision, and will be following guidelines based on expected learning outcomes outlined by lead teachers in each style (Experienced high school seniors may be invited to teach Level 1 classes with significant supervision and guidance)

Preschool class interests in our Family Survey varied quite a bit, so we have created a schedule that we offers everyone options to build the class combinations that meet their needs. So, instead of having only one combo class available for all preschoolers, families can create their own combinations from across six 30-minute stackable classes (1-hour minimum). A fun benefit of this approach is that your preschooler can participate in multiple recital dances! Here are some examples of popular class bundles:

• 1-hour ballet/tap combo

• 1-hour jazz/tap combo

• 1 ½ hour ballet/tap/jazz combo

• 1-hour hip hop/tumbling

• 1-hour tap/tumbling

• 1 ½ hour jazz/tap/tumbling

Plus, classes can be split across different days!

Although they are not part of the stackable classes technically, we have followed a similar spirit for the Level 1-4 classes with classes that are often taken by the same students offered back-to-back to make scheduling easier for families. 

Preferences for recital costumes in our Family Survey were evenly split across the options we presented, so we have devised a strategy for different types of costumes for ballet students, preschool/elementary students, and junior high/high school students. This will give families the opportunity to consider their preferred type of costume as part of their decision about which classes to enroll in. 

If you like the idea of simpler and less expensive costumes, your family can focus on ballet classes. If real costumes are important to your family, be sure to register for non-ballet classes.

Visit our Class Descriptions page for examples of the three types of costumes and estimated costs. Here’s a bit more background on our thinking about the different recital costume options:

• In the recital, all Ballet students will participate in a shortened ballet production wearing their class “uniforms” with skirts/pants and other accessories instead of complete costumes (class uniforms are listed with Class Descriptions). This approach is commonly used in ballet schools associated with professional ballet companies, including Kansas City Ballet, as well as programs with a focus on classical ballet, such as Lawrence Arts Center. Level 4 dancers with lead roles may borrow professional costumes from studio inventory. The ballet production will be performed at the beginning of the recital so that Ballet students can change into their other costumes in time for their other class performances. Students who take non-Ballet classes will have additional costumes as described below for those classes.

• Since many Preschool/Elementary students take multiple non-Ballet classes, we are using “multiple-in-one” costumes where the same costume base is used for multiple classes with separate skirts/pants/accessories for each class. Costume manufacturers offer a number of such options for these age groups, so we should have many options to choose from. Plus, using the same costume base eliminates the challenges associated with strip-down costume changes for younger students. The benefit of these multiple-in-one costumes is that parents only purchase one full costume with additional, less expensive skirts/pants/accessories for the additional classes students are enrolled in.

• Costume manufacturers have fewer flexible costumes for Junior High/High School Students and these students tend to want more stylish costumes that don’t lend themselves to multiple-in-one designs, so Junior High and High School students will have separate costumes for each of their non-ballet classes.

Our students are enjoying our first season with  “marley” flooring for all classes in the front studio and the “glitter room.” According to Stage Step Flooring Solutions, the term “marley” in the dance world describes almost any roll-out vinyl floor used as a dance floor. They say the term marley comes from the company that started producing it — the Marley Company. 

Marley floors help keep dancers safe and increase confidence because they provide a surface that is non-slip but also not sticky. Dancers who take classes in other studios for auditions, summer programs, or workshops will find marley floors are the most common surfaces they will encounter. They will be more comfortable in new spaces if they have had the experience of marley in their home studio.

The drawback of marley floors is that they require careful use and maintenance. As a result, we created a new waiting area for parents and a reception area for our director of studio operations at the front of our space to reduce traffic through the front studio. We will also create a clearly defined pathway for students and parents to use for accessing the “glitter” room and tumble room since dirt and debris tracked in from outside are very hard on marley floors. If you're interested, you can learn about the care and maintenance of marley floors in this PDF from the industry leader Harlequin Floors. You can learn more about marley floors and how they are used for performances in this video from Virginia Tech.

Our marley floors were donated by a large studio in Lawrence that upgraded their floors and discarded their previously used, but still serviceable, flooring. We appreciate their generosity! 

Yes! We host a combined winter holiday performance that includes Themes and Variations from Nutcracker’s Land of Sweets for Ballet students and a Holiday Spectacular featuring All Stars and Choir.  

Yes! We offer four- to six-week classes for a range of dance styles. Depending on the demand for these classes, we hope to provide an absolute beginners dance technique class so that older beginner students can accelerate their skills and be ready for higher level classes with their peers. Please contact us with ideas for other short-term classes that you would be interested in!

Yes! We understand that creative arts education costs can be a challenge for family budgets. A group of dedicated BCCA parents has established a nonprofit, 501(c)3 organization called "Friends of Baldwin City Creative Arts." This group organizes events for families to earn funds to support their own students and to raise funds for our scholarship programs (see below). The group relies on an active board as well as parent volunteers for events. Please watch your email for opportunities to get involved or contact the studio for more information.

Yes! We are committed to providing a welcoming and positive environment for all families and want to ensure equitable possibilities for students from all backgrounds. We are still finalizing the application process for our need based scholarship program and a fund for dance shoes, dance attire, and other necessary equipment for our classes including pointe shoes. Contact the studio for information about these programs. Classes also decrease in price for students who take higher numbers of classes, and there are programs for families of BCCA staff to help with tuition.