 Dance Programs
"Champaign-Urbana's only Certified Ballet Training School"
Dance Arts provides a wide variety of children and adult
dance classes. Instruction is fun, safe, and affordable.
The
dance staff of the Champaign Park District would like to
welcome you to our program! For information (classes, fees, dates, etc.) please download our current Funformation Guide or search the listings in our Online Registration System. for all ather Questions, please contact Kim Burson at 398-2376 or
Mission
 The dance staff of the Champaign Park District
is fully committed to serving the diverse needs of the community
in the art of dance. In conjunction with maintaining the standards
of the Royal Academy of Dance, we strive to provide safe,
high quality dance instruction. The Dance Arts Program promotes
self-esteem, personal growth, and provides professional dance
instruction in a variety of dance formats for all age groups.
Our goal is to provide an instructional
setting which fosters all areas of the performing arts.
The Dance Arts Staff strives to instill appreciation for
dance through professional experiences and instruction shared
with each student. The dance training, discipline, and other
skills learned during dance instruction will follow the
student throughout life.
Performances
The beloved fairy tale of "Thumbelina" will be presented at the Virginia Theatre on Saturday, March 7 at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are $5 for Children under 12, $5 for Senior Citizens, and $8 for Adults.
Programs
Ballet-
Royal Academy of Dance Syllabus
The
Academy has grown to become the largest, most influential
examining body for classical ballet in the world. The
Children’s Syllabus is taught in more that 50
countries, setting high standards for dance training
for some 160,000 children every year. The safe and correct
training of your children is one of our major goals,
which is why the Grades Syllabus has been devised with
great care. It progresses a child in slow stages, demanding
no more of a young body than it can easily cope with.
Not only is this syllabus great fun for children to
dance, it also helps coordination, fitness, sense of
rhythm, musicality and self expression, as well as promoting
self-discipline and boosting confidence.
- Pre-Primary: Learn to make your hands
do fireworks and teach your feet to trot like a pony
in this beginning dance class.
- Primary: Would you like to learn
to fly a kite, and sway like a flower in the wind?
Join us for this second year of dance training.
- Grade I: Beginning classical arm
movements and small jumps will be started this year.
Hungarian folk dances will be introduced. Character
shoes and skirts are required.
- Grade II: Free movement (modern dance)
will be introduced in Grade II. More Hungarian folk
dance steps will also be added to the students repertoire.
Character shoes and skirts are required.
- Grade III: Pirouette turns will be
introduced this year, as well as more sophisticated
allegro work. Students will be required to perform
a classical variation, a free movement (modern) solo,
and a Russian Character Dance. Character shoes and
skirts are required.
- Grade IV: More pirouette turns will
be taught, adagio work becomes more mature, and the
Russian character work becomes more refined. Character
shoes and skirts are required.
- Grade V: More
allegro work is developed, and Grand allegro is introduced.
Polish character work will begin this year. Character
shoes and skirts are required.
- Grade VI: Artistry becomes an important
element in this class. Most of the centre work could
be considered small solos. Polish Court style character
work will be taught. Character shoes and skirts are
required as well as a mid-calf length chiffon skirt.
- Grade VII: Along with the ballet
training, a vocabulary of Hungarian Court steps and
styles will be taught so that in reaching Grade VII,
the student will easily recognize some of the steps
when watching traditional productions of Swan Lake,
Sleeping Beauty, and Coppelia.
- Grade VIII: The examination in Grade
VIII is a culmination of work taught in past years,
now performed in a series of solos.
- Intermediate: A basic knowledge of fundamental technique and the physicality and flexibility to execute class work is needed. Intermediate exercises are short and to the point, which enables the student to focus on refining their classwork. The class will include pointework, but is also appropriate for students in soft shoes.
Supplemental
Technique Classes
For
students of all ages who are the once-a-week dancer
or for students who want extra classes to perfect their
technique. These classes are also taught with the care
and expertise of the Academy.
- Creative Movement (Ages 3-4): Classwork includes exercises to help children fine-tune motor skills, coordination, and body and spatial awareness, while nurturing their natural love of dance and creativity.
- Creative Movement (Ages 5-6): Classwork encourages musicality, physical coordination, self esteem, and incorporates fundamentals of formal dance training. This class is offered during the Fall semester only. Students will proceed into Children's Beginning Ballet for the Spring and Summer sessions, and then into Pre-Primary the following Fall.
- Children's Beginning Ballet: Students
are encouraged to explore their creative side, by
learning how to express themselves through dance!
Basic ballet and free movement techniques will be
taught. Please note: Children's Beginning Ballet will
be offered in Spring & Summer sessions only.
- Adult
Ballet I: In this beginning class, positions of the feet, arms, and body are introduced. Exercises are given to create strong, yet supple footwork at the barre and then in center. Small jumps, usually 2 to 2 feet will begin this year. Beginning French terminology and theory are taught. Students remain in this class for 1 full year.>
- Adult Ballet II: Barre work becomes more sophisticated. Much more work en l'air is done in Adult 2 and demi-pointework is greatly expanded upon. Turns, and more petis allegro are introduced in center. Some larger jumps will be done also. Character and some Modern dance may be taught in this class. Students are encouraged to remain in this class for 2 to 3 years.
- Adult Ballet III: Students should be fluent in the French terminology and theory of their training up to this point. Barre work should be stable and clean. More complicated turns and jumps will be covered. Additional, more mature Character work may also be taught in this class.
- Apprentices: Ages 8 and up, with
2 to 3 years of training.
- Corps de ballet: Ages 10 and up,
with 3 to 4 years of training. Adults with the same
amount of training are welcome in this class.
- Soloists: Ages
12 and up, with 5 to 6 years of ballet. Adults with
the same amount of training are invited to take this
class.
- Principals: Ages 14 and up. This class is for students who are
dedicated to the art form, and plan to continue to
study academically and/or professionally. Please note:
Junior and Senior Company Classes are free to students
already enrolled in two or more classes with Dance
Arts.
- Junior Company Class: Ages 8 and up. Apprentices, Corps de ballet, and adult
students with 2 to 5 years of training are invited
to this class
- Senior Company Class: Ages 12 and
up. Soloists, Principals, and adult students with
at least 5 years of continuous training.
Irish Dance Classes
Learn
about Irish culture through dance.
- Children's Beginning Irish: The Children's Beginning class is for boys and girls who are new, or relatively new, to Irish Dance and who are at least 5 years of age by September. The dancers will learn the Introductory Jig and Reel.
- Children's Advanced Beginning Irish: The Advanced Beginning Irish Class is for students that have completed some beginning training and have mastered all Jig and Reel steps taught at the foundation level. Dancers will learn more advanced Jigs and Reels, as well as a new dance called the Slip Jig. This class is for students that are given a recommendation from the teacher or beginning students ages 8-12.
- Boys Beginning/Advanced Beginning Irish: This beginning and advanced-beginning level class will introduce the basics of Irish dance and then fine tune the technique. Students will learn the Jig and Reel, and might also start learning the basics of hard shoe. The class will be taught by Bill Donahue.
- Children's Intermediate Irish: The Children's Intermediate class is for ages 8-10 that have had previous training. A continuation of work learned in Children's Beginning Irish will include the Slip Jig.
- Children's Advanced Irish: This class is designed for students ages 11+ years with previous training. Intermediate steps of the Jig, Reel, and Slip Jig will be introduced, and preparation for hard shoe will begin.
- Adult Beginning Irish: The Adult Beginner class is for our new or relatively new dancers, ages 13+ years. The dancers will work on foot placement and learn the Introductory Jig, Reel, and Slip Jig.
- Adult Advanced Irish: This class is for our dancers that have mastered all the introductory and intermediate steps of the Jig, Reel, and Slip Jig and are well-acquainted with the hard shoe dances. The dancers will be taught more advanced material. * Teachers evaluation required before entering the class.
- Men's Intermediate/Advanced: This intermediate and advanced level class will introduce a more advanced Reel and students will learn more advanced and challenging hard shoe material. The class will be taught by Billy Donahue.
Workshops
Local dance artists create and teach short term dances
classes in various disciplines.
- None scheduled at this tim
Instructors
Our dance program strives to maintain a standard of excellence
through quality instruction and when possible, live piano
accompaniment. The dance faculty members have each received
professional dance training and collectively represent
a wide spectrum of performance and educational backgrounds.
The dance accompanists are professionally trained pianists
with specialties in performance, theory, composition,
and more. The expertise of both the instructors and accompanists
greatly enhances the quality of the dance program.
Members
of the core dance faculty:
Kimberly Reynolds-Burson
Head Dance Instructor
Royal Academy of Dance Certified Teacher
Kim began her training at age 8 with the Butler University
Special Instruction Division in Indianapolis. By age
15, she was a Soloist with the Jordan Dance Theatre,
the school's performing company. During this time, Kim
performed lead roles from Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty,
Les Sylphides, and in many original ballets choreographed
by Karl Kaufman, the company's Director. Kim spent 3
summers on scholarship at a school run by Anna-Marie
Holmes in Portugal where she performed in Paquita, Scheherezade,
La Bayadere, and Firebird. She has been trained or coached
by:
Elaine
McDonald - Scottish Ballet Theatre
Denis Ganio - Paris Opera
Woytek Lowski - Roland Petit, Bejart
Helen Starr - Royal Ballet
Alun Jones - Irish National Ballet
Elizabetta Terrabust - La Scala
Yuriko - Martha Graham
Kenneth MacMillan - Royal Ballet
Kim
began teaching for Dance Arts in 1984, and has received
her Teaching Certification from the Royal Academy of
Dance. Since becoming the Director of Dance Arts in
1986, Kim has choreographed many pieces for the school's
performances, including the full-length original
ballet "The Country Mouse and the City Mouse", "Masquerade", and "A Yessong."
JessicaBengtson
Jessica began her training in Decatur, Illinois where
she was an exam candidate with the Royal Academy of
Dance. At age eleven, she was accepted to the National
Academy of Arts in Champaign where she trained until
its closure in the spring of 1987. Jessica has trained
and performed under a variety of notable teachers to
include Petrus Bosman, David Keener, Robert Dicello,
and Mark Schneider. Jessica has been a Dance Arts instructor
since 1989 where she has taught all levels of Royal
Academy of Dance ballet syllabus classes, as well as
all levels of Adult Ballet.
Zohar Burshtein
Zohar Burshtein started dancing at the age of seven. In 1993, she was accepted to
Bat-Dor Municipal Dance School in Beer-Sheva, Israel, where she trained
in classical ballet and modern dance. She studied the RAD's vocational
syllabus and was awarded Advanced 1 in 2003. On that year Zohar began to
study movement notation and earned the Certificate in Benesh Movement
Notation in 2005. In 2006, she was awarded the Certificate of Higher
Education: Dance Education by Surrey University and became a registered
teacher. She has been teaching at Bat-Dor since 2004 and has also taught
dance in primary schools and community centers in Beer-Sheva.
Tobey Jayne Martinez
Tobey Jayne Martinez began her formal ballet training at the Scholl of Ballet West in Salt Lake City , Utah. At age 17, she earned early admission into the University of Utah's Challenge Program, which afforded her the opportunity to further her training at the collegiate level. The following year, Tobey was awarded the William F. Chirstenson Scholarship, which she received for her academic achievement and artistic potential. Tobey attended the University of Utah where she was a member of the Utah Ballet Company. She graduated from the University of Utah with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, majoring in Ballet. Tobey joined the Dance Arts faculty in 2005.
Kathryn Rouse
Kathryn Rouse was a RAD exam candidate in her native California through
the Advanced I level. When the School of the San Jose Cleveland Ballet
opened, Kathryn joined the first class of advanced students. While there,
she was taught by Dennis Nahat, Roni Mahler, Diane von Schoor, and
others. She was invited to perform with the company in the snow scene of
the Nutcracker both years that she was a student at the school. She also
performed in the end of year school performances choreographed by Dennis
Nahat. Between high school and college, Kathryn spent a year studying at
London Studio Centre in London, England. As a student in the third year
classical option, she was able to work under Ashley Page, Mathew Bourne,
Margaret Barbieri, and Adam Cooper as they rehearsed the school touring
company.
Upon leaving London, Kathryn went to Mount Holyoke College in
Massachusetts where she was active in the Dance Department. She performed
at both Mount Holyoke College and Amherst College. After graduation,
Kathryn pursued graduate work in Mathematics at University of
Wisconsin-Madison. While there, she performed in works by Marlene Skog
and Rosalind Newman.
James Shaffnit
James has been playing for ballet dancers for more than twenty years. He was a staff accompanist for the dance department at the California Institute of the Arts from 1994-96 and has played company classes for the American Ballet Theatre and the Nevada Ballet Theatre. Besides working as an exam pianist for the Royal Academy of Dance for the past fifteen years, he also currently accompanies classes for the dance departments at the University of Illinois and Springer Cultural Center in Champaign. He holds a Master of Music Degree from California State University, Northridge.
Summer Intensive Workshop
Instructors
Eduard Forehand
Eduard began his dance training with Thomas Armour in
Miami, Florida. He also received scholarships to attend
summer programs with the Houston Ballet and North Carolina
School of the Arts. Following his high school graduation,
Eduard trained at the Nutmeg Conservatory before joining
the Richmond Ballet. While there, he performed roles
in Romeo and Juliet, Giselle, and Nuevo Tango. After
two seasons, Eduard went on to dance with the Charleston
Ballet Theatre where he danced in Daniel Pelzig's Nine
Lives and Jill Eathorne Bahr's Dracula and Rite of Spring,
as well as Benvolio in her Romeo and Juliet. In 2003,
Eduard went on to dance with the Augusta Ballet, performing
in roles such as Aramis in The Three Musketeers, and
the Cavalier in The Nutcracker. Edward is now soloist with the Dayton Ballet. He has instructed ballet
at schools in Charleston and Augusta.
Jennifer Reiter
Jennifer Reiter, a native of central Illinois, received her BFA in Dance from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and her MFA in Dance from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. Ms. Reiter has been commissioned to teach and choreograph for dance schools and theatre companies throughout the Midwest. She currently is on the dance faculty of Millikin University and serves as the Artistic Director of Preparatory Dance Academy in Decatur, Illinois. Ms. Reiter is dedicated to bringing safe and correct dance technique to her students while never losing sight of the joyful freedom and creative personal expression that dance offers.
Christy
Forehand
Christy began her Royal Academy of Dance training at
Dance Arts under the direction of Cynthia Pipkin-Doyle
and Kimberly Burson. She went on to attend the Virginia
School of the Arts. Following graduation, Christy attended
Butler University and performed with the Butler Ballet
for one year. In 1999, she joined the Charleston Ballet
Theatre, where she danced for four years. While there,
she performed principal roles in George Balanchine's
Serenade and Tarantella, Colin Connor's Second Hand
Sofa, Daniel Pelzig's Nine Lives, and Jill Eathorne
Bahr's Rite of Spring, Peter Pan, and Romeo and Juliet.
Christy is in her second season with the Augusta Ballet.
She has performed the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy in
The Nutcracker, and Constance in The Three Musketeers.
She is now a soloist with the Dayton Ballet. Christy has been a ballet instructor for the past seven
years, teaching for the Charleston Ballet Theatre, Spartanburg
Ballet, Dance Arts Summer Workshops as well as many
other programs year around.
Irish Dance Instructors
Colleen Correll
Colleen Correll is currently a junior at the University of Illinois studying English and Business. Colleen began dancing when she was four years old and has trained with both the Trinity Academy of Irish Dance, as well as the Anam-mor School of Irish Dance and Music. Since then she has won regional, national, and world championships in both individual and team competitions. She has also performed in concerts and festivals across the country. Colleen has worked as an assistant instructor for Beginning level classes, as well as a private instructor for Advanced level dancers. Although Colleen is no longer an active dancer, she is very excited to share her passion of Irish dance with the students at Dance Arts.
If
you would be interested in teaching a class, please
contact the Springer Cultural Center at 217-398-2376. |
