Studio Address: 802 Main St West, Ashland, WI Mailing Address: 1316 Main St W, Ashland, WI 54806
Offering Ballet, Lyrical, Jazz, Tap, Poms & Funk Classes
For Dancers Ages 3 & up
SUMMER REGISTRATION BEGINS
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20!
ASHLAND SCHOOL OF DANCE
DATES TO REMEMBER:
SUMMER DANCE REGISTRATION
Now through May 1
SPRING DANCE RECITAL - NORTHWESTERN HIGH SCHOOL
Thursday, April 18 - Saturday, April 20 – Rehearsal
Saturday, April 20 – 11 am & 3 pm Performances
SUMMER SESSION - SHOE FITTING DATES
4:30 – 6:00 pm Wednesday, May 1
5:00 – 6:00 pm Monday, May 6
FLY DANCE COMPETITION
Friday, May 3 – Sunday, May 5
2024-2025 COMPETITION TEAM TRY OUTS
Wednesday, May 8
5:00 - 6:00 (Dancer ages 4-6)
6:00 - 8:00 (Dancers Ages 7& up)
SUMMER DANCE SESSION
Friday, May 13 – Monday, July 22
2024 SPRING DANCE RECITAL
The Spring Dance Recital is right around the corner. A copy of the Student Production Sheet is available at the studio. Please read through this so you know what is expected of your dancer. This information will help prepare you and your child for this year's recital and to get everything ready for the rehearsals & performances. Please feel free to call, text or email if you have ANY questions.
Tech/Dress Rehearsal: Thursday, April 18-Saturday, April 20 (complete schedule attached)
Show Dates/Time: 11:00 am & 3:00 pm on Saturday, April 20 (Doors open 30 minutes prior to each show)
Location: Northwestern High School (4751 S County Road F, Maple)
Tickets: Available for purchase online (https://dancestudio-pro.com/tickets/asod) & in person at Home Expressions (116 Main St W, Ashland)
Ticket Cost: $10.00 each – kids 3 & under are free if sitting in an adult lap.
2024 SPRING DANCE RECITAL DETAILS
All dancers will all perform in both performances on Saturday, April 20. – 2 performances on Saturday, April 20 at the Northwestern High School Auditorium (4751 County Road F Maple, WI). Dancers will also be required to attend their rehearsal on Thursday, April 18 -Saturday, April 20. For rehearsal, each class will be scheduled to perform on one of the three days. A copy of the rehearsal schedule has been emailed to all families and is available for pick up at the dance studio. Recital tickets are available for purchase online and at Home Expressions (116 Main St West, Ashland). If your dancer won't be participating in the Spring Dance Recital, please be sure to email us ASAP to let us know so instructors can make adjustments to their group's choreography.
SPRING DANCE RECITAL TICKETS
Tickets for our Spring Dance Recital are available for purchase online (https://dancestudio-pro.com/tickets/asod) and available for in person sales at Home Expressions (116 Main St W, Ashland). All tickets are general seating and available on a first come first serve basis. All parents, family members and friends that want to watch the performance need to have a ticket; The only exception is kids 3 & under are free if sitting in an adult lap. Cost is $10.00 per ticket. We ask dance families to only buy the number of tickets that you're going to use because tickets are nonrefundable. When purchasing tickets, you do need to know which performance you want a ticket for; we only sell a certain number of tickets for each show. All rehearsals and performances will be held at the Northwestern High School Auditorium (4751 County Road F, Maple, WI). All classes will perform in both recital performances on Saturday, April 20. Dancers will be asked to arrive by 10:30 am in their costumes, tights with their hair done (make-up is optional).
TECH/DRESS REHEARSAL
The Tech/Dress Rehearsal is held at the Northwestern High School Auditorium on Thursday, April 18 thru Saturday, April 20. Each dance class is allotted a specific time for rehearsal on one of the rehearsal days – a complete rehearsal schedule is shown on the Student Production Sheet. Dancers and parents are welcome to watch other classes during rehearsal, we just ask that there are no photos or videos taken of the dancers while they are on stage performing. Dancers should wear their recital costumes & tights with their hair and make up done and bring their dance shoes. When dancers arrive they can sit in the auditorium and wait until their group is called on stage. Please arrive a few minutes early. DO NOT BE LATE!! If dancers don't attend their rehearsal, they will not be able to perform at the recital performances. Once the dancers have practiced their dances on stage they may leave.
SUMMER DANCE SESSION
Our Summer Dance Session is scheduled to start Monday, May 13 with classes ending on Monday, July 22 (Note: Wednesday classes begin May 29 & Friday classes begin May 24). Registration for the Summer Session begins Wednesday, March 20. All class space is available on a first come first serve basis. Use the following link to register your dancer for a summer dance class: https://dancestudio-pro.com/online/asod. The shoe fitting days for the Summer Session will be held on Wednesday, May 1 from 4:30-5:30 pm and Monday, May 6 from 5:00-6:00 pm. All Summer classes are one day a week for the session. A copy of the schedule is attached and also available for pick up at the dance studio or on our website. The Summer Session will end with a performance location and time TBD. Registration for the session is complete and a spot will be held for your dancer once payment is received. Payments can be done online at the time of registration or through Venmo (@asod5678). A complete summer schedule can be found on the 2024 Summer Schedule tab above.
TIGHTS & HAIR STYLE INFO FOR PICTURE DAYS & RECITAL
The document showing the color of tights and hair style that dancers will need for their upcoming picture day and the recital performances is available at the dance studio. If your dancer's class indicates a hair piece, those are all included with the costumes.
If your dancer doesn't have tights, they can be ordered through the dance studio. An order form is available for pick up at the dance studio. Order forms and payments may be given to your dance instructors. Tights can also be ordered when you log in your dancer account - click online store on the homepage.
RECITAL COSTUMES
Make sure your dancer only wears their costume for pictures and then not again until recital week, there is no replacing costumes if something happens to it before the recital. And please make sure their costume remains hung up so it's not a wrinkled mess for pictures or the recital! Lastly, if your costume comes with a hair piece, please keep it with the costume, we're unable to replace any missing items.
SPRING DANCE RECITAL VOLUNTEERS
An adult volunteer is needed to supervise each class of dancers backstage when they aren't performing on stage during the performance. As a volunteer, your main responsibility is to assure that each child in your dancer's class is safe and accounted for. Volunteers are responsible for making sure that each child in your group is in the proper costume and shoes, and is backstage at the appropriate time. You are also responsible for seeing that all children return to their appointed dressing room area after their performance on stage. Dancers can't be backstage without a parent volunteer. For the 11:00 am performance, we ask that volunteers arrive by 10:30 and for the 3:00 pm performance we ask that volunteers arrive 2:30 pm. You can sign up to volunteer by logging in your dance account (https://dancestudio-pro.com/online/asod) and click volunteer on the home page. When volunteering, you aren't able to sit in the auditorium and watch the recital during that performance; however, you do get to watch your dancer perform from the backstage area and you would have the opportunity to watch the entire performance that you're not volunteering at.
DANCE COMPETITIONS
Sr Co Jazz/Funk and Sr Company dancers will be participating in the CRU Dance Competition Friday, March 1 – Sunday, March 3 in Minneapolis. For the Spring Fling Dance Competition in Superior on Saturday, March 9-Sunday, March 10 we have 6 teams that are competing (Mini Comp Team, Teen Comp Team, Jr Company, Jr Co Jazz/Funk, Sr Company & Sr Co Jazz/Funk). And we have several solo/duet dancers attending both competitions. Good luck to all our dancers! A complete competition schedule is normally available the week of the competition – watch your email!
STUDIO WAITING ROOM
If you plan to wait at the dance studio while your dancer has class, we do ask that all parents and other family members stay in the waiting room when dance classes start. We have found that dancers perform better when they aren't being watched by everyone in the waiting room. If you have a dancer that is waiting for their class to start, we also ask them to stay in the waiting room until the prior class has ended. Once kids enter the dance room, we ask that kids DO NOT RUN AROUND while waiting for class to start.
COMPETITION TEAMS
These teams will perform at our Winter Showcase in January, Spring Dance Recital and Dance Invitational. Being on a competition team does involve additional time, commitment and costs which include but aren't limited to - cost of another costume, travel costs & the fees associated with registering for a competition. The approximate fees is $60-$80 per dancer per competition. Registration costs vary with each competition as each competition sets their own entry fees. These fees would be in addition to your regular monthly class tuition. Each team practices one day a week; this would be in addition to their regular dance class(es). There will be a monthly tuition fee associated to this class. This fee are applied to your dancer's account each month.
EMAILS, NEWSLETTERS & WEBSITE
Throughout the dance season, please be sure to check your emails regularly and read the monthly newsletters. Our main form of communication is email. The monthly newsletters always have lots of important information. All newsletters will be emailed to everyone who provided an email address at registration. Please email us (asod@centurytel.net) if you didn't receive a copy of this newsletter by email. All of the information is also available here on our website. (site.ashlandschoolofdance.info). You can also find ASOD on Facebook.
PRE-BALLET/TINY TAP & LEVEL I DANCERS
When dancers for the Pre-Ballet/Tiny Tap and Level 1 classes come to class, please make sure that both sets of their shoes have their names in them and please make sure their shoes are in a bag when they come to class each week. This will help lessen the confusion of whose shoes are whose since most dancers have the same shoes.
SOLO/DUETS DANCERS
Solo, Duet & Trio dances have become more and more popular with each dance season! It's a great opportunity for dancers to get extra time on stage to showcase their skills. Instructors begin working with these dancers before the start of the season. If your dancer is interested in doing an extra dance, please email me so I can get them added to the list. When you email, we need to know what type of dance they want to do (jazz, lyrical, poms, tap, contemporary, hip hop, etc) and which instructor they want to work with (Ally, Anessa, Lily or Brooke). Doing an extra dance does involve extra costs which include private lessons, another costume and a $35 fee to cover studio and music fees. Private lessons are $30/hr or $15 for 30 minutes and to be paid directly to the dance instructor. Dancers will need 2-3 lessons with their instructor to learn the dance. All solo/duet/trio dancers are allowed to do 1 solo and 1 duet for the Winter Showcase in January. Those dancers are also able to do their dance(s) at competitions if they choose to go that route. Sr Company dancers will be the only dancers allowed to perform at the Spring Dance Recital. Please be sure to email me ASAP if you have a dancer interested in doing an extra dance.
DANCE SHOES
All dancers are expected to have the appropriate pair(s) of dance shoes for their dance class. Please be sure to write your dancer's name or initials in their dance shoes! Dancers are expected to have the appropriate dance shoes for their dance class. Wearing must dance shoes during class is a must! No exceptions!! Below is the list showing what each class needs for dance shoes. If your dancer's shoes are too small, you can order new shoes through the dance studio at anytime. Please let your instructor know if your dancer needs to get fitted for new shoes.
Creative Movement – Pink Ballet shoes
Pre-Ballet/Tiny Tap – Pink Ballet & Black Tap shoes
Level I & II Ballet/Jazz classes - Pink Ballet & Black Jazz shoes
Level III Ballet/Jazz – nude lyrical shoes
Jazz/Tap – Black Jazz & Black Tap shoes
Poms – Black Jazz shoes
Level I, Level II & Level III Jazz/Funk classes – Black jazz shoes
Jr & Sr Company – Nude Lyrical
Jr Co Jazz/Funk & Sr Co Jazz/Funk – Black Nike shoes
DANCE STUDIO PRO
We'll continue using the online program called Dance Studio Pro for our registrations, tuition payments, ticket sales and volunteer sign ups. DSP also offers an app which is also very convenient. This link: https://dancestudio-pro.com/online/asod can be used to log in your account. If you ever have any issues logging in, please be sure to let me know. Monthly payments can be done right online, otherwise payments can also be given to your dance instructor or sent via Venmo (@asod5678) if you want to avoid the fees from paying online. Please note, dance instructors DO NOT know how much each family owes on their account; you are responsible for logging into your account to get your balance due. Monthly newsletters and various reminders are also posted on bulletin board of DSP. Once our schedule is finalized after registration the calendar page on DSP will show the no class dates.
AGE REQUIREMENTS FOR FALL DANCE CLASSES
The following age requirements are required for fall dance classes: Creative Movement dancers must be 3 years old by Sept. 1; Pre-Ballet/Tiny Tap must be 5 by Sept 1; Level I dancers must be 7 by Sept 1; dancers in Level 2 and up are all moved up by instructor recommendations. Please let us know if you have any questions on which class(es) your dancer may sign up for this fall.
CLASS PLACEMENT
For all dancers in Level 2 & up: dancers advance to the next level by instructor recommendations. If your dancer advanced to the next level, you should have received an email last week stating class placement details. Please remember it isn't abnormal for dancers to be in each level for multiple years (2-3 years typically). If you have any questions as to which level your dancer is in, please be sure to email.
NO CLASS DATES
A complete list of "no class dates" may be found on the schedule tab. Please note: ASOD doesn't follow the school schedule; sometimes we have class when there is no school and vice versa.
WEATHER/CANCELLED CLASSES
Please remember all families to check your email on a regular basis. A few of our dance instructors come from out of town to teach their dance classes; if we cancel dance class for any reason, I will send an email to notify parents. I will also post on facebook if classes are cancelled. All cancelled classes will be made up at a later date; all make up class details will be emailed to parents once dates and times are set.
CLASS ATTENDANCE
If your dancer is unable to attend their dance class, please be sure to email asod@centurytel.net or send us a message to let us know they won't be at class. If your dancer isn't feeling well, please be sure to NOT send them to dance class!! We want to stress the importance of attendance to dance class. In our policy handout it states "Any student who misses 8 or more classes during the regular season (Sept-April) will not be allowed to participate in the spring dance recital performance." Dancers only progress if they attend class on a regular basis. If your dancer is going to miss 2 or more weeks in a row due to other commitments, you can expect that while they're missing class the rest of the class is learning parts to their recital dance so your dancer may be excluded from a portion of the recital dance. It is not fair to the instructors or the other dancers in the class, if instructors can't move forward each week with teaching their recital dances.
WATER BOTTLES
Remember to send a water bottle with your dancer to each and every class!!
CLASS ADVANCEMENT
Over the dance season, the instructors evaluate the dancers in their classes to decide who is ready to advance to the next level. All Creative Movement and PreBallet/Tiny Tap dancers advance to the next level depending on their age. Dancers must be 5 by September 1 to advance to the PreBallet/Tiny Tap class. Dancers must be 7 years old by September 1 to advance to Level I Ballet/Jazz; Level I Jazz/Tap and/or Level I Jazz/Funk. After dancers reach Level I they are moved up to the next level by the instructors. Instructors evaluate dancer’s skill & ability levels, their behavior in class, listening skills, maturity levels, respect for others (dancers & instructors), how well they work together as a team, their attendance...many things are taken into consideration when determining if dancers are ready to move up to the next level. As parents it’s natural to think that our dancer is ready to advance to the next level but we have to remember we aren’t the ones in the class each and every week. . . . . so we’ll leave this up to our instructors.
DROPPING OFF AND PICKING UP YOUR DANCERS
If you have a Creative Movement, PreBallet, Level I or Level II dancer please stay at the studio with your dancer until class starts. Dancers shouldn’t be arriving more than 10 minutes prior to class starting. And please remind your dancers there should be no running around and yelling or using loud voices while waiting for class to start. Also, when your dancer’s class ends each week we would like parents to come into the building to pick up their dancer (this is required for all dancers through Level 2).
LOST & FOUND
When you pick up your dancer after class each week, please be sure to make sure they have all their shoes.
CLEAN STUDIO
For those of you that bring a snack to the studio, please take a moment to clean up any mess before you leave. Please help up keep the studio area clean.
FACEBOOK
Like Ashland School of Dance on Facebook to keep up on all the dance updates and reminders.
QUESTIONS, COMMENTS OR CONCERNS
Please contact us by phone or email.
Telephone: 715-413-1074
Email: asod@centurytel.net
Mailing Address: 1316 Main St West Ashland, WI 54806
Ashland Studio Address: 802 Main St West Ashland, WI 54806 (next to The Alley)