Monthly Newsletters

FEBRUARY 2012 NEWSLETTER

ATTENDANCE is very important now as students are learning their recital choreography and positions. We encourage all students to make up any classes they must miss by attending another comparable class .

OPEN HOUSE/ VALENTINE’S DAY WEEK: You are invited to attend your child’s classes February 13 - 18. Please remember students are still learning their dances. Do not expect the dances to be memorized or performed perfectly. This would be a good time to bring your video camera to tape the dances so students can practice with the video at home. The front desk can burn a CD of your child’s music for $2. Students may bring valentines to give their classmates. Absolutely no red frosting or red drinks or nut products.

RECITAL LINE-UP is posted. Please check for conflicts. Students in multiple dances can expect to have short costume changing times. Please let the front desk know if you have back to back classes or only 1 dance between costumes. There are many tricks for quick changes. Please talk to your child’s teacher for suggestions. The recital date is Saturday, May 19th at Garland H.S.

RECITAL COSTUMES are beginning to come in. We will hand them out as they become ready. Please wait to do any alterations until April in case of last minute growth spurts. Costumes should be hung in a secure place with all accessories in a gallon baggie attached to the hanger. Put student’s name on all pieces. For stubborn wrinkles, hang costume in the bathroom while taking a steamy shower, but do not get them wet and do not iron them. Even though costumes come with a pair of tights, we recommend having a backup pair. Do not wait till May to purchase as tight supplies will really be low.

ZUMBA CLASSES. Zumba is a great way to work off those extra holiday pounds. Zumba is a combination of Latin ballroom moves and aerobics. Classes are Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7:45 pm for ages 12 through adult. Classes are $5 each.

HS/COLLEGE/ADULT HIP HOP: This is a new class for the 15 and over crowd , male and female. Ms Jamie will teach you everything from running man and Michael Jackson moonwalk to the latest moves. Fun and great exercise! Saturday's at Noon. Classes are $5 each.

DRILL TECHNIQUE class is open to all students in M.S. and H.S. to prepare them for spring drill auditions at the local schools. Drill class meets on Saturdays from 11:00 – 12:00. Most schools hold auditions in March and April. Do not wait until March to prepare! We also recommend Contemporary, Jazz and Hip Hop classes.

CHILDREN’S DAY OUT EVERY WEDNESDAY
Don’t forget our children's day out program each Wednesday from 10:00 am-3:00 pm. Students will enjoy dance, tumbling, arts and crafts and games. The cost is $30 per day for potty trained students ages 2 ½ – 5. Just provide a sack lunch. Great for parents needing some time off for appointments and to run errands and great fun for the children!

ALLEGRO BALLET COMPANY PERFORMANCE – The Allegro Ballet Company will be competing in the Classical Ballet Festival on Saturday,February 11^th in the morning and performing in the Encore Gala at 7:00 pm that evening at Prince of Peace in Carrollton. Tickets are adults $16, Seniors and children $12. You may purchase tickets at www.theartsatprinceofpeace.org.

LOST-N-FOUND. Please check inside the dressing room bench for your misplaced items.

SUMMER REGISTRATION will begin in March. Watch the web site for more info.
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ROWLETT DANCE ACADEMY

JANUARY 2012

Welcome back! We hope you had a safe and happy holiday! As a reminder, the studio will only be closed for Spring Break in March. We will not close for all the 1 and 2 day Federal holidays that seem to abound in the Spring semester. It will be class as usual. If you cannot attend class, we always recommend that you make the class up by attending another comparable class.

RECITAL FEE DUE THIS MONTH - The Recital Fee is due with January’s tuition. The recital fee covers the auditorium rental, set decorations, props, sound and lighting technicians. The fee is $45 for the first student and $15 for each additional student in the family. The recital is scheduled for Saturday, May 19th at Garland H.S. A late fee of 10% will be charged after the 15^th of each month. The late fee policy will be strictly adhered to. We accept cash, check and credit card. We also offer an auto-draft credit card charge option. Forms are available at the front desk or online. There is a $25 charge on all returned checks

The Recital 2012 Line up will be posted in many places around the studio and on the web site later this month. Please take a look to see if you or your child has any back to back costume changes. Students that are in 3 or more classes can expect to have only 1 or 2 dances in which to change costumes. There are some tricks to fast changes and we will be happy to share them with you. Please notify Carol Ann in writing of any costume changing issues. Changes cannot be made to the line-up after SPRING BREAK!!!

SATURDAY CLASS SCHEDULE: Don’t forget we adjusted the Saturday class schedule last month. The schedule is as follows:

Room A 9:00 – 9:45 3 yr old Combo class

9:45 – 10:45 4 yr old Combo class

10:45 – 11:45 5 yr old Combo class

Room B 9:00 – 9:30 2 yr old class

9:30 – 10:15 Hip Hop grades 1 – 3

10:15 – 11:00 Hip Hop grades 4 – 9

11:00 – 12:00 MS/HS Drill Team

NEW 12:00 – 12:45 College/Adult Hip Hop

COLLEGE/ADULT HIP HOP: This is a new class for the 18 and over crowd , male and female. Ms Jamie will teach you both old school and new school in hip hop moves. Learn everything from running man and Michael Jackson moonwalk to the latest trend, shuffling. Fun and great exercise.

There will be no registration or recital fee for this class. Come try it!!!

CHILDREN’S DAY OUT EVERY WEDNESDAY
Don’t forget our children's day out program each Wednesday from 10:00 am-3:00 pm. Students will enjoy dance, tumbling, arts and crafts and games. The cost is $30 per day for potty trained students ages 2 ½ – 5. Great for parents needing some time off for appointments and to run errands and great fun for the children! Check us out!!!

ALLEGRO BALLET COMPANY PERFORMANCE – The Allegro Ballet Company will be competing in the Classical Ballet Festival on February 11th. They will perform in the Encore Gala at 7:00 pm at Prince of Peace in Carrollton. Tickets are adults $16, Seniors and children $12. You may purchase tickets at www.theartsatprinceofpeace.org.

STUDIO RULES: Please abide by our rules to make RDA a safe learning environment. Go over this information with your children.

1. Replace safety plugs after using our outlets.

2. Students should never wait outside for their rides.

3. Children should be under a parent’s direct supervision when not in class.

4. The dressing room is not to be used as a playroom or an eating room.

5. All food and drinks should be consumed in the lounge area only.

6. Dance shoes are never to be worn outside.

WINTER WEATHER CLOSINGS - With winter weather and the possibility of dangerous roads approaching, please use common sense in deciding whether to come to class. If the roads are too bad to travel on then we will not be able to get to the studio to put a message on the answering machine. You can assume we are closed. If schools close but the roads are clear and dry by 2:00 pm, then we will be open for classes. We always recommend making missed classes up by attending another comparable class.

Carol Ann has started working on the Summer Schedule. Please email your requests and suggestions to the studio, attention Director.
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ROWLETT DANCE ACADEMY

DECEMBER 2011 NEWSLETTER

-Recital costume fees were due last month. Please make sure your account is up to date. Costumes for the May recital will only be ordered for those that are paid in full by the 10^th of December. The costume book with recital costume pictures and info is on the front counter. Check out the great selections!

-A great big THANK YOU to all the students that participated in the Holiday parade and to all the parents for providing candy. We especially thank the Wheeler family for providing the truck and trailer. You are GREAT!!!

NUTCRACKER: The Ballet Department will present its annual production of the Nutcracker on Saturday, December 3^rd at Garland H.S. There is a 2:00 pm matinee and a 7:00 pm evening show. Tickets are $10 each and went on sale November 1st. You may purchase them at the front desk.

Nutcracker dancers: Don’t forget to return your costumes before Christmas break. Please let us know of any needed repairs or special cleaning. Costumes should be returned on a hanger with accessories in an attached bag. You may turn them in during your normal class or to Ms. Sarah at the front desk.

-Nutcracker DVD order forms are available at the front desk. PKI Productions is the professional video recording service used for our performances.

-SATURDAY, DECEMBER 3rd CLASS CHANGES:

Because of our Nutcracker production, we will need to reschedule classes for that day as follows.

Friday Dec. 2nd Room A Room B Room C

5:30 pm 2 & 3 year olds Ballet 1

6:15 pm 4 & 5 year olds Hip hop gr 1 – 3 Ballet 2

7:00 pm Hip Hop gr 4 & up Allegro ballet

7:45 pm drill team

-SIX FLAGS PERFORMANCE – the Performance Companies will be performing at Holiday in the Park on Sunday, December 11^th, at 5:00 pm. Come enjoy the holidays with us!

-HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE: You are invited to watch your child’s class and celebrate the holiday season with festive holiday songs and dances. Open house runs from December 12^th through December 17th. You are welcome to bring treats if you wish. Stickers and finger puppets are fun alternatives to candy for the younger ones. Please, no red icing or red drinks!!!

-THANK YOU for all the food donations! You donated 515 food items to the North Texas Food Drive for the Thanksgiving Holidays!!!

-NEW SATURDAY CLASS SCHEDULE:

We have made some adjustments to our Saturday schedule to better serve you.

Room A

9:00 – 9:45 combo 3 yr olds

9:45 – 10:45 combo 4 yr olds

10:45 – 11:45 combo 5 yr olds

Sat. Jazz/tap class was cancelled.

Room B

9:30 – 10:15 hip hop gr 1 – 3

10:15 – 11:00 hip hop gr 4 – 12

11:00 – 12:00 MS/HS drill team

Int/Adv hip hop was cancelled.

Room C

No changes

-THE STUDIO WILL BE CLOSED December 19th through January 2nd for the Winter Break. Classes will resume Tuesday, January 3rd.

The Staff of RDA wishes you a happy and safe holiday season!

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NOVEMBER 2011 NEWSLETTER

COSTUME FEE: Your recital costume fee will be charged to your account on November 1^st. Costume fees range from $0 to $75 depending on type of class and age of student.

Combo 3 classes $60 Combo 4 and 5 classes $75 (2 variations)

Ballet 1 $60 Sat. combo 5 class $65 (1 costume)

Ballet 2, 3,4 $65 Adagio Ballet $65

Signature Ballet $65 Designer 1 & 2 Ballet $70

Senior Ballet $15 rental Allegro Ballet $70

Prima Ballet $65 Junior Ballet $65

Boys class $0 Jazz/Tap Combo $75 (2 variations)

All Jazz classes $65 All Tap classes $65

All Contemporary $65 Elementary Drill $60

MS/HS Drill $65 All Hip Hop $0

Musical Theatre $0

NUTCACKER: The Ballet Department will present its annual production of the Nutcracker on Saturday, December 3rd, at 2:00 pm and 7:00 pm at Garland H.S. Tickets are $10 each and go on sale November 7th. We have sold out the last 2 years, so don’t wait to get tickets.

Nutcracker individual pictures: (optional) Sunday, November 13^th at the studio. Please see Sarah at the front desk for schedule.

Ballet students, don’t forget:

Dress Rehearsal for Act 1 Saturday, November 19 1:00 – 2:30

Dress Rehearsal for Act 2 Saturday, November 19 2:45 – 4:15

Above rehearsals are at the studio.

HOLIDAY PARADE: We will be participating in the Annual Rowlett Holiday Parade on Saturday, November 19th. Students ages 5 and up will participate. If the weather is cold, please dress students in layers. Students will need to dress in Christmas colors. Nutcracker students will wear their Nutcracker costumes. Do not wear dance shoes in the parade. We will pass out Nutcracker flyers and candy along the parade route.

We will meet at the dance studio at 9:30 am. The parade starts at 10:00 and will end at Coyle M.S. on Skyline Street. Please pick your child up from Coyle.

We need a truck and trailer for the younger students to ride in. If you can help, please let the front desk know.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 19th CLASS CHANGES:

Because of the parade, we will need to reschedule classes for that day as follows.

Friday Nov. 18th

Room A Room B Room C

5:30 pm 3 year olds 2 year olds

6:15 pm 4 & 5 year olds Hip hop gr 1 – 5 Ballet 1

7:15 pm jazz/tap Int/adv hip hop Ballet 2

8:00 pm ms/hs hip hop drill team Allegro ballet

In the spirit of thanks for all we have and of giving to others, we are helping with a canned food drive. All donations go to The North Texas Food Bank and runs through Thursday, November 10^th. Let Sarah know at the front desk how many items you donate for a chance to win 2 free Nutcracker tickets!

WE WILL BE CLOSED FOR THANKSGIVING BREAK NOVEMBER 21 – 27. CLASSES WILL RESUME ON MONDAY, November 28th

Have a Blessed and Safe Thanksgiving! From all the RDA Staff!
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OCTOBER 2011 NEWSLETTER

TUITION is due the first of each month. We accept cash, checks, Mastercard, Discover and Visa. Late fees are charged after the 15^th.

Auto payments: Your credit or debit card on file is charged automatically each month for tuition. No more late fees! You can get the sign up form online or at the front desk.

DON’T FORGET TO LET US KNOW IF YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS CHANGES!

CLASS SPOTLIGHTS: Children's Creative Arts Day Camp- We will be continuing out popular Summer children's day out program during the school year. Each Wednesday from 10:00am-3:00pm students will enjoy dance, tumbling, arts and crafts and games. The cost is $20 per day.

STARTING TUESDAY, OCTOBER 4^th, ZUMBATOMIC! – For students 1st through 5th grade. Latin inspired dance-fitness program just for kids! Zumbatomic blurs the lines between fitness & entertainment with its many characters that were designed to be role models and its original music specifically designed for ZUMBA FOR KIDS. Each Tuesday from 7:00pm-7:45pm young dancers are given the opportunity to get into fabulous, kidtastic shape through repetition, great music, cool lyrics and fun! (Dress: workout attire and tennis shoes.) The cost is $5 per class and taught by our Zumba instructor, Alexsis.

NEW ZUMBA CLASS ADDED – Saturday mornings 7:30 – 8:30 am. A great way to start off the weekend! $5 a class.

MS/HS BEGINNER HIP HOP FOR BOYS AND GIRLS –Saturdays 12 noon with Ms Jamie! Great exercise, great fun, great moves!

OBSERVATION WEEK: You are invited to watch, take pictures and video tape your child’s dance class the week of September 26 – October 1 . These are working classes and not performance classes. It will give you the opportunity to see what your child has learned so far and what is being worked on.

*Please note - Street shoes are not allowed in Room C. There is a bench and cubby right outside the door for your street shoes. Street shoes bring in oil and dirt which is dangerous for pointe shoe students.

IMPORTANT - Please do not park at the side of the studio. It blocks traffic and creates hazards for students entering and exiting the studio. There is ample parking available in the front, back and in the Aldi’s lot next door.

HALLOWEEN WEEK: October 24 through 29th, students are invited to bring treats and wear their costumes to class. We will be dancing, so students must be able to move in their costumes. Please let your child’s teacher know if you have any special needs or if your child has any food allergies. Please do not send red dyed treats or drinks as they stain the carpets and dance floors. Foods made with or containing any kind of nuts are not allowed.

We hope you are enjoying the Break Room. Just a few reminders:

1. We do not have a garbage disposal. Do not put food down the drain.

2. Please empty drinks in the sink before throwing away cups.

3. Food and drinks are only allowed in the break room.

Please help us keep traffic moving and to help minimize Room A class disturbances by not standing or sitting directly in front of the hallway door. It can be quite crowded during class changing and Room A has all of the preschool classes which can be easily distracted while in class and can be lost in a crowd when exiting.

Thanks so much!

LOST AND FOUND:

Don’t forget to put your student’s name in all dance shoes and bags. This is especially important for preschooler shoes as it is easy for them to get their shoes mixed up when changing. Lost items are put inside the dressing room bench.

COMING UP: CLICK HERE for our full calendar.

September 26 – Oct 1 Open House Week

October 1 Tuition due

October 1 Nutcracker fees due for ballet students

October 4 Zumbatomic class begins

October 15 Tuition late fees are charged

October15 Nutcracker merchandise orders due

October 24 – 29 Halloween Party Week

November 1 Tuition and recital costume fees due

November 7 Nutcracker tickets available for $10

November 11 Selected classes perform at FUMC Rowlett Fall Festival – 11:15 am

December 3 RDA Ballet Department presents “The Nutcracker” at Garland H.S.

2:00pm matinee

7:00 pm evening show

December 11 Performance Companies and selected Nutcracker dances perform at Six flags Holiday in the Park – 4:30 pm

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ROWLETT DANCE ACADEMY

AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2011 NEWSLETTER

Classes start August 15^th and we look forward to another exciting year.

We welcome Jamie Staples to our staff this year as the resident hip hop expert. Jamie has a broad range of training. She learned technical pro league hip hop at Dallas Powerhouse of Dance. She studied ballet and musical theatre at Contemporary Ballet Dallas. She also studied modern, lyrical, contemporary and Zumba. Jamie performed with Misty Entertainment and taught hip hop for Girls Inc. of Tarrant County. Jamie has a fun, energetic approach to teaching and an attention to detail.

LABOR DAY – We will be closed Monday, September 5th in observance of Labor Day. You can make up your class by attending any other age and ability appropriate class.

GENERAL INFO: A few things you can do that will help us provide the best learning and dancing environment for our dancers are:

* To keep our dance floors in the best condition for our dancers, please do not wear dance shoes outside. Please check tap shoes for loose screws which can cut the floor. Street shoes are not allowed in the Ballet Room at any time. Please remove and use the cubbies to the right of the door.

* If your child is sick, please keep them at home and let us know. We encourage you to make up any missed classes by attending another age and level appropriate class.

* Please label all clothing and shoes with your child’s name. The lost and found is located in the dressing room inside the long bench.

* If you want to recognize your child’s birthday at the studio, please let the teacher know a week in advance. Cookies, cupcakes and juice boxes are allowed. We will hand out party invitations if every child is to get one.

* Get in the habit of checking our website for the monthly newsletters, Team news, Performance Company news and Ballet Department news.

* Don’t forget that you can have your credit card automatically charged monthly tuition and all fees. The form for this service is located at the front desk. All credit information is kept in a secured location.

* We have a suggestion box located near the front desk. We would love to hear what we are doing that you like, any suggestions to better serve you and any recognition you would like to give teachers or office staff.

* We are on Facebook under "Rowlett Dance Academy, Parents & Students" for you to "like" our page and get updates regularly on your facebook wall. You can also go to our website home page and click "like" on our facebook button.

NEW, STARTING TUESDAY, OCTOBER 4^th, ZUMBATOMIC! – For students 1st through 5th grade. Latin inspired dance-fitness program just for kids! Zumbatomic blurs the lines between fitness & entertainment with its many characters that were designed to be role models and its original music specifically designed for ZUMBA FOR KIDS. Each Tuesday from 7:00pm-7:45pm young dancers are given the opportunity to get into fabulous, kidtastic shape through repetition, great music, cool lyrics and fun! (Dress: workout attire and tennis shoes.) The cost is $5 per class and taught by our Zumba instructor, Alexsis.

NEW, STARTING WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7^TH, CHILDREN’S CREATIVE ARTS DAY CAMP. We will be continuing our popular summer children’s day out program during the school year. Each Wednesday from 10:00 to 3:00 students will enjoy dance, tumbling, arts and crafts and games. The cost is $20 per day.

Kelli Davis will be lead teacher with Kathleen Nelson assisting.

TUITION

Don’t forget tuition is due the 1^st of each month. A late fee of 10% will be charged after the 15^th of each month. The late fee policy will be strictly adhered to. We accept cash, check and credit card. We also offer an auto-draft credit card charge option. Forms are available at the front desk or online. There is a $25 charge on all returned checks.

Rowlett Dance Academy

Dance starts here.

LOST AND FOUND: