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Performance Info
Schedules & Dates
Age requirements are listed on each class description. Ages are specified so that students will be able to progress at similar levels and feel comfortable and connected with their classmates.
FPD offers 4 to 5 levels of classes for ages 5 through 18—a 13-year spread. Each student is unique, but most dancers will remain in the same level of class for two or more years, depending on focus, attendance, and natural ability. During this time, they may have moved up in age of class possibly at least once, which should be considered an increase of a half level. Generally, dancers who take multiple classes during the year will move more rapidly through the class levels, as the classes reinforce the training across the curriculum.
All of our classes will consist of a warm up and stretch, followed by some technique direction, choreography, and then across the floor (dancing the combination). For younger and lower level classes we like to keep the stretch and warm up to a shorter duration so we can get the kids dancing. As the students become more serious about their training, they will need lengthier stretches and warm ups as the physical nature of the movement becomes more demanding and their ability to develop their technique increases.
Students are encouraged to take make up classes for missed classes. The front desk can assist in helping you pre-select an appropriate class to take as a make up. FPD can facilitate this policy until we become embedded in the recital choreography, usually by late March or early April. At that point, it becomes challenging for a student to join a class that has advanced from learning the choreography to perfecting it.
In addition to your tuition payments, we charge a registration fee, a media fee, a costume fee, and recital tickets.
All of this information is available on our Policies page if you would like more specific information.
FPD offers a ”Paid in Full” discount, as well as sibling discounts, and discounts for when students are enrolled into multiple classes. We also give our families the option to pay everything in 1 payment, 3 payments, or 5 payments. Payments can be made in person, over the phone, or online; by cash, check, credit card, and auto bill for your convenience.
Level 1 and Introductory Classes can register by clicking on our Student Registration link on the website. Dancers registering for higher levels may need to have approval via the front desk. You can obtain approval by simply calling and discussing your dancer’s appropriate level of class. Our faculty submit recommendations for all of our returning students at the end of the year.
Registration for the school year (September through June) will begin as soon as we have our schedule finalized, usually in early May. Summer Camp registration starts in April, and we offer some discounting for early registration for our camp sessions.
Class sizes are limited based on room size, and age of students. Students should be the age specified in the class description, and capable of training at the described level of the class. We will accept registrations throughout the first few months of the school year.
If you discover a class is not a good fit for your dancer, you can change or drop a class. Please notify us in writing via email. Our staff will be happy to work with you to see if we can find another class that your dancer will be more comfortable in. If we cannot, FPD will pro rate your account for the unused portion of your tuition payments.
Finding the dance discipline that is the perfect fit for your child can be complicated. We recommend approaching it in 2 ways. If it is the beginning of the school year, or even the first few months of the session, you are welcome to take a trial class. The front desk staff can help with recommendations and prepare a trial card for your child to sample 1 or 2 classes to find the right fit. Another great way to explore dance before making a year long commitment, if time allows, is to take one of our summer camps. Students explore all styles of dance during our weeklong summer sessions.
All of our classes have specific dress and shoe requirements. You will receive the information pertaining to the students’ attire requirements for each class they are enrolled in within your class confirmation email. Class dress codes are designed to facilitate ease of movement by the student and rapid evaluation of proper body alignment and use by the instructor.
We are fortunate that we have a dance store in our building. Glitter and Grime is equipped with our class requirement information and can help you select and purchase your dance wear, shoes, and tights, as well as bun making supplies, dance bags, and all of the other fun dance accessories your child might enjoy.
Dancers should arrive in the appropriate attire for their first class and change into their dance shoes once inside the building. We have four large bathroom areas for dancers who are taking multiple classes or arriving directly from another activity and need a changing area.
We welcome our parents and guardians to wait in the lobby. We have closed circuit cameras in all of the studios and monitors in the waiting area for family members to observe their dancer’s class.
We have a waiting area, and you are certainly welcome to stay. You may leave during class as long as your dancer is capable of using the bathroom by themselves. Two back-to-back classes are a great window to get the groceries shopped for!
FPD has a dedicated parking lot and additional parking can be obtained on the street as well as across the street at the church lot.
FPD completes our Fall/Spring school year with a June recital at the Klein Memorial Auditorium in Bridgeport. The performance is presented on a professional stage with full lighting and tech support and is an exciting culmination and presentation of your dancer’s efforts.
Each faculty member is responsible for choosing the costumes for their class performance piece. Consideration is made for the age of the students, the style and type of the song. We want all of our dancers to love their costumes. Payment for the costumes is incorporated into your FPD bill. In addition, each dancer is responsible for providing their appropriate support and undergarments, tights or legwear, and the class shoe in good repair.
Parents will be notified, via email, of upcoming news pertaining to recital preparation. We will send out communications and post notices in the studio about hair and make up seminars, costume pick up and costume preparation, ticket purchases, tech rehearsal and performance call times. Additionally, this information will also be available on our website. Parents will be responsible for staying abreast of this information and delivering their dancer to tech rehearsal and performances. Once we have taken charge of your dancer, your job is to sit back and enjoy the show.
Almost all of our dancers perform in the recital, and we highly recommend that you plan to participate in the recital, but you are not required to do so. In addition to learning technique and combinations, the experience of perfecting a piece, mastering the formation changes, and presenting it on a professional stage is a tremendously exciting part of the curriculum that your dancer should not miss.
If you decline performance at time of registration, you may change your mind up until the date when we cannot get the class costume. This deadline is random, depending on the vendor producing the costume. It could occur as early as mid-November or as late as mid-January.
We do our utmost to make sure that FPD is a safe environment for all our dancers. Additionally, we have added UV lighting to our HVAC systems, and commercial air purifiers in all our studios to enhance a healthy environment.
If a dancer or guest is injured or has an accident at FPD, we will do our best to treat the situation and then notify the parents about the injury either immediately if the injury is severe and might require medical attention, or at time of pick up if it is a minor injury that needs minimal care. We always attempt to err on the side of caution with injuries.
