Dancer Qualifications

Each year ArtWorks Academy dance faculty will evaluate students and invite those who are ready to compete with the Dance Company. New students, if interested in the competition team, must attend placement classes the week prior to the beginning of the school year.* The dance faculty will evaluate each student to determine if they are ready for competition. If a new student cannot attend the placement classes, they should make other arrangements with the Director of Dance. Students will be evaluated in three areas: technical ability, performance quality, and classroom behavior.

Students who are selected to compete must be studying ballet and jazz and be enrolled in at least 2 hours of class at ArtWorks Academy. They will be required to attend separate rehearsals to prepare for competitions. Dances will NOT be learned during class time. This time is for learning and improving technique. Class placement will be determined on an individual basis.

*2010-2011 placement classes will be held the week of August 23, 2010.

Financial Commitment

There will be a fee (separate from regular tuition) for each dance taken to competition. The maximum charge will be $200.00 per dance. This fee includes the costume, tights, entry fees for two competitions, and a choreography and coaching fee for the dance. It is the intention of ArtWorks Academy to make the competition team affordable for any students interested in competing. We will do this by keeping the costs low when we can and by offering various fundraising activities.

Time Commitment

Students will gain their technical training through their weekly classes. By emphasizing the importance of technique weekly, learning choreography and getting dances ready for competition takes less time. We will have rehearsals outside of dance classes. Once we have a final commitment from all dancers we will determine a schedule that works for all students. The rehearsal schedule will include a few longer rehearsals in which we will learn choreography. We will continue with shorter rehearsals for polishing the numbers before competitions.

We will be attending competitions in the Oklahoma City area, most of these competitions occur between January and May. The organizations hosting the competitions have not all released their 2011 schedules, as soon as the dates are announced, we will decide on the competitions we will attend.

Dance Material

It is the policy of ArtWorks Academy to always present students with material that is age appropriate. This will be strictly enforced with our competition dances. We carefully consider the music, costumes, and choreography for each dance.

Please email Cheryl Morris at cheryl@artworksacademy.com for more information.