The Dance Corner 23-24 Ensemble

The Dance Corner offers students the opportunity to join a competitive and community performance team called the Ensemble.  The Ensemble is comprised of dedicated dance students who love to perform and are looking to be challenged in class, rehearsals, performances and competitions. Each level is designed for their specific age and technique level, and promotes teamwork and self-confidence. Our dance team is great for young dancers looking to perform more often and further their studies, or for those considering studying dance and performing arts in college or as a professional career.

To learn more about performance team opportunities at The Dance Corner Contact Us

Auditions for the 2025-2025 Ensemble Team will be held Tuesday, May 27th-Thursday, May, 29th.

2025-2026 Ensemble Team Audition Information

When: Auditions will take place on Tuesday, May 27th, Wednesday, May 28th, and Thursday, May 29th. There will be no regular classes held during this time (TDC is closed Friday, May 23rd-Thursday, May 29th). Dancers in the 3-5yr group are only scheduled on Tuesday.

Where: All 3 studios will be utilized during the Audition days. Please check the schedule carefully to identify which studio your dancer is scheduled to be in.

Attire: Dancers should be dressed appropriately during each audition day (tights, leotard, and fitted shorts if desired). Dancers will be given a number to pin to their leotard (or t-shirt for boys) on audition day.

Hair: Hair should be neatly pulled away from the face on each day. Buns/braids are not required.

Shoes: Please wear appropriate shoes for each style. We have a borrow rack in the main lobby if needed. *Dancers in the 3-5yr group should wear ballet or jazz shoes.

Schedule: The schedule is linked here. It is also available under the Performance Team tab (under the About Us section).

Tuesday: Every style per age/level has a 30 minute choreography block. Some styles may have two sections per group (for example, Jazz C1 and Jazz C2). Both of these sections will learn the exact same choreography, however we needed to split the group in half for learning purposes, due to the number of dancers signed up. It is better to have the dancers learning in groups of 10-11 rather than 20 or more. During audition time, dancers may be mixed from the two sections per group (for example, a dancer from Jazz C1 might be paired with a dancer from Jazz C2). Additionally, videos will be taken on Tuesday for the dancers to practice with at home.

Wednesday: Each style within the age/level will have a 1 hour block to practice. If there are multiple sections of a group, they will be combined into one section on Wednesday (for example, Jazz C1 and Jazz C2 are split on Tuesday, and they are together on Wednesday as “Jazz C”). There will be a staff member running music in each room, and teachers will be circulating throughout the rooms to help students practice. The Wednesday blocks are not classes taught by the teacher on Tuesday. While the teachers may be there, the goal is for students to utilize the block to practice with each other, ask questions, and ultimately get comfortable with their choreography for Thursday’s audition.

Thursday: The auditions will take place on Thursday between 5pm to roughly 7:30pm. The official schedule is being worked on and will be sent once it is completed. Dancers will be paired up for their audition in each style, and will be given a specific time slot (such as “Dancer Name – Jazz C1 at 5:32pm”). The Blue Studio will be completely free all night on Thursday for dancers to practice in. A staff member will be stationed in the Blue Studio playing the music for the dancers to practice.

Tumbling Audition: The tumbling ensemble audition is the same as last year in that it is a skills audition only, on Thursday from 5:00-5:45pm in the purple studio.

3-5yr Audition: The audition for the 3-5 year olds is one 30 minute block on Tuesdays. They will not have a Thursday audition slot.

Scheduling conflicts: We are aware of many people’s scheduling conflicts and have done our best to create a schedule that hopefully works for everyone. If your dancer cannot make it on Tuesday, we hope that they can make it on Wednesday to practice with their peers. And if your dancer can not make it on Wednesday, the expectation is that they practice what they learned on Tuesday at home. If your dancer has a conflict on Thursday, we are actively trying to make a schedule that takes all requests into account.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

Ensemble Information

• What is the Ensemble commitment?
  • Ensemble dancers must attend their weekly class as this is the time for dancers to learn their choreography for the competition season
  • Being a part of our Ensemble is a yearlong commitment
  • We have an attendance policy in regard to excused and unexcused absences
    • Dancers in violation of the attendance policy may be removed from the team
• Who will be the teacher/choreographer for the Ensemble classes?
  • Choreographers for Ensemble classes will be assigned after auditions are concluded.
• When will the Ensemble classes be held?
  • Historically, younger Ensemble classes occur on Mondays or Tuesdays, and older Ensemble classes occur on Friday evening and Saturday morning. The schedule for Ensemble classes may differ due to level, additional styles, and availability
• What are the ensemble requirements?
  • Each level of our Ensemble may have different requirements
  • Dancers can expect that at least one recreational class will be required, in addition to their Ensemble class
  • Dancers who participate in a tap, tumbling, or hip hop ensemble must take a tap, hip hop, or tumbling recreational class
  • We strongly encourage all Ensemble dancers to take at least one ballet or technique class to further their dance training, technique, and versatility

What are the benefits of joining Ensemble?

• Make great bonds and friendships within our Ensemble team
• Improve dance technique
• Multiple performance opportunities
• Opportunity to join our production

Solos, Duos, and Trios

• When does solo, duo, and trio information come out?
  • An interest form will be sent out in June 2025, after our 2025 recital
• Can we choose our choreographers?
  • In the interest form, there will be a question that asks who your preferred choreographers are. The form will also include a question asking about style. We do our best to match students with their preferred choreographers with consideration for schedule availability.
• What is the schedule?
  • The rehearsal schedule for solos, duos, and trios will depend on the choreographer’s schedule and availability.

Competition Prep Class

• What is the purpose of comp prep?
  • The purpose of comp prep is to work on team skills together in preparation for the competition season
  • Each week, there is a different skill that teachers work on in each of their classes, typically divided by age
  • Some topics this past year included competition etiquette, jumps, turns, conditioning and stretching, giving and receiving feedback from competitions, team bonding activities, and working on emotionality while dancing
• Who teaches Comp Prep?
  • Typically, three teachers rotate monthly, so students get the opportunity to work with different teachers.
• Is it required?
  • Comp prep is NOT required, but it is highly recommended to all Ensemble dancers, as this is also a way to form relationships, team bond, and grow as a unit together!

Yearly Commitments

• When does the Ensemble calendar come out?
  • The official Ensemble calendar will come out in August 2025, providing a full list of events for the entire year
• How many competitions are there for the 2025-2026 season?
  • There will be three mandatory competitions that the entire Ensemble is required to attend
• What kind of optional opportunities are there?
  • There will be 2 additional competition options for solos/duos/trios, potential performances, and conventions
• Can we request private lessons?
  • Absolutely! You can request to work with a specific teacher or ask to work on specific skills throughout the summer or year. Email the studio for scheduling and teachers’ recommendations

Auditions

• When are auditions?
  • Auditions will be held on Tuesday, May 27, Wednesday, May 28th, and Thursday, May 29th
    • On Tuesday and Wednesday, dancers will learn choreography in the Ensemble audition classes
    • On Thursday, dancers will demonstrate the choreography in front of a panel of teachers
  • How do I sign up?
    • Sign up is easily located in our parent portal. Just search for “Ensemble” and each class will pop up
    • Dancers have until May 16 to sign up for auditions
    • The cost is $37 per audition class
  • What should I expect?
    • During the dancer’s audition, they should expect to learn a short dance in the selected style
    • On audition day, dancers will receive a number to pin to their leotard and they will perform their dance, with a peer, in front of judges
  • What should I wear?
    • Dancers should wear any colored leotard, tan tights, and black dance shorts (if they choose to do so)
    • Dancers should have their hair pulled neatly off of their face in a ponytail or bun

Placement Determinations

• How will students be placed?
  • Students will be placed in Ensemble groups based on level, skill, and growth
    • Technique, commitment level, enthusiasm, attitude and behavior in class, and class attendance are all taken into consideration
  • Students are encouraged to audition for every style they are interested in being considered for
• When will I find out what my placement is?
  • Placement information will be sent after the 2025 Recital
  • Dancers typically have 2-3 weeks to accept and commit to the team once placements are released