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January 4th 2024
Classes restart after the Christmas break on Monday 8th January 2024.
September 15th 2022
As a mark of respect for our late Queen Elizabeth II, Dance Arena will be closed all day on Monday 19th September 2022.
All classes are cancelled on Monday 19th September 2022 as a mark of respect for our late Queen. We aim to make these classes up during the next half term and will confirm in due course. Only Monday classes are impacted.
August 14th 2022
Please see timetable for class amendments starting on Monday 5th September 2022.
There is a new timetable starting when we return from the Summer holiday on Monday 6th June. We have increased the amount of time between classes to allow for students or parents to ask the teachers questions without eating into class time. we have also added several new classes including a new Melody Bear First Ballet class for 4 years + as a follow on from the Melody Bear pre-school (18month +) classes and an Adult abllet class in an evening to complement the daytime classes for those that work during the day. Please see the new timetable for details.
May 31st 2022
Classes restart after the half term break on Monday 6th June 2022.
The next half term starts on Monday 6th June 2022 and the last day of classes before the Summer break will be on Saturday 23rd July.
April 14th 2022
Classes restart after the half term break on Monday 25th April 2022.
The next half term starts on Monday 25th April 2022 after the Easter break and the last day of classes will be on Saturday 28th May
February 20th 2022
Classes restart after the half term break on Monday 28th February 2022.
The next half term starts on Monday 28th February 2022. However as previously communicated classes will be running on Saturday 26th February to make up for the Saturday cancelled earlier in the last half term.
December 30th 2021
Classes restart after the Christmas break on Tuesday 4th January 2022.
We hope that all our students and parentlts old and new have had a wonderfull Christmas and have a great new year. Please note that we are returning on Tuesday 4th January and npot Monday 3rd January as previously mentioned.
October 23rd 2021
Classes restart after the half term break on Monday 1st November.
Today has seen the end of another great half term within the school. All our students are working so hard and we are very proud of them all. We are now taking a weeks break over half term and look forward to seeing everyone back and refreshed from Monday 1st November.
April 16th 2021
Classes return to the Studio's after Easter.
With the exception of Adult classes that will remain on Zoom for now, all student classes will return to our studios in Brighouse from Saturday 17th April 2021. All previous Covid meassures will still be in place so please read through them before the return, They can be found on the website members page and also on the customer portal under My account / Agreements / Covid-19. If any student is self isolating we will still open the class up via Zoom for them to participate. If anyone needs this please let Gail know in advance. The Zoom joining details will be the same as last half terms and can be found on the members page under Recent letters / Jan 2021 and also on the customer portal under classes.
February 6th 2021
Half term break.
We will be having a two week break rather than the previously advertised one week over the half term holidays. The last classes this half term will be held on Saturday 13th Februrary 2021. This will allow for everyone to recharge their batteries. Classes will resume on Monday 1st March 2021.
February 5th 2021
Online Workshops during half term break.
We have guest teachers running online workshops during the half term break for our students.
Stage Makeup - Tuesday 15th February 2021@13:00
Cats - Wednesday 17th February 2021 @ 13:00
Charlie and the Cholcolate Factory - Friday 19th February 2021 @13:00
TikTok - Sunday 21st February 21021 @11:00
Joining details will be sent to registered students nearer the time.
January 1st 2021
Happy New Year.
All our classes resume after the hoilicdays on Monday 4th January 2021. See Below for the latest school term dates for 2021.
Term Dates for 2021
Winter 2021 (HT3): Monday 4th January 2021 to Saturday 13th February 2021
Spring 2021 (HT4): Monday 1st March 2021 to Thursday 1st April 2021
Sprint 2021 (HT5): Saturday 17th April 2021 to Saturday 29th May 2021
Summer 2021 (HT6): Monday 7th June 2021 to Saturday 24th July 2021
Autumn 2021 (HT1): Monday 6th September 2021 to Saturday 23rd October 2021
November 28th 2020
Under 18's classes return to the studios from Thursday 3rd November.
The Government anounced last week that that the latest national lockdown would be replaced by an updated 3 tier system of which Calderdale would be in he highest category of Teir 3. To get clarification we have been in contact with the local council and can confirem that we are allowed to open the studios for under 18's classes. As a result we have decided that from Thursday 3rd December all under 18 classes will resume in the studios, with thte facility for students to dial in via zoom if self issolating. All Adult classes will continuew on zoom as bewfore. There have been no amendments to the time table.
Please make sure that you all abide by the schools Covid-19 guidelines.
November 8th 2020
Zoom class timetable amended from monday 9th November.
To
enable classes to finish earlier in the evenings we have added a second zoom
licence to our account. This will enable us to run two classes online at
the same time. This means we have been able to go back to using the same
time and day slots as the studio timetable. As a result, some of the
classes days and times have changed from what was originally sent out for the
zoom time tables. Please see timetable for the new class times.
All the new joining instructions will be emailed out and also added to
the members page under 'recent letters' and entries put in the members page
calendar. Please note Green entries are for Gail’s classes and Blue entries are
Emma’s.
November 1st 2020
All classes return to zoom from Thursday 5th November.
As a result of last nights 4 week lockdown announcement we will return to online interactive teacher led classes via Zoom from Thursday 5th November. You can find the timetable by clicking the link on the menu bar. Joining details will be emailed out shortly, but they will also be on tyhe mebers page shortly.
October 28th 2020
Classes restart after Half term on Monday 2nd November 2020.
The Studio reopens for classes after the half term holidays on Monday 2nd November 2021. The term dates for the rest of 2020/2021 are as follows:
Autumn 2020 (HT2) Monday 2nd November 2020 to Saturday 19th December 2020
Winter 2021 (HT3) Monday 4th January 2021 to Saturday 13th February 2021
Spring 2021 (HT4) Monday 22nd February 2021 to Thursday 1st April 2021
Sprint 2021 (HT5) Saturday 17th April 2021 to Saturday 29th May 2021
Summer 2021 (HT6) Monday 7th June 2021 to Saturday 24th July 2021
Autumn 2021 (HT1) Monday 6th September 2021 to Saturday 23rd October 2021
October 6th 2020
Dance Arena Ballet & Stage School is a finalist in the Dance School of the year 2020.
Now in its 8th year, the Dance School of the Year Awards was founded by Anne Walker MBE to celebrate the achievements of dance schools who so often do not receive the recognition they deserve. 2020 saw the largest ever number of entries. Dance teachers provide so much more than just a dance lesson, offering support and discipline and teaching young people how to work as part of a group that relies on each other. The Covid-19 Pandemic has shown just how important dance teachers are in the lives of a large proportion of the population. Dance teachers everywhere took to technology to support their students mental and physical well-being by offering online classes as well as moral support while the world was stranded at home.
The finalists of this prestigious award have just been announced and we Dance Arena Ballet & Stage School are thrilled to be one of the shortlisted schools.
Finalists represent schools of all sizes and all genres from ballet to hip-hop and ballroom to contemporary. Entries were received from across the UK and Europe as well as Canada, USA, Bahrain, Brunei and Australia and were in five categories:
· Up to 100 students
· 100-150 students
· 151-250 students
· 251-350 students
· Over 350 students
As well as an Overall Winner plus bronze, silver and gold winners in each category, there are also special Awards this year supported by several of the dance Awarding Bodies:
· The Project B Award for Innovation in Male Dance supported by Royal Academy of Dance.
· The John Travis Award for Accessibility to Dance supported by bbodance.
· IDTA Award for Artistic Endeavour.
· Award for Innovation in the Teaching of Dance supported by Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing.
Also, this year will see a special award presented to the dance school who has shown Innovation during the Covid-19 Pandemic.
Unfortunately, this year the usual red-carpet, black tie Award Ceremony will be replaced by a Virtual Award Ceremony which will be live streamed around the world on Friday 23rd October. Winners will be announced at this event.
Trophies are awarded to winners of all categories as well as prizes provided by the generous sponsorship of: Melody Bear, Alex Ralls and Arts Safety Management, Dancing Times, Dancing With a Difference, The Dance Den, Groove Child, Class Manager, The Small Accountant, Studio Marketing, WW Audio and DSI-London
Anne Walker MBE, a former dance teacher who has founded and run a number of dance businesses and is now a business mentor and author, created these Awards to celebrate this incredible industry. She says: “Dance teachers should be applauded and celebrated. So much more than just a teacher – they are almost a substitute parent to many of their students as they are role models, mentors and social workers, offering support, stability and a disciplined approach to life.
Fellow dance teachers have supported me in my career over many years and now I hope, through these Awards, we can all celebrate the life-long passion for dance and the achievements of dance teachers everywhere.”
September 9th 2020
Our new Studios are now open for classes.
On Monday 7th September after 5 weeks of decorating, alterations and upgrades we opened our new studios in Brighouse. We are all excited that classes have now resumed. Please see the timetable for the latest class times and details. Also please read the Covid-19 processes on the homepage.
September 2nd 2020
Dance classes resume on Monday 7th September at our new studios
On Monday 7th September our new Studios in the centre of Brighouse will open and classes will ressume. We can't wait to see you all back. There is a new timetable which has been designed to coply with the latest Covid19 advice and allow classes to be split so they are smaller where needed. There is also time between classes to allow for cleaning. Use the timetable link on the menu bar to see when the classes are.
July 25th, 2020
New Studios
During August 2020 we will be moving ion to our very own Studios at, 4 West Park Street, Brighouse. The facilities are ideally suited to our needs and will greatly enhance the experience of all our Students. From July 27th we will be in decorating and undertaking several alterations, to enable us to do this we have stopped online classes, which will also give all stuents a well earned break. We will post regular photos and updates as we progress. We are extremely excited with this news and our future and can't wait for everyone in the Dance Arena family to see our new home in person.
July 25th, 2020
Break from Online classes.
We are current,y having a break from online interactive teacher led classes to allow for us to undertake planning for the future return to studio based classes during August 2020.
July 1st, 2020
Online classes return on Monday 6th July 2020
We have had a weeks break to allow for us to undertake planning for any future return to studio based classes. This time has been spent undertaking Covid-19 related training and looking at what processes would need to be put in place along with what equipment needs to be purchased. The online interactive classes will resume on Monday 6th July. All details will be put in the calander on the member page.
June 14th, 2020
Two week timetable review
We have now undertaken the latest two week timetable revire and can confirm that there are no changes to the existing timetable of online interactice teacher led classes. All students please check the memebers page or customer portal for links to the classes.
May 30th, 2020
Timetable amended to accommodate those students returning to their schools.
We have had a look at our timetable and made some amendments to allow as many of our students as possible to benefit from our online interactive classes put in place until we can return to the studios. To manage this, more classes are now on Saturdays and others have been moved to after school times. Please see the timetable for classes starting 1st June. There are currently 29 individual 45 minute or 1-hour classes on the timetable. The zoom class links are in the calendar on the members page and also on the customer portal under enrolled classes. As always, we will review every two weeks.
May 26th, 2020
National Tapathon - Dance Arena have raised a fantastic £1660
On Sunday 24th May at 3pm Dance Arena students and parents joined other dance schools and individuals by participating online in the Roy Castle National Tapathon. The students taped along to happy feet sung by Roy Castles with Harrison Vaughan (The Greatest Dancer finalist) online to help raise funds for the Roy Castle lung cancer foundation. Our students smashed the initial target set by Principal Gail Marsden by raising between them an amazing £1665. We are so proud of everyone who has helped us raise this fantasic and inspiring amount towards the national target of £30,000.
May 17th, 2020
The next set of 2 weeks online interactive classes are on the timetable.
The next two weeks of classes starting Saturday 16th May 2020 are now on the timetable. The joining instructions can be found in the calendar on the members page as before. Until further notice we will be reviewing the timetable every two weeks and keeping a close eye on developments. We are also currently contingency planning in case schools go back, so we can timetable the online classes around the school day. We are also looking at how we will eventually go back into the studios safely after lockdown. We will pass on any information when it becomes available.
May 13th, 2020
Dance Arena Students to take part in the National Roy Castle Tapathon 2020 online.
On Sunday 24th May 2020 at 3pm Dance Arena will be joining other schools and individual tappers around the country, taking part in the National Roy Castle Tapathon online. We always take part in the regional Roy castle tapathon in Halifax each year to raise funds for the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation and are now really excited to be involved in the national event held online. Anyone wishing to donate can do so on our justgiving page by clicking HERE.
April 18th, 2020
New timetable of online classes start 18th April.
After the success of the last two weeks of online interactive teacher led classes we have made some minor abendments to the timetable for the next 4 weeks. Details have been emailed to all students but joining instructions and links can be found in the Calendar on the members page. The timetable has also been updated with days and times. Until further notice and schools return to normal we will be reviewing every 4 weeks.
March 28th, 2020
COVID-19 Online interactive teacher led class launch.
Over the last few days we have now successfully completed several trial online classes using Zoom. As a result we are now ready roll them out to students taking Ballet Tap or modern.
The timetable for the next two weeks has been finalised and published on this website. We will be sending emails to everyone shortly which will include joining instructions for the individual classes and the details will also be posted in the calendar on the members page.
Classes after Easter will be finalised in the near future.
March 20th, 2020
COVID-19 All classes suspended until further notice
Re COVID-19
It is with great sadness and heavy heart but due to Government Guidelines and the RAD and ISTD advice I am now closing the school as of today.
There will be no Saturday classes or musical theatre classes today.
It is a challenging time and although we (all) at the studios have been undertaking enhanced precautions during classes to minimise the risk , it is a rapidly changing situation.
Our priority is the health and well being of our dancers and families, therefore classes are temporarily postponed with immediate effect.
We understand the diversity of feelings within the public as to how Coronavirus and COVID19 should be handled, but varied conflicting experts and professional opinions offering many and multiple concerns, our priority is to apply common sense and do what is best for your families.
Lets support one another through this difficult time.
I sincerely apologise for inconvenience caused at this short notice and I will keep you updated.
Keep watching your emails and website members page for the introduction of remote learning.
Many thanks for all your support.
See you later in the year
Gail
March 17th, 2020
COVID19.
As a precaution Silver Swan and all other adult classeds have now been postponed with immediate effect. We will post furhter updatres when available. Note currently it is only the above classes impacted,
January 01, 2020
Half term restart 23rd February 2020.
Classes restart after the break on Monday 23rd February. We look forward to seeing you all back refreshed and ready to go.
January 01, 2020
Timetable amendments from January 2020.
Please check the timetable for the latest class times. We have made a few minor amendments to start times and the studio's the classes are held in. We also added new Grade 1 Ballet and Musical Theatre classes.
January 01, 2020
Happy New Year!
We hope everyone had a great Christmas and New Year.
Classes resume after the Christmas holidays on Monday 4th January 2020.
October 31, 2019
New for November 2019 - Musical Theatre Classes.
Due to the success of the two Musical Theatre workshops we have now permanently added a class to our timetable. It is riun on Fridays at 5pm and runs for a full hour. This class will focus on the singing, dancing and acting elements involved in theatre work. Everyone loves a musical so come along to our new class.
August 20, 2019
Musical Theatre Workshop.
There will be a trial Musical Theatre workshop on Friday 20th September for students aged 8 and above. If there is enough interest we will split it into ages groups and introduce regular classes. If you want to come or want more information please get in touch.
August 21, 2019
Term Dates.
The term dates for the rest of the new year will be:
HT1 Mon 02/09/19 to Sat 26/10/19
HT2 Mon 04/11/19 to Sat 21/12/19
HT3 Sat 04/01/20 to Sat 15/02/20
HT4 Mon 24/02/20 to Sat 04/04/20
HT5 Mon 20/04/20 to Sat 09/05/20
HT6 Mon 01/06/20 to Sat 18/07/20
August 20, 2019
New website is now live.
Over the summer holidays we have been working hard to improve our website. We wanted to make sure that everyone was able to use the site easily, so have redesigned it to be mobile friendly. Please bare with us as we tweak things to optimize the site. There will also be a new members area coming soon where students and parents can access additional information.
August 18, 2019
Studio Floor Cleaning.
With the new term andschool year fast approaching Miss Gail and Miss Emma have been busy cleaning the studio's ready for everyones return. The Harlequin floor in Studio 3 now looks fantastic and everything is tidied away after last terms fantastic show at the Victoria Theatre.
August 19, 2019
Diary Dates for the new term.
Saturday 21st September - We have been invited to perform for the Faye Knowles Foundation at the cricket ground in Copley. This is to raise money for cervical cancer screening for young girls. We have a 20 minute slot to perform which Miss Gail and Miss Emma are currently choreographing. More details to follow soon.