OSA is home to the Dance department, designed for advanced dedicated dancers. This department is very closely knit, which means that students in other departments don’t know that much about them. Dance Co-Chair, Alison Hurley, opened up about the class she teaches and I watched a class to get more information. --Holly Young
“Work, work, WORK!” This is how Ms. Hurley describes the dance environment. Dance students are pushed to the limit in each aspect of the class and they are very dedicated. Hurley thinks that her students could do with “much more improvement and commitment to taking the corrections and fixing the incorrect habits they have, in both Middle and High School.” But she still thinks that they have improved in the first quarter.
All of the dancers are very respectful. When ever given a correction or comment, they always respond with “Yes sir” or “Yes Ma’am.” They are quiet when practicing their combination and stretching, even when the teacher isn’t looking. They have leaders for each group/grade for the warm up, and the leader answers all of their questions and helps them perfect the combination.
The main styles of dance that they focus on are ballet and contemporary, specifically Dunham, Horton, and Graham, who are famous contemporary choreographers from the beginning of modern dance. While they are doing ballet combinations, you can see their contemporary side kick in and you can tell that they are modern dancers.
According to Hurley, both teachers try to make them ready for work when they are 16 years old. “It takes at least 10 years of consistent, high quality, dedicated training to make a professional dancer and if you enter OSA in the 6th grade and go to 12th grade, that is only 7 years.” That is why they don’t let just anybody into the program, they look for incoming students who already have had dance experience.
Middle school Dancers have three periods a day instead of the two that other middle school arts haves. According to Hurley, “There is so much work and education and re-education to execute. All of this takes so much time!” New students need to learn about their muscles so they don’t get injured while they dance.
OSA Dancers don’t get just any teachers to train the dancers. Hurley is a professional dancer and Reginald Ray Savage, another teacher, runs a dance company, called Savage Jazz.
All of the dancers are very respectful. When ever given a correction or comment, they always respond with “Yes sir” or “Yes Ma’am.” They are quiet when practicing their combination and stretching, even when the teacher isn’t looking. They have leaders for each group/grade for the warm up, and the leader answers all of their questions and helps them perfect the combination.
The main styles of dance that they focus on are ballet and contemporary, specifically Dunham, Horton, and Graham, who are famous contemporary choreographers from the beginning of modern dance. While they are doing ballet combinations, you can see their contemporary side kick in and you can tell that they are modern dancers.
According to Hurley, both teachers try to make them ready for work when they are 16 years old. “It takes at least 10 years of consistent, high quality, dedicated training to make a professional dancer and if you enter OSA in the 6th grade and go to 12th grade, that is only 7 years.” That is why they don’t let just anybody into the program, they look for incoming students who already have had dance experience.
Middle school Dancers have three periods a day instead of the two that other middle school arts haves. According to Hurley, “There is so much work and education and re-education to execute. All of this takes so much time!” New students need to learn about their muscles so they don’t get injured while they dance.
OSA Dancers don’t get just any teachers to train the dancers. Hurley is a professional dancer and Reginald Ray Savage, another teacher, runs a dance company, called Savage Jazz.
