Amanda's Dance Center

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Ballerina Princess Summer Camp 2012

Amanda's Dance Center will be offering a Ballerina Princess Summer Camp for ages 3-6 at our South Daytona Location in the Sunshine Park Mall.

ADC has been in the Daytona Beach area for over 30 years and offers year-around dance classes for all ages and levels of skill.

Come dance, twirl and find the inner princess with ADC this summer!

Class spaces are limited, so make sure and reserve your spot today!

Click here for more information!

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Tip of the Day: Remembering Choreography

Amanda's Dance Center Daytona Beach

Q: Younger dancers tend to have a hard time picking up choreography when learning recital dances. How can I, as their teacher, make it easier for them to remember?

A: A fun way to help dancers remember their choreography is to incorporate the choreography into their class warm up. This helps them see it at least one more time besides when learning the dance at the end of class.

Another way to help them remember choreography, is to always add steps in sets of 4 or 8. This helps them stay on the music and keep rhythm.

Another idea is to use a theme step that is repeated every time the chorus plays. This gives the dancers something to get back into, even if they don't remember the rest of the dance, they at least know that. ;)

Written by Shannon Thomas

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Tip of The Day: Prevent Sickling

Q: How to prevent my foot from sickling?

The sickle is usually caused by an imbalance in strength between the peroneals (specifically the fibularis longus) and the tibialis anterior muscles. (very basically) One starts at the outside of the tibia, crosses at the ankle and attaches to the base of the first metatarsal (at the bottom of the foot) and the other starts at the top of the fibula, goes behind the bump at the outside of the ankle, through a groove in the heel and attaches at the exact same spot as the tibialis anterior. The two muscles aid in plantar flexion, dorsi flexion, inversion and eversion. The dancer needs to build the muscles equally so one does not over power the other to cause the foot to sickle or pull in from the base of the metatarsal.

A great exercise to help with everything from shin splints to plantar fasciitis to a simple sickle is called The Alphabet. At least twice per day, have your dancer draw the alphabet with her foot. Pretend the toe is the pen and she is trying to etch the letters into a picture. All of the movement is at the ankle and the dancer should try to exaggerate the curves of the letters. If done properly, the dancer should feel muscle fatigue on the outside edge of the lower leg, just above the ankle by the time they finish the alphabet. The exercise will help to balance the strength in both sets of muscles and should (along with other work to focus on keeping heels forward) correct a sickle - among other problems. It's a very good simple exercise that can correct a number of dancing related issues.

Click here for some awesome tips on how to point your foot.

Written by Shannon Thomas

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Top 10 Reasons to Choose Amanda's Dance Center

Top 10 Reasons to Choose

Amanda's Dance Center

386-788-9466

1. All instructors continue their dance education by attending numerous workshops, classes, and teacher's training courses throughout the year.

2. Classes in several different genres to serve the interests of all ages, skill level, and commitment level.

3. Always age appropriate music, costuming, and class material.

4. Up to Date Dance Training driven with the emphasis on building a strong technique in ballet to compliment all styles of dance.

5. Creative and fun children's program uniquely designed to capture your child's natural inclination for movement.

6. Convenient scheduling and sibling discounts to accommodate your family's busy lifestyle.

7. Professional, loving, and educated staff.

8. Locally owned and operated Dance Instruction, education, and performing experience spanning nearly 3 decades.

9. Enjoy the family atmosphere of small studio with the opportunities and professionalism of a large studio.

10. Optional opportunities to perform and compete, completing the full dance experience. Written by Shannon Thomas

Dance Tip of the Day: To Warm Up or Not?

Shannon Thomas

Today's Tip is from one of our dance instructor, Shannon Thomas.

Q: Why is it so important to do a warm up before dance performances and competitions?

A thorough warm up is necessary before performing any physical activity, especially in the art of dance and performance. When dancing, you are not only using your powerhouse muscles, like the quadriceps, glutes and abdominal muscles. You are using all of the little tiny connecting muscles in the hip joints, neck, shoulders, feet, and knees. Therefore, it is necessary to prepare the body from head to toe before a performance or rigorous dance classes.

A proper warm up for a dancer should consist of cardio, plies, tendus, ron de jambes, stretching, leg swings/battements, petit allegro and then progressions across the floor pertaining to the pending performance. Wearing proper warm up sweats and attire is also key to maintain the warm up as your performance goes on.

Written by Shannon Thomas