Hi out there!
I am trying to find a school to recommend for a friend with a 5 year old. I have been a teacher for a while but am new to the state of NC. Can anyone recommend a school near/in Burlington that has good technique and training and isn't all about the end of the year performance? I would love to find a place like the one I trained in, it was a non-profit with solid training; and the school owned their own costumes and had regular performance opportunities for the older students. Parents these days feel unfairly bombarded with extra fees: costumes, tickets, registration fees, recital fees etc... shouldn’t the tuition cover all that?
Thanks in advance!
-Chris

Hi Chrismohn,

I cannot help with a recommendation for a school as I am based in the UK.

However just wanted to reply about your comments about tuition fees covering everything. In an ideal world yes I am sure most dance teachers would love this to be the case but unfortunately recitals/shows cost a lot of money. It would certainly be a lot easier than chasing some people up for money they haven't paid for a costume that their child now has etc. My last show cost in excess of £5000 and probably nearer £8000, to put on by the time you have hired a theatre, hired/bought costumes, employed relevant theatre personnel and effects and produced scenery and props.

I myself made very little from an endeavour like this if you sit down and work out hour for hour the amount of time a teacher puts into a project like this.

Although it may not seem it from an outside perspective but very few dance teachers get rich from this occupation. Yes once you have built up a school you can earn a decent living but when you compare the skills that a dance teacher has to use apart from just teaching they would certainly earn more applying them to a different profession. Most teachers teach beacuse it is their vocation and certainly not for the money, however I appreciate it can be difficult for a parent to understand this when they are being asked for yet more money.

Sorry I have taken your thread off at a tangent, but this is a subject I feel strongly about and felt the other side of the coin should be shown.

I hope you get some good advice about suitable schools in Burlington

Chrismohn:
If CriticalDance itself can't help you, you and your friend might want to contact the dance department at NC School for the Arts, in Winston-Salem. They're a conservatory and high school, and probably don't have any programs for 5-year-olds, but their standards are high, and they're well-connected in North Carolina Dance.
Good Luck.