Dance and music go hand in hand, or foot in foot in the case of the pedal-powered hurdy-gurdy man. Climb aboard a toe-tapping express train with today’s Groupon: for $39, you get six weekly introductory guitar, piano, or dance lessons (an $80 value) and an annual registration fee (a $30 value) at Astudia Dance World in Henderson (a $110 total value).
Jane Maurer, Astudia's dance director and teacher of its dance classes, is an award-winning choreographer and former member of the Olympia Ballet Company. Astudia's music director, William Blair, who teaches the music classes, is a graduate of Hollywood's Musicians Institute and is skilled in both guitar and piano. Divided by age level, introductory dance classes teach limbs to flail with purpose in a broad overview of styles, including ballet and jazz. The intro-to-ivory and intro-to-guitar courses, offered to all age groups, imbue fingers with the skills necessary for climbing fret boards (provided they bring their own guitar) or scaling ivory mountains. After six weeks of 55-minute dance classes, students may choose a form of dance to further pursue. Music students—also after six weeks of 55-minute classes—may be evaluated for placement into more advanced piano or guitar classes and may also add one point to the Bard skill on their character sheets.
Astudia Dance World
Astudia Dance World embraces all types of music—even kinds that haven't been written yet. Their Jam class trades order for on-the-spot creativity, encouraging students of any instrument to show up and practice the art of improvisation. It's a far cry from the more structured TRAC class (which stands for theory, reading, arranging, and composing), but both offerings celebrate creativity under the supervision of expert instructors.
Directed by Jane Maurer and William Blair, this team helps pupils of all ages explore the wide and varied world of music and dance. Their lessons cover classical styles such as jazz, tap, and ballet in addition to acrobatics, hip-hop, and musical theater, wherein every actor is required to carry a tuba. Meanwhile, instrument classes focus on the piano, guitar, or drums. All of these skills come together in recital performances, where parents can witness their children's progress and cheer them on.
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