Classes in Charlotte

Masters of kinetic self-expression, the instructors at Charlotte Latin Dance teach progressive-style salsa, cha cha, bachata, and merengue to dancers of all experience levels. Students should dress in a comfortable outfit, or at least a freshly oiled suit of armor when attending the regularly scheduled four-week courses (though sneakers are not recommended), and can indulge in a game of dress-up at the monthly events that end with a three-hour dance party. Sessions are open to anyone aged 14 or older and are conveniently set in studios all over Charlotte.

In a handful of studios scattered between Charlotte, North Carolina, and Springfield, Missouri, kids express their artistic creativity under the friendly supervision of Noah’s Art instructors. Classes cover a wide variety of topics—from painting and clay sculpture to vocals-based Song Art—and are arranged by age group, allowing children to interact with peers of a similar developmental stage while engaging in philosophical musings on the meaning of parent-enforced time-outs. Instructors also teach basic art tools and techniques, such as how to properly hold a paintbrush or sculpt clay using only your mind.

An accomplished ceramics artist and painter—who also enjoys restoring old photographs and playing the bagpipes—Timmy Hord shares her vast artistic expertise in her studio and classroom, located inside Art in the Dairy. Furnished with pottery wheels, Timmy’s studio hosts both wheel-throwing and hand-building personalized classes, during which students are guided through the process of making their own beautiful and functional decorative clay works.

At Curves, exercisers of all fitness levels move around a circuit of hydraulic-resistance machines that have been designed to work with women's bodies and promote weight loss, protect against osteoporosis, and deal with arthritis. An experienced trainer is always nearby to help manage machine-maneuvering and muscle making. Instead of fiddling with weight stacks, filling medicine balls with medicine, and losing your momentum, the hydraulic machines account for different body weights and fitness levels to create resistance that matches one's abilities, which thereby decreases the risk of soreness or injury. Because traditional lift-and-lower motions create bulky muscles, each machine uses push-and-pull motions to create toned, lean muscles perfect for crushing a grapefruit without looking like you can.

The Artisan Galleries and Learning Studio is the home base for many Charlotte artists, musicians, and master craftsmen—drawing in more creative spirits each day with its four introductory art classes and a precisely calibrated tractor beam. Introduction to Drawing ($26) yanks daydreaming doodlers out of the claustrophobic confines of college-ruled notebook paper and equips them with basic techniques and methods. Introduction to Watercolor ($34) tutors students in the art of watercolor washes, wet-on-wet applications, wet-on-dry applications, and basic guidelines on how long to wait to paint after eating. Introduction to Acrylic ($35) covers the finer points of this fast-drying medium, with tips on paint mixing, canvas preparation, and the power of painting with polymers. Finally, Introduction to Oil Painting ($39) introduces budding Bob Rosses to the canvas-based fantasy worlds that can be brought to life with a little linseed oil, a can-do spirit, and an eldritch incantation.

KidzArt boosts confidence and creativity in youngsters with art-education programs, exposing children to a variety of mediums, which encourages them to produce their own original artwork. Scheduled from 9 a.m. to noon on summer weekdays, the one-week art camps help tots and tweens entering first through sixth grades build a foundation of basic drawing skills that they then implement into art pieces centered around two themes. The KidzArt Animal Style: Where Art Goes Wild! camp, scheduled for July 18–22 or August 1–5, puts pastels, paint, and bendable substances into critter-loving little hands to craft animal-themed artwork. Water, Water, Everywhere!, scheduled for July 11–18 or July 24–28, stokes aquatically inclined imaginations with projects that might involve designing model waterparks and underwater vehicles. At the end of each morning, parents can return to marvel at their offspring's mini masterpieces. All art supplies are included, allowing students to leave their blocks of marble and unicorn-bristle paintbrushes at home.