Morton Street Dance Center, Baltimore

Morton Street Dance Center trains students from age 3 to adult in a barre-lined studio whose sprung floors absorb the shock of leap landings. The center’s creative movement classes develop motor skills in preschool-aged kids, then branch into diverse styles such as tap, jazz and Afro-fusion as dancers mature. To keep young minds fresh during the summer months, dance intensives take an in-depth approach to a single style, honing trained steps and graceful moves more effectively than an ostrich-riding lesson. As they improve, dancers aged 8–18 can audition for the studio’s ensembles, which showcase their unison moves at venues such as the citywide Artscape Festival and the Hippodrome Theater. Adult classes impart Afro-fusion and modern-dance techniques to movers of every level, allowing dancers to follow their passion through every stage of their lives.