Hi Rachel, please tell us a little about yourself and your background.
I am originally from Michigan which is where my love of performing began as I grew up dancing and performing in community theatre productions. I attended college in Boston at The Boston Conservatory where I received my BFA in musical theatre. Post-college I moved to NYC to pursue my theatre career. For the next many years I performed in and around NYC and on tours all throughout the country. At a certain point I realized that I had a real passion for teaching and after a couple years of rolling a suitcase around the city and teaching at homes and playrooms etc, Dance with Miss Rachel was born. I now live in Tribeca, where Dance with Miss Rachel is located, with my husband and have two baby ballerinas of my own.
What is the ideal age group for your classes? How are classes structured?
Our dance classes begin at eighteen months and go up to about ten years. We keep our classes small, so our dancers get a lot of individual attention. We offer classes in ballet, Broadway, tap and hip hop. Each class has a lead instructor, an assistant instructor and a pianist. All of our classes are set to live piano music and our instructors teach through song. We have a huge collection of songs - some original tunes and some beloved classics. Our classes all follow a set structure but allow a lot of creativity and movement within them. Because we have live music and instructors that are mostly all Broadway-trained professionals, we encourage all of our dancers to sing along too!
Our Broadway program is one of the biggest standouts at DWMR. These classes begin with dancers age 3.5 and go up to our Junior Broadway Company comprised of dancers age 7+. Our younger Broadway Stars focus on different musicals each unit and then perform a mini-recital for family and friends. Our Junior Broadway Company focuses on one original musical (written by one of our Broadway Directors) all year and performs at a real theatre in the area in the Spring. They learn, memorize and perfect a full-length show- just like real actors on Broadway.
Our Baby Bop! Music program begins as young as 10 weeks and runs right up to 18 months, at which point the Boppers transition into a dance class. These tiny musicians are invited to explore the world of music through original and classic tunes, hands-on exploration and dynamic movement exercises. We feel you’re never too young to be introduced to the world of music and movement and are certainly never too young to join the DWMR family!
Could you tell us a little about piano training at your studio? Are there recitals for this too?
DWMR offers private piano and voice lessons at our studio in Tribeca and in-homes. Our highly skilled instructors (all of whom play our dance classes as well), take students as young as 3.5 and turn them into mini-musicians in no time! We offer piano lessons, voice lessons, and combo lessons where our musicians can work on both art forms. We hold twice-yearly recitals for our musicians can show off their skills to family and friends.
Are any of these classes offered privately if someone would like to have it at home?
We do not teach at-home dance lessons, but our piano and voice instructors offer in-home lessons pending availability.
Does Dance with Miss Rachel host birthday parties? What themes do you’ll cover?
We LOVE birthday parties at DWMR! Our studio is fully equipped to make your birthday party as stress-free and as enjoyable as possible. We work with many vendors - including face paint artists, glitter tattoo artists, princess visits, magicians, and more- to make this a truly special day for you and your family. The sky's the limit in terms of themes. We’ve done everything from FROZEN to Princesses and Superheroes to Spa Parties to Art Extravaganzas and more!
Our party coordinators work closely with you and your family to ensure the day is everything you hope and more.
What advice would you give a parent whose kid is passionate about dancing?
Follow your passion! Not everyone will grow up to be a prima ballerina, and not everyone has to. Dance lays the foundation for so many things - discipline, focus, structure, poise. Even football players take ballet! We firmly believe that you’re never too young to start to develop a lifelong appreciation for the arts.
What advice would you give kids just before recitals?
DWMR’s recitals are a BIG deal. We have four recitals at a theatre that seats 1,000 audience members. And even our youngest ballerinas (Budding Ballerinas) perform on the big stage! We spend many months prepping our dancers for the big day and by the time June arrives, they are ready! We remind our dancers that though we all want to do our best and show the audience our routine the very best we can, at the end of the day the most important thing is to have fun. We are beyond proud of all of our dancers on this special day.
Where do you see yourself five years from now?
We have big plans for DWMR and hopefully, in five years we’ll be right in the middle of them. It’s my dream to keep inspiring dancers all over the city (and beyond) with our creative, imaginative and inspirational program. DWMR has grown immeasurably since it began and there is so much more to go. I am looking brightly towards the future.
For any questions, feel free to drop in a mail at info@dancewithmissrachel.com or call 646-434-8150.
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