Performance Team

The Performance Team is our audition-only company for dancers who are ready to make their personal best a priority. Members train together all year, attend conventions and competitions across the region, and perform throughout the community.

Team divisions

Division	Ages	Required classes
Mini	5–7	Ballet and jazz (Elementary 1 and up) or Intro to Dance, Mini Technique, and rehearsal for each dance
Petite and Junior	7–9 and 10–12	Ballet and jazz, Company Ballet, Company Technique, rehearsals, and the class matching each competition style. R.I.P.P.E.D. is encouraged.
Teen and Senior	13 and up	Ballet and jazz, Company Ballet, Company Technique, rehearsals, the class matching each competition style, and R.I.P.P.E.D.

What dancers gain

Only a small percentage of our team members will dance professionally, so the program focuses on helping young people reach their personal best at anything they take on. Team members:

• learn to balance commitments to dance and school;
• understand the value of a healthy, strong body;
• gain confidence speaking and presenting in public, a big help in college and job interviews;
• work with mentors who care about their success inside and outside the classroom;
• make friendships that can last a lifetime, in an extended family of dancers, teachers and parents;
• see what hard work and determination can do; and
• develop a lifelong appreciation for the performing arts.

Is the team right for your dancer?

The team asks a lot of dancers and families. There will be rehearsals while friends head to the movies, and some activities, like middle or high school cheer, band, volleyball or soccer, may not fit alongside it. The program probably isn’t the right fit if your dancer:

• has other activities that conflict with classes, rehearsals or performances;
• wants to join mainly to keep up with friends;
• is joining because a parent wants them to;
• is mostly focused on winning awards; or
• can’t commit to attending every class and rehearsal.

We also expect dancers to be as dedicated to school as they are to dance. If team participation affects grades or the goals parents have set, a dancer can’t continue in the program.

Competitions and conventions

Because competition is part of a team member’s dance education, we choose events that include convention classes with top teachers. Recent seasons have included Artists Simply Human in Nashville, Dance Masters of America in Birmingham, Hollywood Dance Jamz, Revel and Streetz, with national events some summers. The full schedule is shared with team families at the start of each season.

We are not out to beat anyone; instead, we want to motivate students and faculty by exposing them to the highest caliber of talent. For us, competition is an education!

Team members also perform in parades, at nursing homes and schools, at community programs and at fundraising events. The lessons from those performances matter as much as anything learned at a competition.

Summer requirements

• Mini dancers attend Mighty Mini Camp, and are welcome at Mini Sessions for extra training.
• Petite through Senior dancers attend the summer intensive and four Mini Session days of ballet, tap, jazz and acrobatics.
• Choreography is set over the summer in a few multi-day blocks, so families can still plan vacations.

Costs at a glance

Figures from the 2025–26 season, for planning. The current Membership Packet has this year’s numbers.

Membership fee and deposit	$250, non-refundable, due on Evaluation Day ($100 membership; $150 toward costumes and early fees)
Costumes	About $150 each; solos, duos and trios up to $300 if custom-made
Choreography	$180 per person for groups, $225 for duos and trios, $400 for a solo
Travel and administration	About $90 per event for competing dancers, $30 for non-competing dancers
Uniform	Warm-up jacket ($150), company jersey ($60), purple company leotard, black leggings and top, black dance bag
Total competition season	About $1,000 for a Mini dancer to $3,000 for a Petite–Senior dancer with several dances

Team rehearsal classes are billed with regular monthly tuition, and competition fees are split into six monthly payments from July to December. Team families keep a card on file with auto-pay. A parent group organizes fundraisers, and profits are credited to the accounts of families who work each event.