Have you ever dreamed of learning how to move like the ballerinas that you admire in the Nutcracker performance each Christmas? Or hoped that you could rediscover your passion for dance and movement after taking off a handful of years? The benefits of dance that come with the technical teachings, are numerous and ideal for both improving posture, increasing core strength, and deepening flexibility. Unfortunately, you can really only reap those benefits if you’ve been practicing the movement since you were about 3 years young, right? Wrong! Charlotte Ballet is bringing accessibility to the art of dance regardless of your age or skill-level, and we are here for it.
Charlotte Ballet offers Adult drop-in classes that include a variety of dance and dance-based fitness classes, including: ballet, tap, and power dance for all ages and levels. These classes are ideal for beginners, former dancers wanting to return to their passion, and most importantly: those looking to achieve a healthy lifestyle. The classes are designed with a drop-in schedule to meet the demands of adult life that we didn’t necessarily meet when we were 12 and able to head to practice right after school.
One of the many amazing things about dance, is that the instruction is a wonderful challenge to use your brain in a different way. It allows you to change your perspective and process movement a bit differently, while using your muscles, brain, and body in a different way than your typical fitness class, not to mention, the classes are just plain fun!
Charlotte Ballet’s classes are extremely accessible and the instructors place a focus on breaking common misconceptions in order to make their students feel comfortable. While attending a class at a ballet company can be intimidating, and you may think that only really advanced dancers or professionals can come to class, that is not the case. Their instructors are hand selected based off of their ability to listen and respond to the dancers who come to class and making the instruction accessible to all. They encourage you to just take a chance to check them out, even if you aren’t entirely familiar with ballet terminology or it’s been a long time,and to just be patient and loving with yourself and give yourself a high five for trying something new! It can feel like a lot at first, but everybody is there with you. It quickly gets better. If you don’t want to commit and buy a pair of ballet slippers that’s totally OK. You can take ballet class in socks until you get an understanding of which class you want to take.
No matter where you are in the world there is this common experience in ballet class. You approach the barre like an old friend – you approach the work together. Ready to try your first class? Visit their Adult Drop-In page Visit the ADULT Drop-In page to learn more about the class schedule. Drop-in students are welcome! No prior registration required.
Photo credit: Troy Hull