OUR MISSION
Provide students with the finest dance instruction through inspiration, artistry, technique, and performance.
Welcome to the Des Plaines Dance Academy (DPDA) (Formally Des Plaines School of Dance). Since 1971, we have offered studio-quality instruction taught by professionally trained, working dancers and choreographers. Our personable, energetic staff of professional instructors is committed to the growth and development, personally and artistically, of every student. While we focus on technique, our dancers learn discipline, proper posture, inner strength, self-confidence, teamwork, self-respect, and respect for others. Our teachers inspire their students to achieve their personal dance goals and empower them with the skills necessary to overcome challenges and persevere in the studio and their lives. All of our dance instructors are sensitive to the individual needs of each student’s ability to learn. They use positive reinforcement, personal attention, and on-the-floor demonstrations to ensure everyone reaches their full potential. See the smiling faces in our studios and see why The Des Plaines Dance Academy is the place to dance in Des Plaines.
🎭 Performance Program: 9-month program, culminating in our June dance recital.
Des Plaines Dance Academy Performance 9-month Class Schedule 2025
🎪 Aerial Skills: Combines strength, grace, and flexibility to create a unique type of movement. You will learn to manipulate the silks and move your body differently. How to pose, climb, and invert on the silks are just a few skills you will learn, in addition to conditioning and how to combine poses into unique sequences.
🤸 Acrobatic Arts: Students will enhance their flexibility, strength, balance, and tumbling skills in this new program. Taking the beginner preschool-level student from log rolls and somersaults to the advanced student tumbling effortlessly across the floor! The program is designed to teach acro through safe, proper progressions and stresses the importance of alignment and training everything on both sides of the body.
🌟 DiscoverDance: The DiscoverDance Early Childhood Program is a series of movement classes designed to introduce children to dance’s creative and expressive world. Each program allows children to develop their natural movement ability in a multi-sensory environment.
📣 Des Plaines Poms: Pre-level introductory classes with minimal commitment, culminating in an end-of-session performance opportunity, a Winter Spectacle, a Spring Showcase, and an annual recital.
🚀 Aim for the Stars: Pre-level introductory classes with minimal commitment, culminating in an end-of-session performance opportunity: Winter Spectacular, Spring Showcase, and annual recital.
🏆 Artistry in Motion Dance Company: This is a 12-month program that provides our dancers multiple opportunities to perform and share their love of dance with the community. Our goal is to nurture a student’s ambition to grow into a versatile and well-rounded performer.
Your child will spend half their day dancing 💃 and the other half creating simple props, painting scenery 🎨, tie-dying a t-shirt, and making arts and crafts projects✂️. Daily jazz🎭, ballet🩰, lyrical, hip-hop🕺, and modern technique classes are taught. Dancers will learn the choreography for three to five short pieces, which they perform 🎶🎤on the last Friday of camp in the Prairie Lakes Theater. Friends and family are always welcome to attend!
🎵 Musical themes are announced on the first day of each session.
👕 Dance attire: Leotards, leggings, shorts, and a tank top or t-shirt. Ballet and/or jazz shoes are recommended but not required.
💧 What to bring: A water bottle, a morning snack, and a healthy snack for lunch.
🎭 The fee includes:
📸 A camp photograph
🍕 A pizza party
👕 A camp T-shirt
🎨 Art supplies
🩰 Art & dance instruction
🎉 Loads of fun and friends!
Dance groups will be divided based on age and ability. No previous dance experience is required!
The instructor must see the shape and line of the dancer’s body to assess the student’s advancement properly. The Des Plaines Dance Academy staff will enforce the dress code. We appreciate your cooperation in complying with the dress code for our program. Please note: We encourage a hands-on teaching approach. Instructors may need to physically readjust a student’s body to correct the dancer’s placement and alignment.
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