Dance classes for Adults and Teens in the Durham Region | Dance Education Consulting & Best Practices
So joyful, so fun, the nicest group of people, come and dance with us! Our next 4 week session starts April 12th, classes are held at Jennifer’s Art in Motion in Whitby, link in bio to see our April class offering. More classes and levels will be added to our schedule for following session in May (after comp season when more of our faculty are back).
Our “Return to Dance” classes are designed for the adult that used to be a competitive dancer as a child (and/or danced at an inter/advanced level as a kid), and wants a class that is challenging enough while still feeling safe and accessible. The MOST supportive, fun, and encouraging group of women attend these classes. No one takes themselves too seriously and we are dancing for JOY, never comparison to each other or our younger selves. Our next session starts on Sunday, February 22nd in Whitby, ON. We offer classes for the absolute beginner to the advanced level and everything in between on several genres. Link in bio for all class offerings.
12/14/2025
We are THRILLED to announce our keynote speaker, MING-BO LAM, at our first ever ELEVATE: Durham Dance Education Conference happening on Friday, February 6th held at Maxwell Heights SS, doors open at 5:30pm. Featuring performances by DDSB High School Dance Programs and Durham Dance Studios, a post secondary/dance vendor fair, careers in dance panel discussion, and of course, our keynote speaker MING-BO LAM. This event is a celebration of our Durham dance community. Ticket info will be available in the new year- save the date for this exciting event.
𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐆-𝐁𝐎 𝐋𝐀M⬇️
11/20/2025
So looking for forward to this celebration of Durham dance on Friday, Feb 6th here at Maxwell Heights SS. Open to the public, this event will feature performances by DDSB High School Programs, Durham dance studios, an incredible keynote speaker (announcing in the coming days), a panel of expert speakers on careers in the arts, and a post secondary fair. Tickets will be available on site, more info to roll out in the coming weeks but spread the word, and save the date!
07/14/2025
Durham dancers, it’s here and registration is now LIVE!
We are thrilled to announce our new training series for dancers age 10-17, who are keen on injury prevention, building strength to meet the current demands of dance, and want to develop more flexibility safely.
This 6 week session is led by the founder of The Movement Project, Lindsay Daniels (B.Kin., B. Ed., OCT, ADAPT, RYT) who has over 25+ years of experience in dance education and a deep passion for dance safety.
Here are the session details:
𝗪𝐡𝐞𝐧: Sunday, September 7th- Sunday, October 19th (no class on Sunday, October 12th- Thanksgiving)
𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞: 10am-11am
𝗪𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞: Chrome Dance Centre, 452 Taunton Road West, Oshawa *note that The Movement Project is renting this space, the program is not created by or affiliated with a specific studio. All dancers from studios across the region are welcome to attend. This is a great way to build connections and community in our region!
𝗪𝐡𝐨: Competitive dancers age 10-17 with at least 3 years of experience in ballet, studio jazz, contemporary and/or lyrical
𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠:
- a yoga mat
- 2 yoga blocks
- pen/pencil
- resistance bands will be provided
𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐭? A program designed to elevate a dancer’s training by:
- building strength specific to the ever growing demands on the competitive dancer
- preventing injuries with a strong focus on alignment, safe practices, and muscle groups underdeveloped/imbalanced typically in youth dancers
- safe flexibility training (no hyper mobility work here)
- improve power in jumps, extensions, body awareness and balance
𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭:
- a quick fix
- tricks or dance skills across the floor or dance combos
- a replacement for any of your current dance training
There is a class limit of participants and due to the tremendous interest we have received, it’s highly likely to sell out, so register early to avoid disappoint. Link in our bio to register or head to www.themovementproject.ca/classes
Thrilled to be working with Durham dancers this fall!
06/03/2025
Over the last few weeks we have been chatting with dance competition directors from across Canada and we posed the question, “what would you want the masses to know/understand about running a dance competition?” Many interviews included similar sentiments, we amalgamated the info and created an overview on this post. Note that the opinions and insights provided do not reflect ALL comp directors but rather the perspectives of those who were willing and wanting to share their experiences.
Do you have a question for comp directors? Want to have a better understanding of what happened behind the scenes? Comment below⬇️⬇️⬇️
04/24/2025
Words of wisdom from a great list of Canadian judges, to elevate your piece to the next level. Keep pushing, keep learning, and apply feedback from your critiques. You CAN keep improving this season! A huge thank you to all of the adjudicators who contributed🙏🏻
03/19/2025
It’s that time of year where we share our annual etiquette reminders for the comp environment. Important info to share with your families, dancers, and faculty - makes it a much better experience for all! Let’s have a fantastic season ✨
02/06/2025
This time of year is tough. The grind is real and yes, we need to take care of ourselves, be aware of overtraining/over rehearsing etc. but I think we also have to acknowledge that giving up, or not pushing ourselves towards what we are capable of is also (in the long run), hard. I just said to my students today that I always want to enter performance/comp season, knowing that I did everything I possibly could to make my dancers look and feel their best. It’s really hard on the long days of double rehearsal, extra help at lunch, etc. but I think it’s way harder in the long run, to finish the season knowing that I didn’t do my personal best 🤷🏻♀️
01/28/2025
Ladies & Gentleman,
If you haven’t already, meet THE Joanne Baker of Decidedly Jazz Danceworks.
Mentor, former professional dancer, MASTER teacher, cheerleader, advocate, program coordinator, presenter, and friend, she is such a wonderful example of building bridges in the dance community.
Since meeting Joanne here in the Durham Region after she moved from Calgary a few years ago, my understanding of Jazz history and approach has been profoundly changed. Joanne is a wealth of knowledge, I’m always in awe of how she can command a room, and her lessons have impacted not only my teaching practice but also, my understanding of the Jazz dance world at large. I had no idea what I didn’t know, until I did….
I am so grateful for Joanne’s mentorship and friendship. She goes above and beyond to lift up others in the dance community, a quality (quite frankly), we don’t see as often as we should in this industry.
If you don’t know Joanne or her work, do yourself a favour and reach out to her. If you teach in a dance education focused space, I highly recommend having her in- both you and your dancers can all gain so much from her insight, experience, and knowledge✨