Prima School Of Dancing

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Prima School of Dancing has been an outstanding member of the Black Hills community for more than 42 years. Prima has historically been the Black Hills' largest dance studio with a lasting legacy of quality dance education seen in the joy and success of its students.
Whether you are a beginner andbrand new to dance or are seeking a future in dance, Prima has classes just for you!

Prima School of Dancing is proud to include the AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE National Training Curriculum, a breakthrough 8 level program that combines high quality artistic training with the basics of dancer health and child development. The ABT National Training Curriculum consists of a comprehensive set of age-appropriate, outcome-based guidelines to provide the highest quality ballet training to dance students of all ages and skill levels.
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To an audience, a skilled dancer’s jumps, leaps, and spins appear effortless; to the dancer, these actions feel difficult and can strain bones and joints. Such strain makes a quality dance surface a vital component to the dancer’s experience, especially since dance footwear does not provide any cushioning or support, and the shock of dance movement can place undue pressure on a dancer’s knees and back. The best way to prevent injury is by choosing a studio with a professional “sprung floor.” At Prima, our sprung floor rests on a system of elevated high density foam and wood to create the effect of a floating floor. The floor thereby absorbs the primary shock of jumping, reducing the risk of injuries and allowing students to dance longer without getting tired.
The top layer of the dance floor is also an important factor. The two most accepted surfaces for dance companies are wood and marley. It is good for dancers to have experience on both surfaces. Some dancers prefer wood because of how crisp and clean tap sounds are on it or because they enjoy controlling how slippery the floor is by the amount of rosin they use. Other dancers enjoy dancing on marley more because of its’ nice smooth feel underneath feet without being too sticky or too slippery. Despite the advantages, the expense of the floors prohibits most studios from using both services.
At Prima, we are fortunate to offer classes on both wood and marley floor surfaces, making us the only school in Rapid City to offer the 2 best floor types for dance. While sprung floors and surface type may seem like small issues, we at Prima are proud to protect our students physically from the rigors of dancing.

Having two separate dance floors at Prima allows students and parents to choose from a wide variety of dance classes during a broad range of times. Prima offers classes for students ages three and a half through adult. Popular classes include Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Hip Hop, Modern, and Lyrical. Other new offerings are Turns, Leaps, & Tricks, and Ladies Cardio Funk. This gives families more flexibility in finding classes that work better with their schedules. The expanded options also give some families the ability to have siblings or the parent and child take classes at the same time.

For the past 25 years, Prima’s recital has been in Rapid City’s largest theater, the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center. This production has the reputation for being one of the most enjoyable shows in town, as evidenced by the amazing demand for the best seats in the theater.
Many dance studios will require parents to pay a recital fee or even volunteer their time to help. At Prima, we charge no recital fee, and we keep recital tickets and costume fees as low as possible. Additionally, the parents at Prima are not required to volunteer, so they are free to enjoy the fantastic show, guilt-trip free.

While dancing is fun, the reason a dancer attends a school is to receive instruction and quality feedback about technique. At Prima, we believe the feedback is crucial but that it is only as good as the way in which it is delivered. That is one reason Prima’s owner is a formally trained educator. That experience helps her communicate with children and set appropriate expectations for each class – including the behavior of the students.
It also helps Prima focus on the best ways to educate dancers in technique, like using video. Taking video of dancers during class is one of the newest ways to help students refine their skills. This is especially helpful when students begin to work on their recital pieces, as it allows them to see their technique and quality. Of course, it is also just plain fun for students to see themselves dancing on TV. At Prima, we give our students the opportunity to view themselves during class two or three times a year to help them see their improvement.

6. The Fit - Age Appropriate Costumes, Music and Choreography
It is a priority of Prima’s staff to make our students’ dance experience excellent in every way, including by making the content age appropriate. We spend many hours behind the scenes searching for music that is beautiful, entertaining, captivating, and appropriate for its audience. We also take great care to choose costumes that are fun and in good taste, and to choreograph dances that suit students’ ages and abilities.

7. The Care - Every student is cherished.
At Prima, we do more than teach students to dance. We believe we have a responsibility to be positive role models in our dancers’ lives. We also cherish each student, enjoying the experience of making each person more than “just another student.” This mindset is a prerequisite for the teaching staff that we hire: all instructors at Prima are highly qualified (we do not allow high school students to teach classes) and willing to embrace the responsibility of being a role model for students. At Prima, we ultimately want each child to experience the blessing of achieving their goals, whether it is having fun dancing once a week or taking as many classes as possible to prepare for a career in professional dance.