For over 20 years, Encore Performance Company has offered its students, from ages two through adult, quality dance classes in multiple genres, in both competitive and recreational classes.
Owner Dalana Moore first began teaching dance over 35 years ago. Growing up in a family of performers and musicians, Moore assisted her father in teaching classes from a young age. By the time she was 16, she began teaching her own classes.
“Some of the ladies I teach with [today], we’ve been teaching together [since 1988],” Moore said. “And a lot of the people that we teach now are third generation, which I think is pretty special.”
For Moore, Encore’s goal is to get children dancing young and provide them with a safe, fun environment that they can thrive in.
“One of the things that we’re trying to encourage [is] their love for dance, but at the same time there’s so many different lessons that you can gain from taking class - self respect [and] respect for others,” Moore said.
Established in 2003, Encore originally was for dancers who wanted more opportunities to travel, compete and perform on stage. Today, anywhere from 85 to 130 students are selected each year and placed on Encore’s four competitive teams: Applause, Curtain Call, Ovation and Spotlight.
“With our competitive program, they learn how to manage their time, and then you have to work together as a team,” Moore said. “Today, more than anything, the kids are really needing that.”
In Applause, students can “test the waters of the competition world without a heavy commitment,” Moore said. At this level, students meet one to two hours a week.
In the other three teams, which are tiered according to skill level and the student’s level of desired commitment, students meet two to four days a week and have the opportunity to travel and compete with their team. Additionally, students in these groups get the chance to engage in workshops at select regional and national competitions where they are taught by instructors from around the world.
However, competitive dancing is not all Encore has to offer.
“I feel like people think we are a competition-only studio and that’s not true at all,” Mooresaid.
In fact, Moore said the majority of Encore’s students today dance recreationally — just one to two hours a week — and the studio is proud to have something for everyone.
Encore offers technique and combination classes for anyone ages two and up, from beginner to pre-professional. Technique and combination classes, which combine two or more genres of dance in a single class, meet once a week.
Encore’s most popular classes are ballet, jazz and hip hop, but other genres are taught as well, such as tap, lyrical, contemporary, musical theater, tumbling and dance team prep.
Registration for classes and detailed pricing are available online by visiting encoreperformancecompany.com and clicking the “register” button at the top right corner of the page.
Encore is located at 2122 Columbiana Road in Vestavia Hills, between Shades Mountain Baptist and Pizitz Middle School. The studio can be reached at 205-824-9466.
