Frequently Asked Questions

Young Dance offers All Abilities Dancing, Afro-Modern, Ballet, Choreography, Dance and Technology, Modern, Creative Movement, Dance Together, Hip-Hop, and the Young Dance Performing Company. We teach all classes from a concept-based perspective, emphasizing the elements of Body, Action, Space, Time, and Energy. Students explore technique, improvisation, and choreography, developing skills in physical expression, observation and describing, and group participation. Our classes impart a commitment to one’s self, to the group, and to the larger community.

The concepts we teach are Body, Action, Space, Time, and Energy. We believe teaching modern dance technique through these concepts gives students agency over their movement choices and promotes creativity, innovation, and problem solving.

You must enroll in one weekly class and the Saturday Company Rehearsal offering to join the company. The tuition for the company is a sliding scale of $800–$1000. All you need is your bare feet and comfortable clothes.

Young Dance is located at 655 Fairview Ave N., Saint Paul, MN 55104 (opens in Google Maps). Young Dance occupies the North/ East corner of the building.

Any age! Our Dance Together class is open to children and their caregiver beginning at age 1. Our concept-based approach means that students can join at any age without prior experience, because classes are taught in a way that allows students to learn at their own pace, skill level, and ability. This approach also eliminates “better” or “worse” and “right” and “wrong” and stresses risk-taking, personal expression and exploration, and confidence.

Yes, of course! Contact us at info@youngdance.org (opens in email), and we’ll set that up.

Yes! Scholarships are available. Please email info@youngdance.org to receive a scholarship request application.

• Academic Year Session: If at any time a participant would like to withdraw from a class, send a written notice to kathleen@youngdance.org with the intended withdrawal date to receive a prorated tuition refund minus a $25 non-refundable administrative fee.

• Summer: Your registration included a $25 non-refundable administrative fee. 
  • To withdraw from classes: Send a written notice to kathleen@youngdance.org with the intended withdrawal date. You will receive a refund for the remaining classes, minus the administrative fee.
  • To withdraw from camps: Notify kathleen@youngdance.org with your intention to withdraw. If it is more than 30 days before the start of camp, you will receive a full refund minus the administrative fee. If it is within 30 days before the start of camp, you will receive a 50% refund minus the administrative fee. We cannot issue a refund if it is within 72 hours or the camp has already started.

• Company: *this policy exists as a form that company member parents/guardians sign.

By signing below, I acknowledge that I have read and agree to the following policy. 

Tuition for Young Dance Company members includes Saturday rehearsals and all performances, including costumes. Young Dance Company is a year-long commitment.

If, for some reason, a dancer must leave the company mid-year, we require written notification including the planned date of withdrawal. If you notify Young Dance staff by December 15, 2024, you will be refunded 50% of your tuition. If you notify Young Dance staff by March 1, 2024, you will be refunded 25% of your tuition. If you do not notify Young Dance staff by March 1, 2025, families are responsible for 100% of the tuition due.

You know your child best, so you may want to consider: Do they have an easy time separating from a parent or caregiver? Have they ever taken a structured class before, or will the format be foreign to them? You are welcome to try one and switch if it feels better suited. As always, please contact us at info@youngdance.org to discuss any questions or concerns you may have.

Dance improvisation is freestyle movement, generally performed within some parameters set forth by the teacher. Through improvisation, students can explore movement concepts of body, action, space, time, and energy in their own unique way.

The Young Dance Company is open to students ages 7 and up. Company members take weekly classes and attend an additional rehearsal each week, Sept-May. The company frames its annual season around a theme that immerses dancers in artistic inquiry and produces high quality, innovative performances. Dancers work with professional artists to investigate and collaborate on choreography relative to the selected theme. Their work is presented in venues throughout the year and in a season finale concert each Spring. The company is open by auditions, held in May and September.   

Our weekly dance classes are open to all ages and require no audition. Students can join at any time throughout the year, depending on space availability. Two performance opportunities at the end of each term. These performances showcase what the dancers have been working on in their classes. Dance Together and Family Dance participants will have an in-class celebration scheduled the last day of each session.

We welcome individuals with disabilities into any of our classes, provided the class is an appropriate fit for participants. An appropriate fit requires that the instructor is able to meet the curricular goals of the class for all participants.

Young Dance also offers classes that are tailored to individuals with disabilities.

Young Dance will provide teaching assistants to support participants as needed. 

Young Dance has some assistive equipment available for use (wheelchair, walker, mat)

Young Dance’s ADA Access Plan can be found within the accessibility statement.

Contact info@youngdance.org to discuss access needs. 

Every spring, the Young Dance Company presents a professionally produced performance that showcases works created by professional and youth artists. The company also has opportunities to perform yearly at community venues and festivals. For the 2024/25 programming, we will also celebrate 15 years of our All Abilities Initiative.

Class participants are invited to perform at Young Dance’s annual events. The Fall Fling includes informal showing and community gathering where each class can demonstrate what they’ve learned for each other and their family on the stage. This approach allows more class time to explore the concepts rather than refining a routine. The Spring Performances include an all school, end of year show scheduled in May. Each class learns a dance that showcases and culminates the skills they have learned throughout the academic school year. Class participants are strongly encouraged, but not required, to participate in these performances. All participants are engaged in the curriculum, regardless of whether or not they perform. Young Dance does not require families to purchase costumes for any performance. 

Young Dance does not require families to purchase costumes for any of our performances. We do teach about production, and production elements as part of the curriculum. Young Dance students will be deciding on costume ideas with their teachers related to the themes of their dances. The costume ideas will be simple, and should be items that students already have at home. For example, choosing a certain color to wear. Young Dance may purchase or produce simple costumes for dances performed by the Young Dance Company. 

Dancing often includes touch or close proximity. Students have the choice at every class whether they would like to receive touch or not. We recognize the importance of consent for physical contact and we strive to foster an environment where dancers have agency over their physical and educational experience.

Classes require registration to keep class sizes safe and manageable.

Parents/guardians are asked to wait outside of the studio during class. We schedule specific times for parents/guardians to observe class, such as observation days and the last 5 minutes of some classes.

Young Dance instructors follow the Rule of 3: that there must be at least 3 individuals in the studio at a time. In the event that there is only 1 student in class, the instructor will leave the studio door open and/or request the parent/guardian to be in the studio.

Dancers under the age of 9 must be accompanied to/from the restroom. If a guardian is not present, Young Dance staff will accompany them to the single stall restroom and wait in the hallway. Young Dance staff will not assist a dancer in the restroom. 

If an individual needs assistance using the restroom, the dancer should be accompanied by a parent, guardian, or personal care assistant.

Come dressed and ready for class. Information on what to wear to class is in the class descriptions on the registration site and in your class welcome email.

There are not specific requirements for attire. Dancers are encouraged to wear comfortable clothing that they can move freely in. No long dresses, jeans, or jean materials are allowed. 

For most classes, dancers will be barefoot. Footed tights and socks are slippery–if a dancer wears tights to class, please ensure they are footless. Ballet shoes are recommended for Ballet and students in Breaking and Hip Hop dance best when wearing clean tennis shoes. Hair should be pulled back and off of the face and eyes.

We ask that family and caregivers not stay in the classroom during class time. This helps the dancers to keep their focus on the teacher. Each term, there are designated observation days, and in Creative Movement I, caregivers are invited to watch the last five minutes of every class. If you have special circumstances, have a family member in town, or would like to watch class on a day outside of the scheduled observation times, please contact us at info@youngdance.org.

Dance Together is a class designed for guardians and children to be in the studio together, but the rest of our classes are meant to be attended by the student alone. Young Dance maintains a low student-to-teacher ratio to assist the transitions and needs of all participants. Beyond the first five minutes of the first class, we recommend that you prepare your child to enter and exit the space on their own. Please let us know if you have any concerns regarding your dancer’s ability to separate.

Yes! Our classes are structured to be multi-aged. A dancer who enrolls in Creative Movement I (for ages 3 to 5) when they’re 3 years old may take that class for two or three years. With concepts at the core, they develop a deeper and more sophisticated understanding of the elements as their brain matures. When considering placement, we look at the class’s median age and the student’s social development. We want them to feel confident in class, so appropriate placement is important.

When St. Paul Public Schools are closed or after school activities are canceled, Young Dance classes are also canceled.