Dancing with a Community

Collegiate School’s dance program, now in its 21st year, began with the goal of providing a creative outlet for students. The program, Stacy Dudley (formerly Stacy Pfeifer) envisioned, would establish a space where dancers could take the whirlwind of life and transform it into balance, symmetry, motion, shape — in a word: art. 

In the winter of 2001, when Mrs. Dudley graduated from James Madison University, she began writing to former Head of School Keith Evans, outlining the particular benefits students would receive if the School began a dance program. She knew that Collegiate had a beautiful dance studio but lacked a program that would put it to good use. She wanted to change that. “My pitch was that dance is a great outlet for students creatively,” explains Mrs. Dudley, Collegiate’s Dance Coordinator. “Secondly, I said that dance helps students perform better in their academics. And finally, I mentioned that dance, because it improves agility and flexibility, strengthens students athletically.” 

She began teaching at Collegiate that spring, giving instructional dance lessons to students looking to fulfill a fitness credit in the Middle School. Now, more than two decades later, Collegiate’s dance program has grown to accommodate students in all three divisions. “Coming to Collegiate, I knew that there were dancers here that were looking for a place to pursue their passion,” Mrs. Dudley says. “I wanted to make sure there was a space for those students. It has always been my goal for students to come to Collegiate’s dance studio and to be surrounded by other dancers that are supportive, enthusiastic and willing to make mistakes and learn from those mistakes. That has always been my vision since this program began, back in 2001, and to see that vision come to life is so terrific for the students.” 

The Middle School dance studio, located on the second floor of the Seal Athletic Center, is flush with sunlight, which splashes through long horizontal windows and sweeps across the hardwood dance floor. The 8th Grade dance company is moving through choreography to Stephen Sanchez’s “Until I Found You.” The movements are diligent, athletic, strong, and Mrs. Dudley counts out each step gingerly. When one dancer falters or misses a movement, another dancer encourages them to try again, their voice warm with support and kindness. 

“If one of us makes a mistake, you’ll never hear anyone laugh or make fun of you,” says Addison Young ’27, a dancer in the 8th Grade company. “Instead, everyone is supportive. We’re all here for the same reason. We’re all helping one another, and we are all there for each other. We are one big community here. In this space, in this dance studio, I’ve found a place where I can just get away. I can be creative and productive at the same time, and I can just let my head relax and really be myself.” 

In the dance studio, students are able to explore avenues of creativity. Each dance is an opportunity for expression. “In dance, there’s no right answer for how to perform a movement,” Mary Ellen Chapman ’27 says. “You can always make a dance movement your own, which challenges you to articulate your emotions and think in unique ways. Dance is my outlet, creatively, but it has also helped shape me as an athlete and as a student.” 

Before each dance concert, the students in the Middle and Upper School dance companies will perform short previews of their pieces in assemblies. In Oates Theater, where the assemblies are held, the students’ hard work is on full display. For the dance students, who are received with fervent applause from their peers, it’s a validating experience. The culminating performance, perfected in the studio among a cohort of supportive peers, is a demonstration of creativity, emotion and skill. “Those performances give the students a place where they can shine,” Mrs. Dudley says. “It is an opportunity for a dancer to say, ‘This is what I’ve put my heart into, this is a part of who I am.’ It’s an empowering experience for a student to have.”