Bop to the top with the new and improved Sharron Miller’s Academy for the Performing Arts!
After 10 years in the current location, SMAPA will yet again dazzle the community with the start of its spring session on Monday, Feb. 6. SMAPA will feature newly painted studios, new furniture and a larger space. Registration is now open for classes in all four divisions: preschool ages 2-5; junior ages 6-11; prep ages 12-18 and adult/seniors. SMAPA’s spring session runs 18 weeks from Monday, Feb. 6 through Saturday, June 10 .
SMAPA’s mission is as stated: to provide comprehensive, inclusive developmental training in dance and related theater arts for children, teens and adults. Ultimately, the Academy’s goal is to nurture students’ creativity and love of dance while encouraging self discipline and self esteem. SMAPA, a non-profit arts education organization, provides the community with free boys ballet classes, scholarships and outreach programs to achieve their goal.
“It’s a diverse environment which focuses on the joy of dance – whether you dance for recreation or with the hopes of becoming a young professional – the joy of moving your body through space is what all our students, both young and old, experience here,” owner Miller said.
Miller served on the faculty of the Renaissance Middle School for 13 years where SMAPA provided the dance and drama program for students during the school day. In addition, she has worked with the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Montclair Kimberley Academy and Far Brook School.
The dancing bug doesn’t go away after spring! SMAPA is now accepting registrations for Prime Time Summer Arts, a full day musical theater program for boys and girls ages 6-14. Each of the three week sessions includes classes in art, music, dance and drama, and culminates in a fully staged Salute To Broadway Revue.
SMAPA receives generous financial support from foundations including the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Victoria Foundation, the Stone Foundation of New Jersey, the Turrell Fund and the Newark Arts School, among other contributors. Without these supporters, SMAPA would not be able to touch the lives of so many students who otherwise would not have had the opportunity to participate in the study of dance. With the newly renovated studio, SMAPA will continue to foster the joy of dance.
“We believe dance is not only good for the body, but also the mind and spirit. It doesn’t matter how old or young you are, put on your dancing shoes, put on some music and see how good you feel when you just let yourself go,” Miller said.
Visit SMAPA at 14 South Park St., second floor, or visit the website at smapa.org for store hours, registration, prices, class information and more! Contact Sharron Miller at smiller@smapa.org or call 973 655-9819.
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