ABOUT

PAQUITA DANCE

CENTER

The Paquita Story, by Amy Derstein

I can remember being in high school and sitting in classes. As my teachers
were spouting algebraic equations and governmental processes, my mind
translated them into barre combinations and adagios from ballet class the
night before. I sat in class trying desperately to make up my own petite and
grand allegro combinations, always wanting to choreograph new and
interesting exercises. This was how I lived my days of high school, always
wanting to be in ballet class learning new steps and dances. This evident
passion for ballet became magnified through the opportunity to assist in
teaching a younger ballet class. During that opportunity I learned the proper
way to break down and teach ballet steps and, in the process, learned that
I wanted to share my passion for teaching with children of all ages.

In the Fall of 2011, God blessed me with the chance to open my own
studio, Paquita Performance Center. I had previously danced in the
professional world, continued teaching since high school, and
accomplished my BFA in Ballet and BS in Psychology. I had a few personal
friends who wanted a high quality dance education but in an atmosphere
that promoted God and Godly values. I opened the doors of my home and started with 9 students. Over 5 years later and a name change to Paquita
Dance Center, God has blessed PDC with multiple teachers and an
overflow of students. If you desire the best and most professional dance
education in an atmosphere that promotes and values God, PDC is the
place for your child/children. One mother posted on social media, “This is
my daughter’s first year of taking ballet and tap and she loves it!! So glad
we found it!”

-Miss Amy

Dance Philosophy & Method

The method that PDC will teach your child/children is based on the
Cecchetti method of teaching ballet. We use the word based because PDC
does not teach strict Cecchetti; we have added elements from Vaganova
and our own training. Through researching different methods on teaching
classical ballet, the Cecchetti method proved the most logical and prepared
method. Our philosophy is that as a student is taught a new step, he or she
will learn the name, the proper way to execute the step, and the meaning
and intent the step has. Then the student must practice this step until he or
she can perform it with exquisite grace.
PDC’s goal as classical ballet and dance instructors is to provide the best
possible professional learning experience. We will not teach recreational
dance; we believe that classical ballet and dance is an art and is to be
treated as such.
A student will be placed in a level based on his or her experience with a
tentative age group. The most important aspect is that PDC believes that a
child is a child of God and we will treat your child/children in that manner.