I've wanted to own my own studio since I was a teenager and starting in 2013, at 18 years old, I began teaching eight kids in a classroom at Crossroads Fellowship Church. Over the years we grew organically and moved into a space on the Lebanon square and then in 2020 we expanded to our 8,000 sqft space on South Maple St. I come from a background in classical ballet and I wanted to bring high caliber training in a kind and holistic environment to Lebanon. What started as a small group of kids has grown into a school of almost 300 students and we just celebrated our 10th anniversary! Our mission from day one has been to train dancers in excellent dance technique, in a creative and positive environment. We want to use the studio to minister to kids and to help them to use their God given talents to the best of their ability.
Ballet Adora is born out of the Latin word Adora which means to worship. Our goal has always been to use dance as a way to share the Gospel and we do that throughout our classes, shows, and outreach opportunities and it's incorporated into our name!
This summer we've had the wonderful opportunity to work with Barefoot Republic at Amy Grant's farm in Franklin. It was truly a dream come true! Barefoot is an incredible ministry, with a mission to bring kids from all different backgrounds together and minister to them through arts and athletic camps. We got to spend two weeks on Amy Grant's farm this past June, teaching daily ballet classes. It was such a special opportunity; Ms. Amy and all the staff at Barefoot were so kind and absolutely incredible, definitely one of the highlights of my career.
At Ballet Adora dancers have a choice of how much time they want to invest in dance, so we offer options for taking dance once a week or multiple days a week. We offer classes starting at three years old and kids have the option of progressing up to our robust advance program for upper level dancers. Dancers also have the opportunity to be a part of our performance company and make up the cast of our large productions such as The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and Christy.
What benefits does a child get from attending dance at a young age?
- Confidence: This grows exponentially when a child dances!
- Coordination: Dance helps with increasing balance, developing motor skills!
- Expressing Feelings: Dane is incredibly helpful in expressing emotions which can sometimes be difficult for a child to share and articulate. Music and dance are incredibly therapeutic and we incorporate a holistic approach to training to develop the dancer's body and mind. Seeing a student overcome the challenge of learning a new skill is one of the most rewarding parts of being a teacher!
With our heart for community, we love offering scholarships to attend Bella Adora. We began partnering with Foster 180 this year which is an incredible non-profit that supports foster kids and families here in Wilson County. We've offered scholarships for foster children through this ministry and our Night of Worship event at Capitol Theatre this Feb raised money to support them as well. We are always looking to see how we can help in the community and we've had a variety of opportunities to support kids here in Lebanon and really want to continue to grow that side of the program!
Offering more than 35 weekly classes in classical ballet, pointe, tap, jazz, and lyrical, we are proud the growth we’ve had over 10 years in business. Lebanon has been an amazing place to grow the studio and we're so thankful for all the people and the small business community who took a chance on us when we were just starting out a decade ago. One of the highlights at Ballet Adora are our annual performances which are held at The Journey Church which bring in over 1,500 attendees each year. I love adapting some of my favorite books and movies for the stage and we're thrilled to bring The Sound of Music to life in the upcoming season! Auditions are going to be held this fall and we're excited to make this our best show yet! Fall registration is now open and classes fill up quickly so we encourage families to register soon!
You can read more about us, watch videos, and see our fall schedule on our website balletadora.com and Instagram @balletadora
Looking for a space to rent for events? Since the studio is so large, it is often used to host cookie decorating classes, birthday parties, and theater rehearsals. We love partnering with Audience of One and they hold rehearsals for their Capitol Theatre shows at Ballet Adora as well.
Adora means to worship in Latin, our goal is to use dance as a way to share the Gospel.
