[vc_row enable_arrows_animation=”no”][vc_column][vc_column_text]We hope you had a great Thanksgiving with your family! APA has so much to be thankful for. We are blessed with an incredible staff, hard-working students, and their dedicated parents. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for choosing APA for your child’s arts education.
We have such an exciting month coming up with lots of performances. Please make sure to read all of the information so you and your child are prepared for the upcoming events. We are looking forward to seeing our students perform this month!
Important Documents for your reference: (please click on each link to view)
Saturday Extra Rehearsals (separate tabs on the bottom of the spreadsheet)
2020-2021 APA Team Calendar (this is a live document and is updated often)
Absence Form – This will be checked every Monday. If the absence is not entered by Monday morning please still complete the form, but call as well so we can notify the teacher. To be considered for an excused absence please make sure to complete the form no later than 30 days prior to the absence.
All events on this event calendar are required unless otherwise stated. If you are unable to attend an event you need to complete the Team absence form located on the Team website. Miss Alyssa will communicate with Miss Lesa to see if it could be excused. Each will be considered on an individual basis.
In-Class FULL Dance Dress Rehearsal: Starting Saturday, December 12th – Friday, December 18th we will have our students come to their last regular class day/time AT APA before our Showcase in complete costume with hair and make-up done.
Competitive rehearsals do NOT need full makeup, but you should have your hair done in the style required for the Team (competition-ready perfection not required for this). If your Team is listed below for double buns, you will need those in to make sure all hairpieces are positioned the same. This will help our teachers see if there are any costume or shoe issues before our performance.
Team Hair & Makeup
Hair & Makeup Demo Videos for ALL Teams are available on our website under:
Members Area > Team Info (the password-protected section)
The following Teams will wear double-space buns: Mini Jazz and Mini Tap. Everyone else will wear a single low bun with a middle part per the video. We know this will require hair changes for some dancers, and it may be quick, but it’s what creates the best image/presentation on-stage for each group.
Our teachers will check hair and makeup at the Winter Shows and let dancers know if they need to make any changes or add more.
Competitive Team Costume Checklist – Also available on our Team App! Check to make sure you have all accessories for each costume by reviewing this document.
Winter Break: APA will be closed Wednesday, December 23rd –Sunday, January 3rd. Classes will resume on Monday, January 4th. For those of you that have other students enrolled in dance classes or music lessons, we will not have dance classes on December 19th, due to our Showcase performances. Music classes WILL be held that day.
APA Team Dancer of the Month: Congratulations goes to Bryanna Wilde, she is sixteen years old and attends Oak Creek High School. . Bryanna’s favorite colors are pastels and her favorite subject is gym and art. When she’s not in school she’s working hard in the studio! Bryanna’s favorite style of dance is Jazz and continues to grow stronger as a dancer. Her favorite food is hands down Mac-n-Cheese! In Bryanna’s spare time she enjoys working out and listening to all types of music. When Bryanna grows up she hopes to be a personal trainer, dance instructor, and professional performer. Bryanna is most grateful for her mom.
Mr. Garrett nominated Bryanna for these reasons…
Bryanna is not only a great student but also a great assistant to have to help with
younger students because of how great of a role model she is to them. I work with many
fantastic students here at APA and Bryanna is definitely one of them and stands out to
me for this award because of how consistent she is with all of the above categories
(Attendance, work ethic, attitude, respect, and a positive role model). She is a privilege
to have in class, on the competition team, and as a class assistant.
Extra Saturday POMS Update for January: For our January Extra Saturday Rehearsals, Poms will now be one hour long instead of 30 minutes. This will be on January, January 9th from 12 pm-1 pm. Dancers that are also on Teen Lyrical will be dismissed at 12:30 pm when their Teen Lyrical extra rehearsal begins.
Extra Practice Space Rentals: If you are interested in renting space for your student to practice at APA click HERE for details and availability.
Team Holiday Party CANCELED – Friday, December 4th: REMEMBER – Production and our extra Saturday rehearsals will take place on Saturday, December 5th. Times are listed at the top of this Newsletter.
Upcoming Payments: ***All payments are automatically charged to your account on file unless communicated to us otherwise.
Solo/Duet entry fees are due 12/1/2020
Competitive Fees are due 1/4/2021
Please contact [email protected] if you would like to know your total due. *Fees do not include National fees. These will be due sometime in May. Mini’s: please note you have 1 Jazz routine and 1 Tap routine. 1st Team Routine is $405 and each additional Team your student is on is $255. There is a $25 per week late fee if payments are not paid by January 4th. Also, we are not able to register your dancer for any competitions until all fees are paid.
Injury and Doctor’s Notes: Anyone notifying us of an injury that takes them out of classes for more than 1 week will need to provide Miss Lesa with their Doctor’s documentation of the injury and the recommended treatment process. That also means if someone does get a physical therapy plan, we need to see it. Our teachers want to make sure that students are properly seeking treatment for injuries that are taking them out of class and that they are also following the treatment plan thereafter so they return to dance safely. We want students to follow through with a treatment plan and not get re-injured. It also makes the fate of routines very up in the air for teachers and other dancers while kids come on and off the sidelines repeatedly or without a definitive return plan.
General APA Announcements for ALL FAMILIES:
License Plate Winner: Congrats to license plate 340-YNV. One of our staff members spotted your APA window sticker while driving! Please contact the front desk so we know who you are and you will receive a $50 tuition credit. To participate, grab a FREE APA window sticker at the desk!
Frozen Friends Dance Camp & Gift Box: Double the fun when you register!
When you register for our camp you will receive a Frozen themed mask, Frozen bracelet, Wand, Dance Scarf, treats, and a royal invitation to our camp on Saturday, January 2nd, all packed in a special gift box you can give your child or loved one for Christmas! Click HERE for more details! Limited spots available, must register by December 7th! This event will only be held at our Oak Creek location.
Give the Gift of Dance: We’re excited to bring you a new way to give the gift of dance lessons to someone you know! Beginning November 30th we will have FREE gift cards handed out inside of the classroom, or for you to grab at the front desk, and GIFT to someone who is not currently attending APA. This gift card gives them a full month of dance classes (group classes with openings only, up to $64 value) at no cost to them. All you need to do is write your name and theirs on the back of the gift card and give it to them. They can call us, stop by either location or go online to register for the dance class of their choice. *Please make sure to have them mention they have a gift card promotion.* If they choose to register after their free month and are enrolled for 2 months, you both will be eligible for the APA referral program credit! They must be enrolled by January 15th, 2021. This offer is for NEW students only.
Referral Program: Share us with a friend! When a new family registers and mentions your name, you EACH will receive a $50 tuition voucher. The voucher will be mailed out after 2 months of paid enrollment and there is no limit to the number of families you can refer!
Snow Days: APA will decide if we will remain open during a snow/ice storm. We use the Oak Creek School District’s verdict as a guideline. An email will be sent to all families by 3 pm if we decide to close Monday-Friday or by 8 am on Saturdays. To receive updates, weather closures, and delays, please opt-in by texting ACADEMY to 77948. Even if you agreed to texts at registration, you still need to opt-in using the instructions above. We will post on Fox 6, as well as on our Facebook page. We will be live streaming all of our classes for students to participate from home. If this option does not work for your family, we will allow you to attend any group class the following week as a make-up. Please contact the front desk to schedule this.
Cold Weather Reminder: To aid in injury prevention it is important that the dancer’s bodies are warm when they come to class. We recommend that students wear layers to and from dance class. Even though they may feel hot after dance class, it is important for their health to wear pants or leggings and a jacket.
Facebook & Instagram: Interact with APA on social media! We have fun contests, photos from classes, and more on both our Facebook and Instagram pages. Coming up: Our fun Holiday Giveaways– only on social media! Click here to join us on Facebook and here to follow us on Instagram!
Member Accounts: On our website www.academywi.com there is a Member Log-in area. Every family has their own account. You can see what your account has been charged, enroll in classes, etc. Your username is the email address you gave us. If you need to update your email address, please contact us.
Competitive Winter Showcase Information – Sunday, December 20th @ 10:30am:
Dance Showcase: We’ve recently sent out a lot of information on our Mini Shows & Team Showcase. To view all of our information including times and ticket sale dates, please visit https://academywi.com/winter-dance-performances/.
Showcase Index (Dates/times/performance orders)
*** There is a tab on the bottom called Tech Ballet/Team Rehearsals – this will list the order each class is performing in.
By December 11th, we will email out an instructional video on how our process will work for dropping off/picking-up students, how we will control entrance and exits at the PAC, etc. Please be on the look-out for this detailed email.
Tickets: Please visit the South Milwaukee PAC online to purchase your tickets –Click HERE. Live-streaming options coming!
Volunteers – Mini Shows ONLY: We are still looking for volunteers backstage if any of your dancers are performing in our rec classes. Unlike years past, you will be a volunteer back-stage and will be assisting ALL classes back there, not just your students’ class. Volunteers do not have to purchase a ticket and can watch your child’s performance from the side stage. Siblings who are not performing are not allowed to be back-stage. Please sign up by clicking HERE. For the safety of our students, anyone backstage will need to check-in as a volunteer and receive one of our volunteer lanyards. Parents are not allowed backstage unless they are an approved volunteer. We will send a volunteer email the week of the Showcase with final instructions. ***We are not asking for volunteers for our Team Showcase since we want our dancers to be independent since we cannot have any parents backstage during competitions. Our teachers and APA staff will be assisting the students if needed.
Arrival Time for Showcase: Students are to arrive 20 minutes early with their costume, hair, and make-up done. We do not allow parents backstage unless you are volunteering. Please have your student arrive in their costume.
Music: Team music is available on our Team App! You can download it right from there, or request to have music emailed so they can practice at home. Please email us at [email protected] and we will send you a link to a digital file if you need.
Happy Holidays!!
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