Local Poughkeepsie Dance Studio Continues Classes During Pandemic
Almost a year ago when the world went on pause, Queen City Dance, located in Poughkeepsie, NY, kept dancing.
“Our last class was on March 14, and just the week after that, we started conducting classes on Zoom,” said Leah Speck, co-owner and Creative Director of Queen City Dance.
What began as an exciting break from their normal class structure, quickly became unfortunate as the students learned that their annual recital would be held on Zoom.
QCD students used their living rooms, dining rooms, backyards, and more as their stage as they made it work from home. “We told parents to make the day as special as they could — buy balloons, give them flowers, set up a backdrop. We still wanted them to know that it was their day to celebrate how hard they have been working all season,” said Speck.
While their classes were held on Zoom for a number of weeks as the country found out more about the COVID-19 virus, Queen City Dance was eventually able to head back into the studio for this season. “We built onto our existing location with a fourth studio to accommodate the social distancing requirements, and all dancers over the age of five wear a mask during class,” said Speck, “It’s been really special to see our community rally together and try to keep things as normal as they could be.”
The studio held a number of events to lift the spirits of their dancers, such as a drive-through parade in May and Zoom events with at-home crafts and dance alongs for the younger students. “We are so grateful that most of our students stuck with us during this difficult time, these kids really just want the chance to dance,” said Speck.
Some students attend class in person, and for those who are not comfortable being back in the studio yet, classes are still being offered on Zoom.
After returning to the studio and navigating the new normal, QCD has been able to attend dance competitions. Once being a chance to mingle with other dance studios in your area, these dance competitions have now become a chance to make their own memories as a studio.
New protocols allow for studios to compete their routines back to back during an allotted time slot, masks on stage are optional (although QCD requires students to wear them onstage — unless in a solo,duo, or trio), and one audience member per dancer is allowed into the venue.
“Usually we would have dances spread out throughout the three days of a competition weekend, so the younger students never got a chance to see our older dancers compete,” said Speck, “it’s been really special for them to be able to watch them now and think, ‘I hope to be like them when I’m older.’ It’s been a really great experience in team building”
Almost one year into the pandemic, Speck hopes to continue operations as normal, “We have been fortunate enough to not have any positive cases or contract tracing with anybody who has come through the studio. Though the circumstances are not perfect, we can continue in this format to make everything work.”
Plans for their upcoming recital have just been announced with a teaser of their newest tagline, “Stronger Together 2021.”
“We have been seeing an influx of new sign ups for classes lately, and we love having our already existing students back in the studio,” said Speck, “It’s been amazing to see our students’ resiliance during this unique time.”
For more information about Queen City Dance, you can find them on Facebook or on their website at queencitydance.com.
