Discover ourLyrical Classes

What you should already have

Lyrical is not the first class. The movement borrows ballet lines and then lets them travel with the song. A dancer who has never done a tendu will fake the arms and miss the standing leg. We would rather delay lyrical one season than put them in a class they cannot do. The trial is where we say that out loud.

Wear form-fitting clothes, a leotard and shorts or leggings. Foot undies or bare feet. No jazz sneakers. Hair has to stay up through a floor section. Age 6 is the start, and only with the ballet background.

Classes fall on weekday evenings and Saturday mornings, inside the studio hours of Monday–Thursday 4:00–8:00 p.m. and Saturday 9:00 a.m.–noon. Shayla Pinther and Delaney Anderson both list lyrical among the styles they teach.

How it differs from jazz

Jazz is faster, more accented, and evenings only. Lyrical stays with the lyric and the breath. A child can do both later. They should not do lyrical instead of ballet. Ballet remains the class that builds the legs.

Lyrical numbers appear in the Summer Showcase. The Nutcracker is a ballet production. Ask if the current lyrical class is in a specific show. Tuition is quoted by phone, billed on the 1st, and not pro-rated for missed weeks or the published breaks. Notice to leave is 30 days, in writing.

The ballet prerequisite is the whole point

Lyrical starts at age 6 and only if ballet is already in the body. The arms can look soft while the standing leg is doing nothing. The trial helps the teacher assess whether the dancer has the necessary foundation. If they have never stood at a barre, they enroll in ballet. Lyrical is the later class. Building that foundation first helps dancers approach lyrical with confidence.

The combinations are slower than jazz and they follow the lyric. Breath matters. A jazz class can accent the count. A lyrical class falls apart if the dancer only hits the accent and ignores the phrase. That is why the two styles are not interchangeable even though both use turns. Jazz is weekday evenings only. Lyrical can be a weekday evening or Saturday morning, inside Monday–Thursday 4:00–8:00 p.m. and Saturday 9:00 a.m.–noon.

Feet: foot undies or bare feet. Jazz sneakers squeak and they change the line. Tap shoes are for the tap room. Hair has to survive floor work. Clothes are a leotard and shorts or leggings, close enough that the back and the knee read from the front of the room.

Teachers, shows, and the bill

Shayla Pinther teaches lyrical along with jazz, ballet, and contemporary. Delaney Anderson lists lyrical with ballet, jazz, tap, and contemporary. Placement is by the teacher assigned to that level, at the Roseville studio, not by a separate lyrical brand in another town.

Lyrical work shows up in the Summer Showcase. The Nutcracker is ballet. Ask whether the current lyrical class is in a given show before purchasing a costume. Extra rehearsals, when a show is close, are announced. They are not a hidden second tuition.

Call 916.276.8408 and say the child’s age and that they have or have not taken ballet. That sentence places them. Tuition is quoted before enrollment, auto-billed on the 1st, and not pro-rated for absences, holidays, or the two-week summer and winter breaks. Written notice of 30 days is how you stop. The address is Suite P, Harding Plaza, next to Sherwin Williams.

The emotion in lyrical is not a mood the child performs at the mirror for praise. It is a choice about the lyric: where the phrase breathes, where the arm finishes after the leg has already arrived. Dancers build expression alongside balance and technique, at a pace suited to their experience.

Floor work is part of why the clothes and the hair matter. A knee on a bare floor, a roll, a recovery to standing. Foot undies keep a sock from sliding. Bare feet work if the child will keep them bare and not stop the class to put a shoe back on. Socks without a grip are a slip. Do not send them in socks and call it the same as foot undies.

If they already take jazz, lyrical is the slower companion, not a replacement. Jazz stays on weekday evenings. Lyrical can share the week if the child is not already in too many rooms. Two styles plus ballet is a full dance week for most elementary ages. Consider another style only when the current schedule is manageable and the child wants to add it.

Coming from another studio, describe the last combination they finished, not the team name. We do not recruit off a competitive lyrical team, and we do not continue a team’s choreography inside this class. They will learn the combination this room is working on. If that is a step down from a solo they had in May, say so. We can be honest about the level. We will not rebuild their old solo.

Music choice is the teacher’s. A song the child loves in the car may be the wrong lyric, the wrong length, or the wrong mood for a room of nine-year-olds. Requests can be mentioned. The teacher chooses music appropriate for the class. If a lyric is too grown for the age, we will not use it to chase a style trend. Say so if you hear something in class that does not fit your child. Please discuss any concerns with the office.

Saturday lyrical and weekday ballet can live in the same week if the drive is real both days. Saturday lyrical and weekday jazz and weekday ballet is three trips. Count the trips before you count the styles. A manageable schedule helps children arrive rested and ready to learn.

Hair that falls out during floor work stops the phrase. A bun that survives a roll is the requirement, not a style preference. Pins and a hair tie in the bag fix it faster than a parent re-doing a ponytail in the doorway while the combination starts. Do that fix before they walk in. Secure hair before class begins.