Dance studio coming to Inverness

For dancers wearing ballet slippers, tap shoes or clogs, a new dance studio is opening in Inverness on July 20.

Birmingham Academy of Dance will be located in the Inverness Heights shopping center at 5033 Highway 280. Autumn Blais, the owner, said the academy will offer classes, camps and competition teams for dancers interested in ballet, jazz, tap, hip hop and contemporary clogging.

Blais said she has seen a need for a studio located on 280 that focuses on customer service and working with parents’ schedules and financial situations. She started dancing at age two and has been involved in it in some way for three decades.

“I grew up as a dancer and then I did teaching and choreography, and now I’m the parent of a dancer,” Blais said.

Blais said she enjoys working with students who have work ethic even if they don’t have the most technical skill, and she never wants those students to be overlooked. She said dance is good for children because it provides “something well-rounded that they can do and still participate in their school activities.”

“I just like seeing the talent develop,” Blais said.

For dancers ages two to adult, the 8,500-square-foot space will be divided into five studios. Six instructors will teach from 3:45 to 8:45 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and they’ll hold competition practices on Sundays from 1 to 7 p.m. Blais said she chose teachers to fit with her vision of placing their focus on the children and their parents first.

“We’ve got some really good instructors to share that same philosophy of customer service,” Blais said.

Once the studio opens in July, summer dance camps will last until school begins in August. Students can begin registering for classes and camps on May 8, and Blais said she hopes the academy will grow to teach between 200 and 300 dancers.

To learn more, visit BAdance280.com or the Birmingham Academy of Dance Facebook page.