Our Heart & Soul

You are warmly invited to bring your dancing dreams alive with our compassionate faculty, comprised of former dance professionals and certified instructors, often joined by our shining student mentors. We are committed to giving each student careful, personalized attention, for proven individual progress. The joy we gain from seeing so many of our graduates continue dancing with companies and leading university dance programs is indescribable! We believe in providing the highest quality in class offerings; the best value for your investment in your most precious family member: your child. We encourage aspiring dancers to exceed their own artistic dreams, ignited in the tender landscape of childhood. Home to more than 250 registered students from the Black Hills, Western Wyoming and Central South Dakota, the Academy of Dance Arts is the local benchmark for compassionate excellence in dance education.

We offer a full range of classes designed to bring your dancing dreams alive, including...

Early Childhood Program for Ages 3-7

  • Classical Ballet for six levels (Cecchetti, Vaganova, Bournonville and Balanchine)
  • Pointe & Variations
  • Boys, Men/Partnering
  • Tap (rhythm tap and broadway)
  • Jazz (classical and theatrical)
  • Contemporary
  • Lyrical
  • Modern
  • Hip Hop
  • Private instruction available by appointment

Our Purpose

Our three owners hail from different backgrounds and corners of the world and are each uniquely qualified to make a difference in dancers’ lives. 

Ms. Alina believes that the best approach to developing professional skills and talents is to protect and embrace the powerful light that exists inside every child. She guides the technical dance experience and knowledge with trust, opportunity, and inspiration.

Ms. Kristin’s personal passion is to share the gift of dance with children of all ages, planting the seeds of beauty and artistry in those children as they grow into confident adults equipped to be a force for good in our community and beyond.

Ms. Claire’s University training in childhood education and life experience as a military child and spouse led to her desire to help children become resilient in meaningful ways.  

Knowing that we all want to strive for our personal best, the Academy of Dance Arts has adopted an attitude of encouragement and compassion towards excellence, unlike any training in the region. For our youngest dancers, our curriculum has been developed in conjunction with National Dance Education Core Standards for age-appropriate learning.

Immediate results can be seen in our burgeoning local dance community, along with Academy soloists and principal dancers in Black Hills Dance Theatres' biennial Nutcracker productions. Our Academy of Dance Arts graduates include currently performing professionals, University and preprofessional scholarship recipients and former instructors who developed under our tutelage to open their own fledgeling studios.

Our desire to extend the legacy built by Ms. Julie McFarland inspires us daily to meet dancers where they are and help them fulfill their dancing dreams while cultivating compassionate, resilient humans.

Our Proud Partnerships and Affilations