Studio G’s award- winning competitive team participates in performances locally and across the country
The Arts
While the world held its breath the art of dance was able to provide an escape for the students of Studio G Performing Arts Center. And despite the challenges of teaching remotely Studio G Owner and Artistic Director Gina Dudash says she adopted the temporary motto “dancing alone together.” 
While the world held its breath the art of dance was able to provide an escape for the students of Studio G Performing Arts Center. And despite the challenges of teaching remotely Studio G Owner and Artistic Director Gina Dudash says she adopted the temporary motto “dancing alone together.”
In 1997 with over 30 years of experience in the dance industry Dudash formed Dance Grosse Ile now Studio G. Since then Dudash and her team of talented instructors have introduced countless children and adults to the beauty of dance. Studio G’s award-winning competitive team participates in performances both locally and across the country and many of their students have gone on to professional careers of their own attending prestigious dance schools and joining renowned companies. With such a long track record of success it’s no surprise that Dudash is able to adjust quickly to unexpected problems and make the best of difficult situations. That’s why very early in the pandemic she made the decision to temporarily close both of her locations and began conducting classes via Zoom video chat.
“We couldn’t risk the health of our kids and we also couldn’t risk the dancers losing what they had been working on” explains Dudash. “Because this is a temporary setback we knew we had to keep at it. Just like any athlete if you don’t condition every day you can lose a lot of your skill and flexibility.” Through Zoom instructors can still see the students and give feedback on form or technique and students can see the instructor demonstrate corrections when necessary. Lessons were also slightly modified to accommodate the more restricted space. “It’s kind of strange conducting classes like this but it shows the unity that we have as a dance family and the commitment” says Dudash.
While simply recommending that students practice at home and hold themselves accountable was an option Dudash wanted to provide a sense of normalcy for the kids. “Despite what’s going on in the world we just want to make these kids feel like it’s safe and we’re still here for them and carrying on in as normal a capacity as we can for them” says Dudash. She also wanted to set an example that in the face of adversity a little creativity can overcome even the most insurmountable odds.
Although conducting classes via Zoom wasn’t something Dudash had ever done or planned on doing in the past she says she’s not opposed to using it as a tool for students in the future who are not able to attend the one-off class but that it would never replace hands-on training. Dudash also says the feedback was overwhelmingly positive with dancers still attending class consistently and parents stepping up to make the change possible.
Looking forward Dudash hopes to get back in the studio soon to salvage part of the season and says the popular summer camps are still on track with a few contingency plans if needed including reduced class sizes. This year’s princess dance camp will run for one week in July with each day focusing on a different style of dance with a matching princess theme such as Elsa Ballet and Tinkerbell Tap. Classes are an hour and a half and each child is given juice snacks a tiara fairy dust as well as a daily gift. “We could consider remote classes as well but will wait to see what the state mandate will be and if there is an interest we will conduct princess camp via zoom mailing out their class gifts to them ahead of time” says Dudash. “We will cross that bridge when we come to it but for now we hope to be live and in the studio for the camps.”
Studio G’s camp classes are a great way for younger kids to experience a variety of dance styles and decide if they want to continue studying it. For those who choose to stick with it they can dance purely for recreation or even take it a step further by auditioning to join the competitive team. Currently the Studio G competitive team are reigning champions receiving the highest scores in both competitions they attended before the season was cut short.
Studio G has been teaching students for over 20 years and plans to continue providing lessons for many more teaching all genres of dance beginning at age two and going all the way up to adult classes. Dudash adds that she is optimistic students will be back in the studio before long but that dancer’s safety and wellbeing always comes first and foremost “and until we can be back in the studio we will continue to offer Zoom classes for both recreation and competitive students.” •
Studio G Performing Arts Center has two convenient locations Studio G is located at 8525 Macomb St. Grosse Ile (right across the sidewalk from Hungry Howie’s) and a satellite program Dance Brownstown located at 21311 Telegraph Rd. Brownstown. To register for the summer camp or the fall season’s recreational programs or for information on the competitive team please visit studiogpac.com call 734-362-0880 or email [email protected]
Studio G Performing Arts Center has two convenient locations Studio G is located at 8525 Macomb St. Grosse Ile (right across the sidewalk from Hungry Howie’s) and a satellite program Dance Brownstown located at 21311 Telegraph Rd. Brownstown. To register for the summer camp or the fall season’s recreational programs or for information on the competitive team please visit studiogpac.com call 734-362-0880 or email [email protected]
