Fred Astaire Dance Studio Of Lambertville
Our Story
“Fred Astaire Dance Studios promotes a faster pace of learning – students really get what they want out of dancing.”
Our journey with Fred Astaire Dance Studios (FADS) began one day on Juan’s lunch break. Still wearing his Quiznos uniform he walked into the Princeton studio asking for a job to teach dance.
When he was called back for his interview, Juan impressed the regional director with his salsa dancing… and was offered the job on the spot!
Around that time I had started work at a different dance studio. But I ended up spending a lot of time at FADS Princeton with Juan.
Before and after my work shifts, I would be there helping with decorations and getting ready for events. There was that awesome energy and great people there!
But it wasn’t just that. I was impressed by Fred Astaire Dance Studio’s system of teaching.
Everyone starts dancing for different reasons. So learning from cookie-cutter programs often leave students feeling like they’re not getting what they want out of their dancing.
And when students can’t see a clear way to reach their goals, they may feel frustrated and get discouraged. They may even stop dancing.
At Fred Astaire Dance Studios, the Trophy System is a customized roadmap to successful dancing. Teachers work with each student to tailor their own curriculum based on their goals and what they like.
From the Beginners Program, every student is exposed to a wide variety of dancing styles. Taking basic walking forwards and backwards, students quickly turn something they do everyday into their first dance steps.
With the help of their teacher, students set a unique path to achieve their dance goals, whether it’s to…
- Master their wedding dance…
- Or be able to dance anywhere, with anyone, to any song…
- Or join a fun social community…
- Or get into the competitive dance scene…
- Or even become a professional dancer!
The FADS Trophy System promotes a customized learning style… and really is about students getting what they want out of dancing – and I really connected with this. Naturally, I joined Juan at Fred Astaire Dance Studios as soon as I could!
“Competing really accelerated our dance growth… and the experience enables us to prepare students looking to push their abilities.”
Once I was at the same studio as Juan, we had the opportunity to professionally compete at Regional and National Fred Astaire events.
Competing in dance gives a challenge that can’t be found anywhere else. With set deadlines for each event, prep time is limited. We learned to be efficient in our practice to get the most out of every session.
Getting performance feedback from the judges was incredibly valuable. It let us further showcase our strengths and shore up any weaknesses.
Pushing us on our dancing abilities, competing really accelerated our dance growth.
And having gone through the experience ourselves enables us to prepare students looking to push their abilities through competition as part of their dance growth.
Competition achievements:
- Philadelphia Dancesport Championships Open Finalist
- FADS NY/NJ Closed Rhythm Finalist
- FADS NY/NJ Open Rhythm Finalist
“It’s all about building that community where everyone is supporting one another… and becoming the best dancers they can be!”
When the studio started to expand, we used our individual strengths to improve our students’ dancing experience.
As dance director, Juan decided when to introduce new dance elements to group classes. The challenge was the wide range of experience levels from both students and teachers.
He still got everyone organized onto the same page. And this means that every student has the chance to learn something from every class.
As the studio manager, I did my best to make sure that every student’s needs are met.
Some students need extra support or perspective from another teacher. Others are looking for that community support from their peers. Whatever the needs were, I would look for a way to make it happen.
Together, we helped students connect with the whole studio. They got to know and learn from all the teachers. Students got the opportunity to socialize and become friends – even outside of the studio.
It’s all about building that community where everyone is supporting one another… and becoming the best dancers they can be!
And we continue striving to expand that dance community in any way we can.
“One day while having lunch at El Tule, it suddenly clicked. Lambertville is THE perfect home for our new studio!”
We hear a lot of older folks say that they used to dance when they were young. And remembering how fun it was, they’re looking to start dancing again.
We also hear from the younger generation that they’re looking to bring dancing into the mainstream.
It’s clear that dance is making a comeback. And our dream is for everyone to know how to dance!
In order to continue to grow this dance community, we began to seek out a place to open a new studio.
We started our search far and wide across New Jersey for the right town – one with charm, good energy, and a strong community.
The funny thing was that during the whole time in our search for the right town, we would stop at Lambertville to rest and recharge… And we hadn’t even thought of opening the studio here!
And then one day, while having lunch at El Tule, it suddenly clicked. This is the place! Why didn’t we consider it before? We had been coming here as a destination spot but it was THE perfect home for our new studio!
And in that moment, everything came together. We had a clear vision of our new studio home, flourishing within this amazing Lambertville community. I could even see our daughter growing up here, running down Bridge Street and eating ice cream.
We had our grand opening in June 2021 for Fred Astaire Dance Studios Lambertville.
Owners of nearby shops and restaurants greeted us with kind words. Residents would stop by to chat and invite us to local events.
And we soon found the bond within Lambertville is far stronger than on the surface.
Many students already knew each other from around town. And those who didn’t, were eager to socialize.
We’re so grateful to become a part of such a great town. We couldn’t have picked a better place to build our dance community!
Give us a call or email us to join our community on your dance journey today!
Or better yet, stop by Lambertville to feel the charm and energy yourself. And of course, be sure to come into our studio to say hello!