Saturday Scholarship Program

Dancing Classrooms Philly doesn’t end after the 10-week school program.  Dancing Classrooms Philly “graduates” may attend Saturday classes for 10 weeks each semester for a very nominal fee.

 Our teaching artists hold classes in two locations to accommodate students from different areas of the city.  The children receive advanced instruction for the dances learned during the regular DCP curriculum in their schools as well as new dances such as cha-cha and salsa.

For the coming academic year, classes will be held at Take the Lead Studio at 4701 Pine Street, Philadelphia 19143 and at Visitation BVM Social Hall, 300 E. Erie Ave, Philadelphia 19125. Both locations are accessible by public transportation.

PLEASE NOTE: This program is only available to students who have participated as fifth graders in Dancing Classrooms Philly in their schools.

If you wish to enroll your child in Saturday classes, complete the application and mail it to our office at 15C Llanfair Circle, Ardmore, PA 19003.  Payment must be submitted on the first day of class.

Please check our website calendar in late August to see the starting date and time for the Saturday classes.

Dancing Classrooms Philly Exhibition Ballroom Dance Troupe

In spring 2009, Dancing Classrooms Philly students from our Saturday Scholarship Program auditioned for the Exhibition Dance Troupe.  The troupe performs at public and private functions and is available for hire.  Teaching Artist Marck “Flaco” Best is the Artistic Director.
 The Exhibition Dance Troupe has performed at the Mann Music Center for Healthy Kids Day, sponsored by The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and at The Philadelphia Museum of Art’s Hispanic Heritage and Day of the Dead family event. 
To make your meeting or event special, hire the Dancing Classrooms Philly Exhibition Ballroom Dance Troupe. For further information, call our office at 610-896-6326.

Colors of the Rainbow Team Match

Dancing Classrooms Philly does not emphasize competition during the 10-week sessions, instead focusing on the Culminating Event, in which students within each school perform for their peers and parents. All participating schools compete in a city-wide match at the end of the program each semester. Twelve students from each school are selected to participate in the Colors of the Rainbow Team Match Semifinal Competition at the end of each semester. The winning schools advance to the Colors of the Rainbow Team Match Final Competition in June. The winning school takes home the traveling trophy.

We believe that students learn invaluable life-long lessons from competition—particularly that winning and losing are a part of life and doing either gracefully indicates maturity and good sportsmanship.

See our calendar page for details about the upcoming Colors of the Rainbow Team Match Final Competition.

Scrapbooks

See photos of Dancing Classrooms Philly

Teaching Artists

Meet the Staff

Senior Teaching Artist

Dancing Classrooms Philly’s Senior Teaching Artist Bess Mattern Witcosky is a graduate from Temple University with a Masters in Dance Education. As Senior Teaching Artist, she supervises our teaching artists and is responsible for training new teaching artists.  Bess has served as the Artistic Director for The Movement Lounge Dance Company and has enjoyed performances both nationally and internationally.  She has served as Adjunct Faculty at Temple University and The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey.  She is also the Founder and Artistic Director of the Darlington Dance Company, which is a multi-age, children’s company that specializes in modern dance and site-specific work.  Currently a dance faculty member for the Darlington Arts School, Bess is a Master Lecturer in Ballroom for The University of The Arts Dance.