Joanne Langione Dance Center
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| Joanne Langione Dance Center | |
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| Information | |
| Motto | "Where children learn to dance in an atmosphere of love and support" |
| Established | 1976 |
| Director | Joanne Langione |
| Faculty | 15 |
| Age range | 9 months - 18 years old |
| Enrollment | ~1000 |
| Website | jldancecenter |
Founded in Newton, Massachusetts, in 1976, the Joanne Langione Dance Center was the first American youth dance school centered on a developmental and avocational model rather than a competitive one. Currently the dance center offers instruction to students between 9 months and 18 years old in classical ballet, modern dance, contemporary dance, jazz, hip-hop and tap dance, with ballet exams administered annually by the American Academy of Ballet. The school stages sixteen public performances each year.[1]
The school's toddler dance program, "Playdance," developed upon the cognitive insight that the sequence of music and movement constitute "brilliant neurological exercises" in early childhood,[2] was featured on the PBS Documentary and WCVB series for Lifetime, Your Baby and Child, with Dr. Penelope Leach.[3] The school's first complement of "Playdance" graduates was featured on Bob McGrath's Sesame Street tour in 1988.[4]