Misty Lown's Best Advice For Dance Teachers + Studio Owners
FRIENDS!
I’m sooooo excited for today’s Backstage Blog, since it’s with a powerhouse I know many of us dance educators and studio owners respect and admire, Misty Lown!
Misty is the creator of More Than Just Great Dancing, as well as Dance Studio Owner University, and most recently, took over the reigns at Youth Protection Advocates in Dance (to learn more about YAPD, make sure you check out this backstage blog with founder Leslie Scott ).
Misty is dropping some major inspiration and tips tailored for dance educators and studio owners, and you’re not going to want to miss what she had to say about us dance teachers in this interview! Below is just a snippet, and to read the full interview, make sure you click the button below to sign up to receive emails from both Misty and Different Drummer Dance.
Enjoy!
KC: What's your earliest memory of dance?
ML: I have two GREAT memories from my earliest days of dance. First, I took lessons in a one-room studio behind a barbershop. My teacher’s name was Lorraine and she played an old upright WHILE she taught. Now that I’m a teacher myself, I have NO idea how something like is possible, but she did it! I remember her sitting at the piano shouting over her shoulder, “Shuffle-ball-change, girls, shuffle-ball-change!” I’m not sure how we learned anything … but we did! Which leads to my second memory: my first recital. There was a backdrop of a GIANT ship cut out of paper for “The Good Ship Lollipop” and my costume was baby blue with the most amazing light pink feathers on it. I think my mom still has it.
KC: Was it love at first plie?
ML: I was in love with the IDEA of dance, but not the WORK of it. I took a break after the 3rd grade until about the 8th grade. The break was good for me in some ways. For example, it made me realize how much I loved dance. But, it was also bad for me because by the time I figured out how much I loved it, I was a middle schooler with elementary school skills. But, boy oh boy, that made me motivated! When I decided to go back to dance, I took literally every class I could. When that fall schedule came out I would pour over it for HOURS. It was better than the JC Penny catalog at Christmastime! By about mid-high school I had caught up to, and in some cases, passed some of my peers.
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