 April 24, 2010 -
By Lisa Gayle Grayson
Dana Parsons was 16 years old when
she first started working at Dance Mania All-Stars and like any young,
enthusiastic instructor, Parsons took on any and every role that was handed in
her direction.
Of course she was an instructor and
choreographer, but she also babysat her students outside of the studio, became a
sisterly figure to those who looked up to her and eventually took over the
ownership of the studio based in Melbourne, Fla.
“We’ve just been together for a long
time,” Parsons said.
This weekend was especially
monumental for Parson, who has been involved with dance for more than two
decades, and her dancers. Friday evening, during the 7th annual USASF’s Worlds
VIP Reception, she was named the industry’s Dance Coach of the Year for being a
coach who exemplifies the ability to go above and beyond expectations and
demonstrates exceptional character from all members of her studio on and off the
competition floor by showing outstanding leadership to youth.
The next day she had two of her
programs’ teams – Senior Pom and Senior Jazz – competing in the Dance Worlds at
Epcot’s World Showplace.
With all of her years of coaching and
dance experience, Parson’s acceptance of the prestigious coaching honor was a
little more difficult to maintain her composure of all her weekend’s worth of
activities.
“I was shaking,” said Parsons, who
was presented the award by Dawnn Doychak on behalf of First Friday and the USASF.
“I couldn’t talk. Good thing I had to write (the acceptance speech) in advance.”
Being recognized as a top all-star
dance coach does not come by way or luck. Parsons takes pride in the style of
studio she conducts. She said Dance Mania is solely an all-star studio and is
the only one of its kind in Brevard County, along the Atlantic side of the
state, and part of elite group within the Sunshine State to embrace this
concept.
“We have our own niche where we train
kids specifically for dance team styles so it prepares them when they try out
for their college teams or their high school teams,” Parsons said. “It’s very
different.
“We do teach them ballet and
different leaps and turns, but we focus on the dance-team style of training that
is very precise and very synchronized.”
Work outside of the studio also is
required by all to keep their program among the elite in the industry. Annually,
Parsons’ dancers attend a bonding camp for one weekend at various resorts in
Orlando. The dancers stay in condos and the staff prepares their meals. They
participate in various team building activities, including personality tests.
“It’s just a lot of fun,” fourth-year
dancer Caroline Taylor. “It’s a weekend where we do absolutely no dancing. We do
relay races, skits and it helps get us all close as a team, to love each other.
It helps us become close with (Parsons).”
It helps that many of Parson’s
dancers have grown up with her in the program. Two of this year’s participants
at Worlds, Kim Carr, 19, and Brandi Pankey, 17, have been studying with Dance
Mania for 10 years. Both were on the very first peewee dance team the studio
ever hosted, and now Carr serves as an assistant coach of the junior jazz and
pom programs.
“It’s unbelievable thinking about how
far we’ve come, from fuzzy little costumes to being here on the Worlds stage,”
Pankey said.
Taylor was a later edition to the
program, and now serves as the studio’s head coach of the tiny pom plus
assistant coach of mini pom, but it was not too difficult of a decision to
audition, based on the positive and successful reputation associated with Dance
Mania. One of the mottos by which Parsons teaches is, “Winning is not the
objective, it’s the byproduct of hard work.”
“We talk about that all the time,”
Parsons said. “Just on our way (to Worlds) I just kept telling them, ‘Of course
everyone wants to win but I just want you to do your best. It’s just such a
subjective sport so even if we do our best they may prefer someone else and
that’s okay.’
“We come here with the positive
mindset that we want to win, but it’s not life or death. I understand that side
of that and it happens. We just try to instill that side of it to the dancers.”
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