Meet Prestige Dance Studio | Best Dance Studio / Best Studio Dance Company | 2020
Meet Prestige Dance Studio
Best Dance Studio / Best Studio Dance Company
Dancers of RVA
The Prestige Dance Company was established in 2014 in an effort to offer Prestige Dance Studio students - interested in advancing their technique and dance exposure - the opportunity to compete, to meet and take class from some of the industry’s top teachers and choreographers, and to join a group of dancers who are equally invested in and dedicated to their dance training.
Prestige Dance Company (PDC) dancers attend between 4-5 competitions each season, frequenting the stages at DanceMakers (DMI), StarQuest, Velocity, Hollywood Vibe, and NUVO among others. Prestige Artistic Director, Stefanie Ogunwumiju, makes a conscious effort to send PDC dancers to a variety of competitions - many of them offering workshops - understanding the importance of exposure to a variety of teachers and dance techniques to a dancer’s overall growth.
The Prestige Dance Company has received numerous awards including but not limited to: multiple choreography awards, the StarQuest Apogee Award in 2018 and 2020 for the overall highest scoring routine, StarQuest Studio of Excellence Award in 2020 given to the studio that best exemplifies the values of the ADCC (Association of Dance Competitions & Conventions), and multiple dancer scholarships to future events, training programs, talent agencies, etc.
The Prestige Dance Company’s number one goal is to create well trained dancers with a comprehensive understanding of the dance industry. Prestige Dancers are required to train in ballet, tap, jazz, and lyrical, often spending 6+ hours at the studio between mandatory classwork and additional rehearsal times. However, training is not limited to in-house educators; each summer, guest teachers and choreographers from around the United States are brought in to work with PDC students. Most recently, Prestige hosted KBM Talent, offering its students, as well as students from various other studios, the opportunity to take class from Krista Miller, Todd Flanagan, Brooke Colletti, and Autumn Miller. In previous years, Prestige has also hosted Ade Chike Torbert, Casey Askew and Alexa Anderson.
The Prestige Dance Company is made up of highly dedicated dancers. Each dancer is required to audition in the summer for a spot in PDC and must meet all requirements in order to be an active member of the company. Groups are divided by age and skill level to tailor fit classroom content, ensuring each dancer has an opportunity to succeed as a competitive dancer by being challenged but not overwhelmed. In six short years, PDC has created a culture that is challenging and competitive but is equally encouraging and loving. Many PDC dancers have been part of the company for years, creating lifelong friendships and support systems that are needed to get through the often-frustrating cleaning process of a piece, or the hours waiting around at competitions – butterflies and wrenched nerves included. New members are welcomed with open arms, and quickly feel at home, expecting that not only their dance training will grow, but that their family circle will as well. And they would be right.
The dance journey for PDC hasn’t felt like a long one in the slightest, and with all of our past accomplishments in mind, we are confident that there is so much more on the horizon for the Prestige Dance Company. We are so beyond thankful for the nomination and encourage all who are interested in this journey of ours to stay tuned – the best has yet to come.
We are so excited to introduce our featured dancers for the upcoming 2nd annual RVA Dance Awards. The 2020 RVA Dance Awards is a live show that celebrates creativity, leadership and innovation by recognizing excellence within our Central Virginia dance community. This event will be held December 2nd virtually.