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At 21, Andrea Pease has already accomplished a goal many dancers only imagine: opening her own studio, Studio Twelve Two, and guiding young students through its first successful year.
Pease, who has danced since she was six years old, made her dreams come true by cultivating minds and feet to move and dance to rhythmic beats in her studio.
She fell in love with dancing she said because it was a good outlet for her. She “had a really bad stutter and speech impediment, so it was, like, a place where, ‘I don’t have to talk, I get to just move’,” she said in her childlike voice. “I just fell in love because I feel like ballet and everything was, like, it just made sense; it was just something that was so fun to do. That I could tell a story through just movement.”
She credits her own dance instructors for inspiring her to teach.
She said faith-based studios were the ones that most influenced her brand of instruction. “I went and I saw a Christian ballet who performed one day, and it…just changed my world of having faith and dance mixing together.” It inspired her to cut the ribbon on her own faith-based studio.
The first verse she said she memorized from the Bible was Romans 12:2: “Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
That verse provided the foundation for Studio Twelve Two. “The whole vision for the studio was a studio that did not conform to the world but kept the Lord in the middle of it all,” she said.
The Christian focus of the studio attracted parent Emma Curtis. She said one of the things that drew her to picking Studio Twelve Two over others “was that they were very open about their faith. That wasn’t necessarily a deal-breaker when selecting a studio, but I was very cognizant, having a young daughter who is very impressionable, I wanted her to go into a good, positive environment.”
She said that a perk she fell in love with is they offer homeschool classes.
Although Studio Twelve Two offers 14 classes beginning this fall, they also rent space to The Dance Pointe, which offers classes to children with special needs on Sundays.
Cammie O’Hara, well-seasoned dance instructor with over 40 years of experience, teaches 15 children from 2 to 4 p.m. every Sunday. However, she said she would love to add more classes and include as many new students who wish to dance.
O’Hara embraces dance, because “it’s the friendships that you build, so there’s just such camaraderie with it as far as the classes go, and then just the movement itself, and falling in love with the movement, and the different styles of dance,” she said. It’s “just being able to express yourself in those moments and just live in the moment.”
Pease offers two recitals a year: one in the spring and the other in December, and invited O’Hara and her students to join in the fun. The recitals are not held at the studio but at a location chosen closer to the performance date. Past productions have been held at The Downtown Carrollton Plaza, The Farmers Branch Tree Lighting Ceremony and Lewisville Grand Theater.
Pease and Curtis concurred that the recitals were fun and engaged the audience as O’Hara’s students were the “show-stoppers” and performed with pizzazz and “crushed it” with their stage presence. They said the recitals each had a perfect ending with standing ovations by the audience.
Studio Twelve Two is open now for fall registration offering classes starting as young as preschool ages. Contact Studio Twelve Two or call 469-430-8803 to register.
The Dance Pointe is also open for registration for special needs students looking for a creative outlet. Contact The Dance Point or call 512-745-5222 to register.
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