Get to Know Us
We are more than a Dance Studio…..
Children’s Dance Theater was founded in 2007 in a small basement studio with three major goals: to provide age-appropriate music & choreography to students in Western Washington, to challenge students to achieve their personal best, and to be inclusive of students from all walks of life- including neurodivergent students.
Over the years, the small dance studio has evolved and grown to two locations in Auburn, Federal Way, and Maple Valley, WA with creative artistic opportunities for aspiring dancers, actors and artists.
Children’s Dance Theater has four pillar programs: Dance, Theater, Art and Preschool. These programs have specialty classes meant to introduce the art form, develop exceptional skill, and provide inspiration that speaks to the artist’s soul. Our students are more than just students to us – they are family. Our faculty mentor and guide every student that enters our program to help them achieve their best. We believe that confidence, poise, dedication and self-expression are just as important as art itself. Through training and performance opportunities, our students develop into beautiful artists, as well as amazing human beings.
Inclusion
Our commitment to providing a place for everybody is unmatched. In an effort to make Children’s Dance Theater inviting and inclusive, we have been a leader in areas such as dress code, class diversity, and culturally respectful productions such as the Nutcracker. Our dress code policy has been updated to include female, male and non-binary students. Additionally, we are doing away with pink tights, and are transitioning to flesh-toned tights and ballet shoes. We do not cast roles based on appearance or resemblance to a well-known character, but instead based on skill and performance. We work with families to ensure that students who are neurodivergent or have different physical abilities have a place in our programs. Children’s Dance Theater is truly a place where everyone can feel safe, comfortable and included!
Age Appropriate
Our founding belief is that children need to be allowed to be children, and that time is to be treasured. All of their experiences at Children’s Dance Theater are crafted around social, emotional, fine and gross motor landmarks. We offer a variety of class styles, and each program is tailored to promote fun because children need variety to learn. This value evolves with the dancers over time, but our commitment to providing family-friendly classes and performances never wavers.
Opportunity
We believe that children have to be given the opportunity to shine in order to learn. We hold a variety of performances and art exhibitions throughout the year to give students a chance to display their hard work, creativity and achievements.
Community
The community built between students, staff, and parents is what makes CDT a wonderful place to be. Each person that enters our building is there because of their passion for art and the fundamental belief that art changes lives. Through our program we teach love, acceptance, accountability, work-ethic, self discipline, being a teammate, tolerance, responsibility and so many other life lessons. Our community is the driving force behind all our decisions.