Nonahood News: Tell us more about you and your art.
Tamra Chace: I am the owner of Chace Dance Company in Lake Nona. We are a performing dance-based studio focused a lot on ballet and acrobatics; those are our specialties. I wear all the hats. I am the owner, the head teacher, and in charge of the competition team called the Chace Dance Company team. You are mostly going to see me in the studio.
NHN: Ideal medium(s)?
TC: Ballet because, in dance, ballet is like learning your ABC’s before you start reading. Your foundation is going to be from ballet class. It might be more of a struggle for young kids who want upbeat, fun music. It is hard for them to relate to classical, basic steps, but they need it. And acrobatics is another favorite of mine because it has those fun tumbling skills like flips, cartwheels, backbends and all the things that kids love to do.
NHN: Recent artistic accomplishments?
TC: Our studio recently won the Heart Award at a dance convention for being the most welcoming and most kind studio to interact with. I feel like in today’s world if we are all very busy it is hard to relate to everybody and bring people together. I really wanted to offer that with our studio, and it is being noticed at events that we do. Also, we do four competitions a year along with other events. For example, we have performed for the Orlando Magic, the Daytona 500, and the Rolex 24.
NHN: Most rewarding project?
TC: Getting up and teaching all these kids every single day. As a teacher, you are investing a piece of yourself in every single one of your students. And we all know that when we get older, we remember certain things from our teachers that we have learned which we implement in our lives. And that is the most rewarding thing and why we are all dance teachers, too.
NHN: Who inspires your art?
TC: Whatever season of life I am in inspires my choreography. Last year, I was an avid reader, so I created pieces around different stories. For example, I was reading Atomic Habits, which is a business entrepreneurial book, and I made an acrobatics trio dance called “Atomic Habits.” It was about the rippling effect of creating new habits in your life and how it can lead to bigger things. I am also very interested in gardening right now, so we are working on a piece called “Ghost Orchid,” which is about an orchid flower that is almost extinct. We have big skirts and are creating images of moving blooms.
NHN: New projects?
TC: The piece I am working on, “Ghost Orchid,” will be launching in February at all the competitions. The team will perform it for the Lake Nona Town Center’s Oh, What Fun! Christmas performance as well. We might implement a wintry feel into it to make it festive for the holidays.
Our other project is teaming up with the Lake Nona Performance Center to offer new hip hop and jazz dance classes in their studio facilities. Parents can work out in the gym, and their kids can be trained in dance at the same time. You could enroll with our studio and get the class schedule for the Lake Nona Performance Center. Hip hop is with a teacher named Ms. Steffie, who is phenomenal! And jazz is going to be with Ms. Taegan, who is also a local biology teacher at Lake Nona High School! The age bracket for the classes is about seven to 10 years old.
NHN: What inspired you to create art in Lake Nona?
TC: I knew there was nothing right here in the heart of Lake Nona. There are options in Saint Cloud or Lee Vista, but there was nothing for these wonderful families and kids. There are many great people in Lake Nona, and I like to dive into the community and get to know people who are close by. I knew providing dance classes right here would do that, and we have been able to plug into a lot of different community outlets.
NHN: How could someone contact you?
TC: They could use the chacedancecompany.com website if they are interested in any classes or joining us. There is a waitlist, but if you fill out that contact form, you will automatically go on the waitlist and we will reach out to you when something opens.
