About
Our Mission
The Sidney Dance Company is a non-profit, pre-professional, youth dance organization dedicated to providing dance education, performance opportunities, community outreach, and appreciation for the performing arts in Shelby County and throughout the surrounding areas.
About Us
It was with this in mind that Sharon Arnold and six of her young dance students began the development of a repertory dance group in 1980. This group, growing to fifteen members by close of 1980, started performing for local service clubs, schools, and other organizations in and around Sidney. The enthusiasm with which these performances were received resulted in the fully chartered, non-profit organization, Sidney Dance Company.
Today, the Sidney Dance Company is a semi-professional theatre company providing classes in ballet, jazz, modern, tap, acrobatics and vocal/musical performance. All positions within the company are auditioned each year, with members ranging in age from 10-18 years old. Our members are from the Miami and Shelby counties. Each member is held to strict academic and behavioral requirements. Beyond the stage, our members learn leadership, self-discipline, civic duty, confidence and so much more!
Board of Directors
Sharon Eikenberry (President)
Claudia Fox (Vice-President)
Missy Francis (Treasurer)
Tracy Gover (Secretary)
Maureen Joines
Sherry Moran
McKensie Osborne
Molly McFarland (Artistic Director)
Suzanne Lentz (Emeritus)
Judy Westerheide (Emeritus)
Productions
For our 2023-2024 season, the Sidney Dance Company will stage two productions: the classical ballet, The Nutcracker, and the musical Anastasia. SDC will also have an end of year Showcase in May. Click here for more information on these productions.
Putting together high-quality productions with backdrops, props, sets costumes, stage makeup, lights, sound, rentals, etc. incurs quite a bit of cost. While we sell tickets to our productions, we strive to keep prices affordable so people of all socioeconomic backgrounds can attend. That is where our sponsorships and donor dollars help bridge the gap. We would be unable to perform without our generous sponsors and donors!
Dance and Theatre Workshops
During the season, the Sidney Dance Company provides funds towards professional workshops for our members. These workshops are primarily held in Sidney. It’s a great opportunity for our members to have world class training from around the country. Every three to four years, our company works towards a trip where they can visit professional theaters and dance studios and take intensive workshops on site. We have supported intensive dance workshops from B&H Movement and Walt Disney World. For our 2018-2019 season, company members traveled to Chicago, IL to participate in multiple intensive workshops in ballet, modern and aerial dance.
Local Educators
As a nonprofit organization, the Sidney Dance Company invests in a local business to train their dancers each season. Our members take a minimum of five classes each week through Sharon’s School of Dance. We have created a partnership where the Sidney Dance Company pays a minimum of half of the tuition of each of our members so that they can be properly trained without the strain of finding funds to do so. If they are unable to cover the other half of the tuition, they can utilize our Dance Scholarship program to cover additional costs. Fortunately, our area has talented instructors. The required company classes are taught by professionals in ballet, pointe, jazz, tap, contemporary, and musical theater each week. Our members are also invited to expand beyond those required classes and attend additional classes like hip-hop and partnering free of charge. When it’s showtime, we hire professional directors, choreographers, music directors, conductors, pianists, orchestras, and sound and lighting designers. These individuals can interact with our cast and allow them to learn about all aspects of show productions.
Parent Guild
Membership with the Sidney Dance Company is a family affair. Company parents are part of a guild that is the backbone of our organization. Parents build sets, organize fundraisers, design programs, seek donations, chaperone trips, and so much more! Through these parents hard efforts, the Sidney Dance Company is able to lower some of the costs associated with classes each quarter. Without our strong volunteer base, our organization wouldn’t be possible.