Crystal Kays School of Dance

KAY'S School of Dance has operated for 74 years at the Town & Country Shopping Center in Kettering, Ohio. It is a deliberately small operation: a one-room, one-teacher studio that does not compete, focusing instead on constructive technique-based learning. Owner and director Cheryl Jacobus teaches every class, has been certified for 47 years and is a member of the Chicago National Association of Dance Masters; her approach emphasises positive corrections, self-esteem and dancing to the best of one's ability. Former students have gone on to perform in theatre, dance in college and work with Disney, dinner theatres and Broadway. Classes cover ballet, tap, jazz and baton, with preschool ballet available and separate ladies' exercise, tap and line dance classes for adults. The school holds August open house days ahead of a late-August start, stages a Christmas show and an annual recital, and gives longevity awards to students at three, six and ten years.