Today we’d like to introduce you to Pam Ray.
Hi Pam, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I actually remember the first time I walked into a dance room at the age of six when I accompanied my mom to dance registration. It was like walking into heaven on earth. I trained in ballet, jazz, pointe, tap, and acro for 12 years, then went on to add hip hop, contemporary, and lyrical as I continued my training in AR, TX, TN, & CA. I was a competitive dancer, team captain, choreographer, company performer, and assistant before I began teaching my own classes in college. I was a dance instructor, company director, choreographer, and apprentice mentor before I opened my own studio in Northern California. The studio quickly became a beloved dance home for hundreds and hundreds of families and is still going strong today. It was an extremely difficult yet positive family decision to move back to our Southern roots two years ago. I’m thrilled to bring to the Argyle community my knowledge, passion, decades of experience, and unbridled love for dance. I don’t have plans of ever retiring from dance – they’ll have to bury me with my jazz shoes on!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Other than a couple of small injuries, I’m very grateful not to have come up against any major struggles, but all dancers will come up against “challenges.” One of the biggest challenges for any dancer is finding a studio or dance experience that is a good fit for them. There are sooo many studios, conventions, instructors, and they’re not all necessarily going to be a positive experience or a good personal fit. It’s so easy to get caught up in the studio or instructor’s resume or title that we forget to do an internal check. Perfect example: My sister and I were taking classes in a studio owned by a very accomplished Broadway dancer. Every week, I walked out of there feeling I’d learned nothing and feeling worse and worse about myself. Something about the situation was very deflating. We went on to try another class in another studio taught by a local “unknown,” and to this day count that experience and instructor among our favorites. I think for me the biggest challenge I’ve faced is in my own head. My mother was unbelievably supportive of our dance passion, and I’m so grateful for that! But it took me years to really value teaching dance and to see it as something other than just a passion. Owning my own studio totally changed my outlook when I really became aware of the monumental, positive, sometimes life-altering impact it was having on so many dancers’ and families’ lives. Art in any form is powerful, healing, soulful, life-affirming, and necessary. It took my head a while to catch up with heart in believing that so profoundly.
Another great challenge for me has been learning to find BALANCE in my life. I absolutely love to work, so I have to be very mindful of balancing my dance life with rest, downtime, and self-care.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Dallas West Dance Centre?
We offer dance classes to ages 3 – adult; ballet, jazz, tap, pointe, contemporary, lyrical, hip hop, acro, musical theatre, boys-only hip hop, adaptive classes, Prostyle Prep, & Ballet Fit. We’ll also be offering workshops and intensives for Drill Team Prep, Company Prep, and Auditions Prep. We welcome boys, girls, men and women! The dance world can be very internally competitive, unkind, uncaring, and harsh – and that just doesn’t work for me. I’m committed to always creating an environment in which every single student feels empowered, valued, and important, no matter their individual dance goals – from the dancer taking one class a week for the sheer joy of it to the pre-professional taking 10 classes a week; from the dancer with no natural coordination to the student headed for Broadway. Every single dancer is just as important as the other! Yes, I absolutely expect dancers to follow all studio rules and to learn to be respectful dancers, but this can be done with equal respect toward our students. I hire only experienced, technically excellent, superior instructors who are also kind, approachable, caring human beings. It’s not easy to find, but it’s paramount to my philosophy. Shout out to Miss Elaine Baker of Fort Smith, AR, with whom my sister and I trained for 12 years, who upheld and demonstrated for us the very philosophy I now hold.
Family-friendly, age and level-appropriate costumes, choreography, music, and performances are also a hallmark of our dance home.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out.
My advice for those starting out in the dance world is to DO IT! Follow your passion and give it a try! Try several types of dance until you find the one(s) that you really enjoy.
Try several studios until you find a great fit for you.
Everyone should take at least a year of ballet, as it lays the groundwork for most types of dance.
If you’re starting out as a prospective teacher, the best advice I can give you is to become an assistant/demonstrator/apprentice. It is hands down the best way to learn to teach!
If you’re starting out as a teacher, being extremely organized and overprepared will help you immensely. Also, continue to study, learn, learn, learn through online courses, videos, other instructors, etc.
To all dancers – We live in a culture that loves the arts but doesn’t always value the arts as anything other than a side interest. Don’t buy into this way of thinking if you have a real passion, interest, and love for dance – or, for that matter, ANY style of ART.
Listen to your body, listen to your intuition, and embrace the mind/body/connection that is inherent in dance and all art forms.
To teachers, students, professionals, all dancers – be kind and respectful in all your dance dealings, including to yourself.
Contact Info:
- Website: dallaswestdance.com
- Instagram: dallaswestdance
- Facebook: dallaswestdance
