Nearly two years after Hurricane Milton forced The Dance Center from its longtime home, the Brandon dance studio is celebrating not simply a recovery, but a new chapter.
On Saturday, October 17, The Dance Center will host A Night in Paris, an elegant evening of dinner, dessert and inspiring dance performances featuring students from the studio’s upper-level programs. The event will serve as both a fundraiser and a celebration of how far the studio has come since Hurricane Milton — and where it is headed next.
When Hurricane Milton flooded The Dance Center’s previous facility in October 2024, the studio was forced to leave its home and operate from temporary spaces while searching for a permanent solution. What followed was a season of uncertainty, transition and rebuilding.
Today, The Dance Center is operating from its new home on Bryan Road in Brandon, where its programs continue to grow. The studio serves dancers from young children through adults, with training in ballet, jazz, tap, modern and other styles. Its upper-level programs are developing dancers through increasingly rigorous training and performance opportunities.
A Night in Paris is intended to give the community an intimate look at that growth.
Different from our traditional large-scale recital, the evening will feature a curated selection of performances from The Dance Center’s advanced dancers, allowing guests to experience the artistry, discipline and dedication that develop through years of training.
For The Dance Center, the significance of the evening extends beyond the performances themselves.
“We don’t want to simply say that we survived Hurricane Milton,” said Hannah Townend, co-owner and director of The Dance Center. “We want to show what has happened since then. We’ve grown, we’ve rebuilt and we’re moving into something new. This is about looking beyond recovery and toward the heights we’re capable of reaching.”
The studio’s mission is to inspire excellence of character through excellence in dance in students of all ages. That mission continues to shape the studio as it enters this next era, with an emphasis on strong technical training, character development, artistic growth and meaningful opportunities for dancers to perform.
A Night in Paris will include dinner, dessert, a raffle and performances by dancers from The Dance Center’s upper-level programs. Proceeds will support the continued growth and development of the studio.
The Dance Center is located at 911 Bryan Rd. in Brandon. Tickets are $37 per person and are available to the public. For tickets and event information, visit www.brandondance.com.
You must be logged in to post a comment.