Performing arts classes in Canterbury
Fun, supportive, and professional classes to inspire every student.
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Our classes
At our Canterbury Performing Arts School, we offer a wide range of classes for all ages and abilities. Whether your child dreams of performing on stage or simply wants to build confidence, fitness, and creativity, there’s a class for everyone.
Students can explore Classical Ballet, Modern & Jazz, Tap, Contemporary, Hip Hop, Commercial Jazz, Drama, Musical Theatre, Acrobatics, Tumbling, and Singing. See further details regarding each discipline below…
Each class is designed to be fun, supportive, and challenging at the right level.
Our teachers follow respected syllabi and proven training programs, ensuring every student gets a strong foundation in technique while also enjoying the freedom to express themselves. From first steps in performing arts to advanced training, we provide a safe and inspiring environment where students can learn, grow, and shine.
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Classes
Classical Ballet
Classical Ballet encourages poise, discipline and confidence, and pupils can start as young as age 3 in our ‘Baby Ballet’ classes.
We follow the I.S.T.D syllabus up through the grades, and from then onwards, study the prestigious R.A.D Vocational Grades (taught by Mrs. Jenny Farrow) and run classes for all levels up to Advanced 2 R.A.D.
Students can start Ballet at any age, we even offer a popular beginner class for adults.
Ballet is a very important discipline and students wishing to take up any form of technical dance are advised to take ballet alongside it. Class exercises are designed to increase strength, mobility and turn out, giving the distinctive classical line required for ballet. The discipline required for ballet develops a heightened sense of grace and fluidity.
Modern & jazz technique
Students can start Modern at the age of 4, where they learn the fundamental skills towards the theatre style and begin to follow the syllabus offered by the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (I.S.T.D.) Modern dance is a rhythmic dance style often seen on the stages of musical productions.
The style combines travelling steps, kicks, leaps and turns to create stylish jazz routines.
Once students are 6, they have the opportunity to take ‘Jazz Technique’ alongside their syllabus class, where we focus specifically on kicks, leaps and turns technique.
We are a certified ‘Pirouette Surgery’ and ‘Leap Surgery’ studio. We have classes that cater up to an advanced level.
Tap
This has evolved as an American dance form, popularised throughout the world, with debate about its origins coming from African dance, Irish dance and/or clog dancing.
The dancer uses their feet to strike the floor, beating out different rhythms, with dancers wearing tap shoes which have small metal plates on the toe and heel to give the distinctive sound.
Tap dance is a theatrical art form often seen on stage in musicals. We offer Tap classes from age 4 upwards. We also offer separate ‘Adult Tap’ classes at an advanced level.
Singing
Private, one to one singing classes are available throughout the week for any age. Get in touch for availability.
Singers are then invited to be part of our annual show- ‘PPA Presents’, at The Gulbenkian Theatre, and are encouraged to audition for our full scale musicals throughout the year.
Group singing is part of the Musical Theatre classes (see below for details) and we offer a combined Singing and Drama class for those aged 4-5 yrs.
Contemporary
The name “Contemporary Dance” describes a range of techniques and styles used in classes, workshops and dance choreography.
Our classes cover ‘Limon Technique’, ‘Release’, ‘Martha Graham’, ‘Flying Low’, ‘Cunningham’ and new modern Contemporary techniques. Students wishing to take contemporary must also be taking a ballet class.
We offer Contemporary for those in Grade 3 Ballet, up to an advanced level. An example of our contemporary can be found here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUsoBPsdzY8, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uR3jORiqZws
Drama
We offer drama classes for those aged 6 upwards. (We offer a combined Singing and Drama class for those aged 4-5) The students work on the L.A.M.D.A syllabus and have the option to take exams throughout the year and every other year are part of our full scale plays at The Gulbenkian Theatre.
The classes explore the students own imagination and charcterisation as well as creativity at the same time as workshopping movement and the physicality of the actor. The ability to act requires technique just like singing and dance.
We cover these aspects, such as colour words, pronunciation, accent, etc, and characterisation. All areas are required to become a strong actor.
For examples follow these links …
Romeo & Juliet at St Augustine’s Abbey
Hard Boiled (our awarding winning film, created by our senior drama class)
Musical theatre
In the musical theatre classes, we work on ‘acting-through-song’ with vocal technique and occasional movement.
We take a number from a musical and work on it over a period of a few weeks. It involves learning the song (often complex harmonies) looking at the character behind the number and piecing it together with the appropriate movement/dance and performance skills.
We use pieces from musicals of all ages. Here are a couple of examples of a) working on harmony pieces https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3cbYCqllGo, and b) working on solo intensions, so acting through song https://www.instagram.com/p/BKqV2IXAUVu/?taken-by=s_guariglia and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOLI6nNab_g
Hip Hop and commercial jazz
We run a very popular Hip hop class combining old school with the latest hip hop styles.
This includes hip hop, house, locking, waacking, L.A style, popping, locking and many more forms of street dance. Be prepared for a quick paced class! We have classes open from beginner to advanced.
Students can begin classes at age 4 and we also run a separate beginner ‘Adult Hip Hop’ class. We also have a new advanced Commercial Jazz class for those wishing to take commercial alongside their hip hop training.
Commercial Jazz is a blend of commercial style street dance and jazz technique, including turns, kicks and floorwork. Examples of classes can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xl7HS9rErw, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pjku7LRUZMw
Acrobatics and tumbling
We run acro and tumbling classes from age 4 and up. Acro dance incorporates gymnastic moves like handstands and cartwheels and handsprings into dance routines- blending musicality and expression with line, extension and acrobatic tricks. Tumbling is a form of gymnastics performed without props or equipment, also referred to as floor gymnastics, common moves performed in tumbling include flips, somersaults, tucks, handstands and handsprings.
Our teacher Craig Wildman is a highly sought after, Level 2 British Gymnastics tumble coach with a Level 3 Module 1 add on, and a Level 3 Acrobatics coach. See the link for an example of Tumbling classes at PPA, https://www.instagram.com/p/BLbEH7MF4gC/?taken-by=s_guariglia
Stretch and conditioning
Flexibility is big part of dance, and allows access to more steps and more advanced moves.
We follow the Alixa Flexibility program which is specifically focused on safe, effective stretching for age 6 to adult.
These exercises are applied mainly in jazz, ballet, contemporary and acro classes.
However, flexibility is no good without the strength to support it, so strength and conditioning is also a big part of every class.