Dads, daughters dance together through Premiere Dance Academy program

Prior Lake American

“The Devil Went Down to Georgia” blasted through the speakers of the Prior Lake High School auditorium on May 29.

On stage, men clad in black pants, white tank tops and denim jackets danced around the stage. At one point, one of the men dabbed. Cheers rose up from the audience throughout the performance including, “go, dads!”

The men were running through a dress rehearsal for the Premiere Dance Academy recitals, scheduled for June 1-3. More than 230 fathers and daughters participate in the academy’s “Dads and Dollz” program, which allows fathers to practice and perform dances with their daughters who are enrolled in the academy.

“I do think the moments they spend with their daughter for this one hour a week are just so special,” Premiere Dance Academy owner Dawn Schulberg said. “The daughters teach the dads, the dads teach the daughters. You just can’t beat that connection.”

The program started in the late 1990s with a group of 16 men. The next year, the program more than tripled to 50 fathers.

“If other dads could step into the world for the day, we’d go from 250 to 500,” said Chris Ford, who has danced in the program for seven years. “Every dad would want to do it again.”

The academy’s program is the largest in the nation, according to research Schulberg has done — and she’s done quite a bit of research on it. Ford said he’s seen one other similar program that had about 30 people.

The group competes, as well. In the last competition, the “Dads and Dollz” won first place overall.

Shawn Boyce, who has been involved with the program for seven years, said he got into “Dads and Dollz” to have a set amount of time to be with his daughter.

“My son is heavy into sports, so my time has always been toward the sports side,” Boyce said. “This gave me an opportunity to spend 45 minutes a week where it’s just her and me. ... Anybody can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a dad. That’s kind of why I think all of us do it.”

Rod Boone, who has danced in the program for nine years, said “Dads and Dollz” strengthens the connection he had with his daughters in a way that might not have been possible without the program.

“The mother-daughter relationship is impenetrable — you will never get to be in that inner circle,” Boone said. “When they do step outside of that, there’s a different connection, kind of like a protector-type figure they lean on to get through something ... and dance helps bond that confidence that, ‘my dad is there for me, he’s a goofball but he’s having fun and we’re doing it together.’ It reinforces that.”

Boyce said his dad danced with his older sister, who is now 62 years old and still remembers and talks about dancing with their dad. Mike Pocrnich, who has danced for six years in the program, said that’s a reason for fathers to participate.

“Our daughters will remember this and that’s something to think about,” Pocrnich said. “I have two daughters and as they have grown older they’ve started spreading their wings and doing their own thing. This is guarded time ... I don’t think you can put a value on that — and that’s something I think you undervalue when you get into this, how meaningful it can be.”

Apart from the time with their daughters, the program helps teach the fathers how to be more confident, Boyce said.

“There can’t be another situation where you’d be nervous,” Boyce said. “You step out in front of 500 people and you wiggle your butt and do all these goofy things — where else are you going to get nervous?”

To participate in the programs, the daughters have to be at least 8 years old. Once another dance dad’s daughter turns eight, it becomes a campaign to get them involved in “Dads and Dollz,” though some dads are initially apprehensive.

“I think they think it’s about their dancing ability — it has nothing to do with that,” Ford said. “There are guys that can dance and there’s guys that have absolutely no rhythm ... but they think that’s what it’s about and it’s not. ... Your daughter really, really, really (wants) you to do this. It’s not about you, it has nothing to do with you. As soon as you get past that, you realize why you’re there.”

Ford said he talks to dads who are still deciding and tells them that he’ll hear a random song on the radio and remember that he danced with his daughter to that song.

“A random song will come on and you’ll remember it,” Ford said. “It doesn’t matter how many years later.”

Not only do the fathers dance with their own daughters, but some will volunteer to dance with girls who don’t have fathers that want to be involved with the program.

“We promote community, we promote loving, caring environments and fun and instruction as well,” Schulberg said. “For not just the dads and daughters, but all the kids. We care a lot about our dancers and what their needs are.”

The group rehearses every Sunday starting in January up until the recitals in June and compete in one competition in May. This year, there are a total of seven dances, including one consisting of four or five dads doing a sort of interpretative dance.

“Basically, the girls want to see you just hang out with them,” Ford said. “You kind of make a fool of yourself sometimes, but it’s all in good fun.”

The Premiere Dance Academy recitals are Friday, Saturday and Sunday throughout each day at the Prior Lake High School auditorium. Tickets are $18 at the door. Dads and Dollz perform on Sunday. A full performance schedule can be found at www.premieredanceacademy.com.