Good Neighbor Podcast: Cobb County

E58: The Art of Building Dance Dreams for All

• Milli M. & Kayla Stubbs • Episode 58

Share episode

What makes a dance studio truly exceptional? According to Kayla Stubbs, founder of Dancer's Dream House in Austell, Georgia, it's about creating more than just a place to learn steps—it's about building a diverse community where young dancers from all backgrounds can flourish together.

Dancer's Dream House opened its doors in 2022 with a clear mission: provide quality dance education in ballet, tap, jazz, and hip hop for children ages 3-10 while emphasizing diversity and inclusion. "A huge part of our mission is promoting diversity and just really being a melting pot of personalities, different backgrounds, skin tones, even down to just upbringings," Kayla explains. This commitment fills a crucial gap in the local dance education landscape.

Kayla's journey from childhood figure skater to dance studio owner wasn't without significant challenges. After establishing her first location in Powder Springs, unexpected obstacles forced her to relocate. Rather than giving up, she used this setback as an opportunity for growth, moving to the Threadmill Complex in Austell where city officials and community members have embraced her vision. "Sometimes you need to put that pride aside and realize these things can happen, and you just need to make a decision: Are you going to keep going or put it down?" This resilience embodies the spirit that makes Dancer's Dream House special—a place where dreams persist through challenges.

Beyond dispelling misconceptions about dance being exclusive or unaffordable, Kayla creates connections through personal engagement with local schools and community events. As she beautifully summarizes, "Dancer's Dream House isn't just a place. It's the people in it, it's all the pieces that make up our beautiful dream house." Ready to join this vibrant dance community? Visit dancersdreamhouse.com or find them on social media @DancersDreamhouse to learn how your child can become part of this inspiring story!

Speaker 1:

This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Millie M.

Speaker 2:

Hello everybody, Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. I'm your host, Millie M. Are you in need of an exciting, dynamic dance studio? Well, one might be closer than you think. I have the pleasure of introducing your good neighbor, Kayla Stubbs of Dancer's Dream House. How are you, Kayla?

Speaker 3:

I'm doing well. I'm doing well, Millie. Thank you for having me today.

Speaker 2:

Absolutely.

Speaker 3:

We are so excited to learn all about you and your business. Tell us more about Dancer's Dreamhouse. Well, Dancer's Dreamhouse officially started back in 2022. We are a local dance studio in Austell, Georgia. We serve ages three and up. Our primary base of students are three to 10 years old. We offer classes in ballet, tap, jazz and hip hop. A huge part of our mission is promoting diversity in our school and just really being a melting pot of personalities, different backgrounds, skin tones, even down to just upbringings, and just various demographics just various demographics. Uh, we really do have, um, an array of students and families in our program. Uh, so that was really something that I strive to have for our program and, um, I'm glad that I'm able to fulfill that for this community, which was missing that.

Speaker 2:

That's so great that you work with the itty bitties and you're focused on diversity. That's amazing that you're exposing them to that. So what got you into this? Are you a trained dancer or what I?

Speaker 3:

am actually, um, I started when I was an itty bitty but, um, you know, work sometimes parents work, schedules and my personality. I'm very out there and I wasn't really great at paying attention because I got so bored easily. So I went and eventually got into ice skating, which was interesting. I wanted to be a figure skater and I did that for a few years. A figure skater and I did that for a few years, took a little pause, decided to try dance and I thought it would go together. I'm like, okay, figure skating, dance, let's do both. And dance just really was where my passion truly was.

Speaker 2:

So that's where I stayed so glad that you found that, and there are very similar figure skating and dancing. So what are some of the myths or misconceptions about your industry or what you do in particular?

Speaker 3:

That it's not for everyone. We dance is one of those art forms that is relatable to each person in its own way. There are so many genres and ways to interpret music and movement that it really isn't just for one type of person, someone of a certain background or upbringing. It really can extend to all walks of life. To be honest, a huge misconception is that it's not affordable and it just depends and it just depends. There are so many different places and programs out there for different communities.

Speaker 2:

You really just need to look and find that one that fits you best, absolutely. I think a lot of times it comes down to priority, because we do spend our money in various places.

Speaker 3:

So just looking at a priority and movement from 40 to 93 is very important, right, and there's scholarship opportunities that are out there for certain students and if you have a child who's truly passionate about dancing, you feel like that will be something that's just fulfilling for them.

Speaker 2:

You got to look because it's out there and, like you said, getting all that energy out when you're sitting in a classroom all day is just good to what they say. It spiggles out is what I used to say Of course, of course.

Speaker 3:

And another misconception is you know the chaos and the parents and people watch dance moms, right, it's not like that at all. I mean maybe some places, but it's. It really is up to the owner and the and the director and the team to truly create an environment where people feel comfortable and people feel safe, where friendships can be built and you can really remove or keep away from that level of cattiness and drama just by fostering that environment starting from the top.

Speaker 2:

Yes, reality TV gives us a skewed view of a lot of things. So you say you cater to three to 10. So parents of those age groups are your target customer. They are they are.

Speaker 3:

I'm sorry. How do you reach them? How do I reach them? Most of how I've reached people is in person. I am a talker, so I like to run into random strangers and introduce myself. That's where my primary base comes from. I've extended to social media, of course, because that is where you're going to be able to reach people who you may never have come in contact with. I also like to make myself available at the schools when I can and participate in community events.

Speaker 2:

That's great that you kind of make yourself available to the community and your community staple, as opposed to just a teacher for sure. Exactly so. Outside of work. I'm doing that so many hats. What do you do for fun outside of work?

Speaker 3:

That's a tough question. Only because it seems like I'm only doing Dancer's Dream House 24-7. So if I'm not for some reason doing that, you'll probably find me on my couch watching Netflix and catching up to some of my medical dramas and rom-coms. That's really my jam, so I can just get caught up and go into the screen and, you know, just ignore the world.

Speaker 2:

Netflix is a great way to escape life. For sure I know that.

Speaker 3:

Yes, yes, I mean, I'm wearing. I wear all the hats, like I said, so just taking a moment to Woosah is really nice. I've discovered going on trails now, so that's a new thing to get out there and just be in nature. It's really relaxing.

Speaker 2:

Absolutely. Georgia has a lot of nice hiking trails, I've heard, and I'm looking forward to discovering them. They certainly do Beautiful nature. So let's switch gears a little bit. Can you tell me about a life challenge or obstacle you had to overcome and how it made you stronger?

Speaker 3:

Well, dancer's Dream House, from how it started to where it's at, has definitely been a journey. Dreamhouse, from how it started to where it's at, has definitely been a journey. We started out in the South Cobb Recreation Center and actually even before that we hosted a dance camp in Austell, where we're at now, and that kind of put us out there, started putting our name out there, and then, lo and behold, one day I was like you know what? We need a dance studio, we need a place, a dance studio that we could stay at and make our home. So I went over to Powder Springs and we were there for about a year and a half.

Speaker 3:

We were there for about a year and a half and, you know, things aren't as easy as it looks from the outside until you're in it, and I faced so many challenges that I could not have anticipated, just because I'm a very optimistic person. You know rainbows and butterflies, everything's going to be great, positive. You know, if you build it, they will come and everything was great. But there were some steps that I had missing and in doing, you know, trying to build something, sometimes by yourself, without having the right team in place, can hinder your growth.

Speaker 3:

So we had to, we had to move unexpectedly and that that was a hit for sure, A hit to my, my passion, and a hit to you know, the the dream overall, and but you know, sometimes you, you need to put that, that pride aside and realize like these things can happen and you just need to make a decision Are you going to keep going or are you just going to put it down? So there was a lot of soul searching for for a little bit before I was able to, um, really keep going. And now we are in Austell and we are in the Threadmill Complex and that is where the city of Austell is, the entire city government and that building and the people in the community, they've really been supportive. So I'm happy where we're at right now and we did downscale but in a way we're doing much better. So sometimes you know you got to come back down to build back up.

Speaker 2:

Absolutely. I love that story and I love how you were able to overcome and, like you said, you're in an even better position now. Like you said, you're in an even better position now than you were before, so you were able to turn that challenge around. For your good, do me a favor and tell our listeners one thing you would like for them to always remember about Dancer's Dream House.

Speaker 3:

Oh, always, I want to say always, keep dreaming. Dancer's Dream House isn't just a place Right, it's the, it's the people in it, it's all the pieces that make up our beautiful dream house.

Speaker 2:

Well, thank you so much. Tell everybody again how they can get in touch with you to send their itty bitties to you.

Speaker 3:

Well, you can reach Dancers Dreamhouse or me at reach Dancers Dreamhouse or me at DancersDreamhousecom. You can also give us a call at 678-235-4220. You can reach us by email at info at DancersDreamhousecom and, of course, on Instagram and Facebook at DancersDreamhousecom. Well, not com Dancers Dreamhouse.

Speaker 2:

Appreciate you, kayla. You are such a joy, great energy and just wishing you and your business the best of luck moving forward.

Speaker 3:

Yes, I appreciate it, millie, and I hope you have a wonderful day. Thank you so much for this opportunity.

Speaker 1:

Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gnpcobbcountycom. That's gnpcobbcountycom, or call 470-470-4506.