“If dance is to dream, then YOU make the dreams come true!”

I am so proud of all of our students at Happiness Is…Dancing for their love of dance and for continuing to strive to make their dreams come true.  As the excitement of recitals is upon us, I take the time to reflect on the successes we have had over the past year.  Not only have we all learned new dance steps and moves, but we have bonded as a team, with new friendships that will last a lifetime.

These friendships are not only between our dancers, but between the parents as well.  Our teaching staff at HID strive to bring the best out in all of our students, and to bring them to the next level in the arts.  Our teachers attend training courses throughout the year to make sure we are able to bring new and exciting techniques to our classes.  I want to thank our teachers for their dedication and the inspiration that they instill in our team of talented singers and dancers.

I can’t say thank you enough to the parents of our students at HID!  You are definitely a very dedicated group of individuals.  It is you who bring our dancers and vocalists to class, and watch through the glass to see faces light up when they figure out a new step.  It is you who practice with them at home, to make sure they have their routines in order.  It is you who supports the studio with fundraising and helps out wherever you are needed.

Another big thank you goes to all for the support received from staff, students, and parents when my Aunt Judy, my front desk employee for over 10 years, fell ill with cancer.  You never know what you can handle until things are thrown at you, but it sure makes it easier to deal with when you surround yourself with positive people.

Lastly I want to thank all of our loyal HID family who follow us to our new home in September 2011.  We will prove to you all that it is truly what’s inside that counts!

Please sit back and enjoy the show because…  “Coming together is a beginning.  Keeping together is progress.  Working together is success.”

Congratulations - HID Competitive Team - 2010-11

The Competitive Team at Happiness is…Dancing consists of 61 talented dancers ranging in age from 6-17 years of age and they are all truly dedicated to the art of dance!  Their hard work and passion for dance was shown in the amazing results from the three competitions they attended this past season:  Candance in Mississauga; Terpsichore Dance Celebration in Sault Ste. Marie; and the American Dance Awards in Ottawa.  The HID dance team was once again extremely successful at all of these events.

They continue to impress year after year and this year they left a huge impression, winning their first ever Senior Dance Off Championship at Candance with their Senior/Intermediate Ballet routine, Violin Concerto, while our Intermediate Tappers came home 2^nd Overall in the Junior Dance Off with their routine 5 Guys Named Moe.  The team was also awarded with several overall awards in Sault Ste. Marie, and Ottawa.

It will be a busy summer for many of our HID team members.  Several of our dancers are heading to Boston this summer to participate in the ADA National Title Finals.  Each had to qualify through the regional events in Ottawa, Toronto, and Hamilton.  We wish them all Good Luck!

In addition to Nationals, six of our younger dancers will be participating in the Ballet Summer Intensive Training program with the National Ballet of Canada and the Quinte Ballet School in Belleville.  They were successful in earlier auditions and now have an opportunity to earn a position in the full year professional school program.  We wish them all the best!

This past fall we had two of our team members represent Canada in Germany at the IDO World Tap Championship.  Anthony Madison was awarded a Gold and is the new World Junior Tap Champion.  Anthony competed with his sister Megan and together their duet finished second, winning them a Silver Medal. Congratulations to them both on this wonderful achievement.

In addition to many of our competitive dancers winning scholarships at various dance workshops throughout the year, we are proud to announce that Kaylee Cacciotti won Protégé at the Pulse Convention as well as Dancer of the Weekend at Coastal Dance Rage.

Once again this proves that with all the hard work from the teachers and dancers, combined with the commitment from the parents, that this team is able to reach their full potential and have fun in the process.  Congratulations again to our 2010-2011 teams.

Now please sit back and enjoy their wonderful talents.

Lori Cacciotti