on the path
By Tess Wells
A Universal Language Photo courtesy of Photography by Jen Zmuda
New Albany speaks dance fluently
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BalletMet dancers
McKenzie says residents of New Albany now have whole dance communities in their own backyards.
“Our dancers will often refer to us as a family,” she says. “In addition to selfconfidence and exercise and all of these
Photo courtesy of Todd Sloan
N
ew Albany is home to many prominent figures and organizations in the world of dance, including an executive director of a worldfamous professional dance company and a school that teaches dancers as young as 2 years old. It hasn’t always been this way. Broadway Bound Dance Centre became the first official dance studio in New Albany when it opened in 1994. Nikki McKenzie says she and her sister, Chrissy Danflous, who co-own the center together, rented a space for $300 when Broadway Bound first began. “In our first year, we had about 50 dancers, which we thought that was great,” McKenzie says. “Now we have 800 dancers, but at the time, we thought 50 was a wonderful start.” Before studios like Broadway Bound, residents of New Albany had to find options outside of the community if they or their children wished to participate in dance. McKenzie and her sister grew up dancing in the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s and had to find a studio in Gahanna. Prospective dance students sometimes had to drive more than 10 miles to the nearest studio just decades ago, but
New Vision Dance Company dancers in Come Dance with Me www.healthynewalbanymagazine.com
