A place to live, work, play & dance

Second Story Dance & Co. embarks on new chapter in downtown Seguin

Story by Cindy Aguirre-Herrera Photos by Jarred Kindles

A local woman is taking dancing in Seguin to a whole new level or in this case, to the second floor.

After a 42-year long history, Second Story Dance & Co. is not only the newest chapter for the former Suzi Hughson School of Dance, but also the latest addition of progress that can be seen in downtown Seguin with its new location at 106 W. Donegan St.

Leading the dance company’s charge into the future is Owner Amanda Gold Henk. Henk, who has owned the studio for several years, says the welcoming of this new future, ironically, comes with a few similarities to its original beginnings.

“It originally began in 1979 when Suzi Hughson came into Seguin. She actually rented a space directly across the street from me right now on Donegan Street. She was on the second floor of one of the building’s here downtown and in 1982, she was able to purchase a small lot on Koepsel Street and so high school students from the trades department actually built the studio on Koepsel Street and that is where we operated with the studio from 1982 until June 9, of 2021. So, that’s where we had been and when I told Ms. Suzi that I had this opportunity to go downtown and I told her exactly where it was, she said ‘well, that is directly

across the street from where I first started teaching.’ So, it literally became a full circle all the way around. Where she started is where I’m starting - what we call the Second Story and she was so excited about it and it seemed like it was meant to be for sure,” said Henk.

Henk says with a new studio location also comes an entirely new identity – an identity that has already been embraced with a warm welcome.

“I actually bought the studio from her in 2005 and since I stayed in the same location that she had been in for so many years, I kind of was under the impression of if it’s not broke, don’t fix it. So, I kept the name the same because it was such a prominent name for dance in Seguin but Ms. Suzi and I had already talked about it when I did that -that if we were ever to change locations, since the studio was mine that I would change the name. The blessing was there the whole time I had the studio even 16 years after the fact, I decided that I still needed her blessing to not only move from that location but to change the name and she said ‘Oh, stop honey! Yes, it’s about time you finally did it. It’s yours. It’s been yours. Make it your own now.’ And that’s when we decided to drop Suzi Hughson School of Dance and go with the new name,” said Henk.

Photo by Jarred Kindles

Henk says her investment in the studio is more than just about her love for dance. It represents who she is today. Not only did she start as a student in 1985, but she has maintained a role with the studio for the past 36 years.

Henk says the move and renovation of the downtown building are simply the results of years of dreaming and longing for more.

“It had always been, I guess a dream to have a bigger location. I felt that if I was able to offer two dance rooms instead of one, I could give more dancers an opportunity to participate and that we can just offer so much more. I have so many dance friends that are in Austin and Houston and Dallas and even in San Antonio, they operate two and three rooms because there’s so many dancers that want to participate and I always felt that with just having one dance room, it was limiting what we could do, and it had been my dream ever since I took over in 2005 and even before that with Ms. Suzi as my teacher, that was always such a fun dream to have and one day, I just sketched out a studio that had two dance rooms and just different things that I had always wished for and I always kept it in my filing cabinet at the studio on Koepsel Street,” said Henk.

Getting to today; however, was not that easy, nor was it overnight.

“And after a couple of setbacks throughout the years, I had a life changing event happen and my husband now, after I got remarried, he said ‘why don’t you try it?’ I was brought the idea of having a bigger studio and it was a very scary situation because I was in a new part of my life and he said, ‘I think you can do it. I know you can do it in fact. Give it a shot!’ So, I took that leap of faith and here we are,” said Henk.

Henk says although it took about a year to get her plan off the ground, she knew the 12 months was nothing compared to the 10 years that they had operated in an outgrown Koepsel location. She says the location was not only operating at capacity, but it was also land locked and unavailable for any future growth.

Henk says the decision behind this leap of faith has proven to be more than just accomplishing her personal goals that were tucked away in that filing cabinet. She says it’s about ensuring another 40 plus years of dancing and all while positioned in the heart of the community.

Photo by Jarred Kindles

“You’ve got me all emotional thinking about it,” said Henk. “By moving down here, it not only brought life to downtown, but it also brought life back into me as a teacher and as a business owner – the kids that I get to see throughout the week, which we’re over 200 strong and it just makes my heart so full. The joy and the happiness that just fills these old walls – you can tell it breathes a breath of fresh air back into this corner especially, but we are a collection of every walk of life, every age, from 18 months all the way to adulthood – of just individuals sharing the love of dance and the love of learning and growing and spending time with each other.”

Henk says the relocation of the dance studio to the historic downtown building only allows for more offerings for all those who want to dance like someone “is” watching.

“Right now, we have only one adult class and it’s adult jazz but my goal is to expand that even being able to offer lunch hour type sessions where they can come in and take a class whether down the line it be Pilates or a Zumba type (program) or even if they wanted to take a lunch break for jazz or ballet or anything to help them when they actually have time because I know a lot of adults, a lot of them are dance moms and so when they are here, they are focused on making sure their dancers are in class and taken care of and so for that 45 minutes, it’s just to take a break to be themselves. So, I hope to expand that throughout the week for them,” said Henk.

Since their official move in mid-September, Henk says the response from her dance families and the community has just been incredible.

Photo by Jarred Kindles

“It’s overwhelming, absolutely overwhelming. There are a few classes that we have waiting list for right now if they can’t make the new classes that we started on Saturdays. From our three-year-olds to our eight-year-olds, our classes are just full. I can’t accept any more students, unfortunately, unless they come on Saturdays if that class is available. I see so many new faces which just makes me so happy that Seguin has seen a reenergizing and a rebirth of our community expanding with all the new subdivisions and the new opportunities with the brand-new high school. Seguin is finally coming to its potential and I can’t wait for everyone to be a part of it,” said Henk.

Also, since their move, interest in the program has obviously grown. New class sign-up, however, won’t likely be ready until the first of the year or until mid-spring.

Now although things are brand new, Henk says she is already planning for what’s next for Second Story Dance & Co. But before any of those dance steps are taken, Henk says she’ll just quietly take her place on the dance floor and enjoy what surrounds her today.

“There’s nothing like standing in our big dance room and looking out those windows and seeing Central Park with the fountain lit up especially right now. There’s nothing like it. It’s the most relaxing, amazing feeling of just being able to dance right there and look out the window and know that my dream of being downtown finally came true,” said Henk. •

Photo by Jarred Kindles