May 8, 2017

Meet Sara Thurber of South Shore Dance Academy in Weymouth

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sara Thurber.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Sara. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I began dancing at the age of 3 at a local studio in Manomet, MA. Within a couple years, the teacher there suggested that I take ballet lessons. I began taking ballet at a studio in downtown Plymouth and then eventually attended a summer program called Children’s Ballet Workshop, which was run by Nan Keating. Mrs. Keating soon became the principle at the Norwell Boston Ballet Studio. She encouraged my mom to have me try out for their year-round, pre-professional program. I auditioned and was accepted into their intensive ballet program. I danced at the Boston Ballet School for 7 years and was fortunate enough to participate in The Nutcracker, Paquita, Sleeping Beauty, Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Firebird. While dancing at Boston Ballet, I was also competing regionally and nationally with the Patti Eisenhauer Dance Center, located in Franklin, MA. After graduating high school, I danced throughout college but was pursuing a career in psychology. I received my Master’s degree in mental health counseling from Suffolk University in 2011 and worked as a therapist for a couple of years, while teaching dance on the side. After a few years in the mental health field, I realized that teaching dance was my true passion, so I decided to open South Shore Dance Academy in 2013. It has been an incredibly rewarding career thus far!

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has not always been a smooth road for me and my career. I struggled with the decision to open a dance studio because I had spent so much time in school for psychology. Not only did I go to college for psychology, but I went to Suffolk and received two Master’s degrees. But with the support of my mother, I decided to open South Shore Dance Academy.

South Shore Dance Academy – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
South Shore Dance Academy is a dance studio for children ages 1-18. We offer Mommy (or Daddy) and Me classes for children ages 1-3, creative movement, pre-dance, ballet, tap, jazz, and hip hop. We also have a community service team that performs throughout the year, particularly around Christmastime. That team performs at local churches, school events, nursing homes, and also raises money for charity every December. This team is unlike any other dance team that you will find in the area. The dancers here are kind, considerate, and truly value giving back to their communities.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
It’s hard to decide on just one moment as my proudest so far. Just opening the studio at the age of 26 was a huge accomplishment for me, especially considering that I have never run a dance studio before…I’ve only worked as a teacher. Within the next year we will begin competing at some local competitions. I think that seeing my students up on stage will be a very proud moment for me. But for now, every time a student accomplishes something that they have previously been unable to do – THAT is what makes me the most proud.

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