Torrington’s newest dance and performing arts studio is hosting an open house Saturday June 18th and June 19th from 2pm to 5pm (both days). Boasting two practice rooms and a reception area, Papermoon Performing Arts at 1447 New Litchfield St in Torrington is ready for the public to explore the 1350 square foot space.

This performing arts studio has been a dream of Danielle Eichman, the founder, since early childhood. ” I’ve wanted to have a dance studio ever since I was 4,” says Eichman. “I used to imitate my dance teachers at home and I have notebooks filled with choreography that date back about 15 years ago.” Over the course of Eichman’s career she has taught as well as performed. “I had the opportunity to begin teaching my freshman year of college and ever since teaching my very first class, my desire to teach was confirmed. As the years progressed, I continued to teach at local dance studios, falling more and more in love with teaching. There is nothing like seeing a student finally get that one step they were struggling with, or seeing a student at a whole new level of dance after a year of training, or going to competition and having your student dance their heart out and leave everything they have on that stage.” Eichman has won Top Teacher awards at various regional and national competitions.

Danielle Eichman’s new studio opened this year under the banner “Papermoon Performing Arts”. The name Papermoon came from the song of the same name, a song that holds a deep personal resonance for Eichman.  “The song (Paper Moon) talks about how the people around you can shape your experiences. With the right people around you, the paper moon and the card-board sea become real, tangible things. I think it also means that with the support, belief, and love of others, things that seem out of reach are actually not so far away.”

Primarily a dance studio, the studio is called a “performing arts” studio because there will be courses throughout the year that focus on other aspects of the arts. Currently the studio is offering screen-writing classes for adults taught by actor/director duo Michael Mederios and Ilvi Dulack. Eichman hopes to add acting, modern dance, musical theatre, pageant training as the studio progresses.

The studio has enjoyed positive word of mouth from students about the faculty which includes Danielle Eichman and Miss Mackenzie, the assistant instructor.  During the open house on June 18th and 19th,  visitors will be able to learn more about the programming activities as the studio ramps up for an eventful summer program. There will be Disney dance camps and a Princess Ballet Camp. Of special interest is the Summer Dance Sampler summer session from July 19-22nd. With age groups 5-8, 9-12 and 13-18, each age group will have the opportunity to try different genres of dance.  They will learn traditional tap, jazz, ballet, and lyrical, but the studio is also offering lessons in improvisation techniques and choreography where students learn exactly what goes in to choreographing a routine. Following the “Sampler” will be a concentrated program July 25-August 5th. The Dance Intensive is designed to focus on only one type of dance for a full hour and half, diving completely into that subject and allowing dancers to get very specialized training.

In the fall, Papermoon Performing Arts will host two distinct programs, one that is recreational and one that is competitive. “Personally, I love dance competition, but I realize it is not for everyone,” says Eichman. “Our recreational dancers will be offered the same quality dance education as our competitive dancers without the commitment of competition. Our competition team will travel to local dance competitions to compete for awards and get feedback from industry professionals.

Asked “Can anyone dance?”, Eichman’s reply is a resounding ” Yes of course! I designed my studio to try and offer something for everyone. We have our recreational and competition classes for ages 3-18. We also offer a complete adult program for people who either used to dance or have always wanted to dance with classes in Ballet, Tap, and Jazz. We also have an awesome Ballroom Dance Program for beginner/intermediate ballroom dancers and a kids ballroom program opening up in the fall. We also offer dance fitness programs of Zumba and Barre Fitness (we are proud to be the only studio in the area to offer Barre Fitness).

Contact Papermoon  for further details including pricing information on the web at www.papermoonperformingarts.com , or call 203-707-8428 or email papermoonperformingarts@gmail.com or better still, come to the Open House and find out more about this amazing new studio space!