COURT HOUSE – Standing Room Only Studios brings affordable, beginner-friendly dance, tumbling, and cheerleading classes to the heart of Middle Township.
Stephanie Long, the founder of Standing Room Only Studios, wants to bring the joy of dance to anybody who is interested. “If you are interested in what dance has to offer, please come in! If you think you aren’t skilled enough, and can’t make the time commitment, or monetary commitment, you can! We have programs that work for everybody,” she said.
Dance studios have a reputation for being extremely competitive and intense; Stephanie wants to buck that notion. “This is a place where kids and adults can come to have fun,” she said. “Yes, we teach proper technique and progressions, and all of the things that come with a proper dance and cheer education. But we want kids to be excited about their lessons. We want these kids to develop skills that they can take into every aspect of their life.”
She hopes that parents and kids who have never considered dance will give Standing Room Only Studios a chance.
Stephanie has dreamed of opening a dance studio her entire life. She began her professional dance instruction career in 2009 at a Boys and Girls of America club in Union County, New Jersey. “Over 50 people showed up to that first class, and I finally thought: okay, I can do this,” she told the Herald.
Since then, she has hosted dance workshops across New Jersey. She has taught kids and adults the art of dance, cheer, tumbling, musical theater, and other skills that help students learn the joy of movement.
She has a huge heart for students with special needs. For over two years, she taught a special needs hip-hop dance program in Union County. “I’m bringing that here, I’ve seen the joy it brings.” Standing Room Only Studio’s location in Court House offers special-needs specific classes for children and young adults.
To bring the breezy fun of dance to Cape May County, Standing Room Only Studios employs many talented local women with backgrounds in cheerleading, dance, yoga, and dance-related exercise education.
Bryn McMahon is the studio’s head cheerleading coach. “Cheerleading was the first love of my life,” she told the Herald. She was paralyzed at the age of 16, but by becoming an educator, she has found a way to fall back in love with the sport. She coached for several different teams in the Philadelphia Recreation League before coming to Cape May County. Her students love the “can-do” attitude she brings to the mat each week.
“We don’t want anybody coming in here thinking they aren’t good enough, or that they will be cut from teams,” Bryn said.
Kassidy Gagliardi, instructor and choreographer, teaches ballet, jazz, lyrical, tumbling, and sports conditioning and strengthening. Kassidy began her dance training in 2001, and now teaches dance classes across South Jersey.
There’s something for everyone at Standing Room Only Studios. The studio has seven instructors who are excited to work with anybody willing to embrace the free-flowing art of dance.
Standing Room Only Studios welcomes new students of all ages and skill levels. Visit them at 7 N Wildwood Blvd #11 in Cape May Court House, by the new plaza at the North Wildwood bridge intersection on the corner of Route 9 and Indian Trail Road.
