Expressions School marking decade of dance

POST FALLS – Through the years, Brenda Blankenship has watched over hundreds of students who’ve passed through her halls, where thousands of hours shaped painstaking dance routines and netted numerous awards. As Blankenship’s Expressions School of Dance is set to mark a 10-year anniversary later this year, the studio has plenty to celebrate as their traditions grow right along with enrollment.

In the dance school’s 4,000-square-foot, three-studio facility near the heart of the River City, more than 250 students gather throughout the week for a variety of classes. From hip-hop to classical ballet, and from competitive to recreational programs, the school’s experienced instructors offer anyone of any age an artistic outlet … and a heart-thumping workout.

“I love the passion of it, I love the ability of it, and it’s challenging; dancing is very aerobic,” said Blankenship, 34, who is also an instructor at Expressions.

Blankenship knew her career path from a young age, when as a bouncy youngster she was encouraged by her folks to take up dancing to channel her energy. “I just remember my parents telling me I wouldn’t stop moving around the house, so they put me in dance class,” she recalled. “I’ve been doing it since I was about 4. Growing up, I knew I also loved teaching.”

While growing up in the San Francisco Bay area, Blankenship trained in a variety of dance techniques, including tap, jazz and more contemporary styles exemplified on shows such as “So You Think You Can Dance?” It was with that experience, and some business know-how gleaned from her entrepreneurial father, that Blankenship set out to establish her own school in the Northwest.

After settling in Post Falls in 1997, Blankenship opened Expressions School of Dance in September of the following year. The business venture was in part a way to continue an artistic pursuit, as well as a place for others who shared in Blankenship’s enthusiasm for the art form, from age-old to modern styles. “It was the only place like it in this area, so it was not hard to get students through the door,” she said.

What the California native started in a building around the corner, no bigger than the largest studio in Expressions’ current home, has flourished in the course of a decade, with hip-hop classes added a few years ago, and some former students recruited as instructors. The business had to relocate to a nearby building six years ago to accommodate Expressions’ growing number of dancers.

In studios that feature “floating floors” to prevent injuries, students are encouraged to start out with ballet class, which is the foundation for everything else, and to attend the dance school from September through June, since “you can’t learn a whole lot of moves in a six-week course,” Blankenship said. While there are competitions throughout the months, an end-of-the-year, choreographed show wraps up the schooling session in grand fashion.

Though classes are as rigorous and structured as any other extracurricular activity, keeping students involved hasn’t been a problem.

“It really is fun, it’s a great environment and we’ve gotten to know each other really well,” said Randalyn Macdonald, a 17-year-old student who’s been attending Expressions for five years. “It’s better than sitting on the couch doing nothing.”

For some dancers, Blankenship has inspired a commitment to the art form that extends beyond her studio’s doors.

“I kind of aspire to be a dancer when I grow up,” said Kaitlyn Hughes, who at 16 years old is a veteran of nine years to the school. After high school, Hughes hopes to attend college to further her dance education. “It’s been great. (The instructors) are kind of like second moms to me,” she added.

As the city of Post Falls continues to expand in all directions, Blankenship’s dance institution has matured as well. Another move might be necessary in the near future to make room for even more dancers, Blankenship said.

“We’re kind of heading that way again,” she said. “Teaching brings me so much joy that I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.”