Seattle Sun Newspaper - Vol. 8, Issue 5, May 2004

Copyright 2004 Seattle Sun. Please feel free to use the article below in your research. Be sure to cite the Seattle Sun as your source.

Dance studio benefits from window on the world

By JAMES BUSH

If you've noticed Robert and Monique Hrouda's dance studio on Lake City Way, you're not the only one.

Robert calls DanceSport International's floor-to-ceiling front windows "a major advertisement" for the business. When people stop by to inquire about dance lessons, "the majority have either driven past or walked by many times," he says.

The studio is quite a sight: a large room with high ceilings dominated by a 35-foot-by-70-foot dance floor. There's a second, smaller floor in back for small group and private instruction.

When studio founders Stephen and Elizabeth Cullip opened the business in the late 1980s, they discovered that the former Pilgrim's Harvest Foods space has an overlaid floor (a multiple-layer floor that rests on beams over a basement, rather than sits on concrete), which is perfect for dancing. 'When you dance on it, your legs are happy," says Monique.

DanceSport International is home base for 14 dance instructors (in addition to the Hroudas), who offer lessons to beginning, intermediate and advanced dancers in a range of styles. On Friday and Saturday evenings, the storefront becomes a ballroom for the studio's open dances. "It gives [students] a chance to practice all the stuff they've learned during the week," notes Robert.

Monique began dancing ballet at an early age. "I started at age five at Cornish and kept it up until I was 17," she says. She also performed, often as a chorus dancer, in theatrical productions at venues including the former Poncho Theater (at Woodland Park Zoo) and the Moore Theater. She comes from a performing family: sister, Lecia, is a talented singer, and their mother is a former model who sang for New York's Metropolitan Opera.

After attending Western Washington University and graduating with a degree in business/speech communications, Monique found work as a retail manager and didn't enjoy the work. She also missed dancing, which had been such a big part of her life while growing up. Inspired by the 1987 movie "Dirty Dancing," in which actors Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey's memorable tango helped launch a revival of couples dancing, Monique decided to take dance lessons.

At the Fred Astaire dance studio, she was paired with Robert, a young instructor from Nebraska, and rekindled her interest in dance. "So I ended up dancing almost every night of the week, I fell in love with it," she says. Based on her extensive dance training, Monique ended up getting hired as a instructor after about six months. She and Robert started dating shortly afterward. The couple began teaching at DanceSport International in 1990 and purchased the business in 1996. Robert and Monique have a two-year-old daughter, Nichole.

Robert, a dance teacher for 18 years, is an enthusiastic proponent of the benefits of learning to dance. He says he often sees students become more outgoing and assertive as their self-confidence on the dance floor increases. "They're different people," he says.

He's also a man who loves his job, noting that being a dance instructor gives you great exercise, allows you to meet interesting people, and help them master new skills.

The Hroudas used to compete in ballroom competitions as a couple, winning regional titles such as Rising Star Rhythm Champions, Smooth Champions and Show Dance Champions. While Robert still competes with student partners in the Pro/Am division of dance competitions, Monique is more likely to be found on the judges' stand: she's the Northwest Region Examiner for the United States Terpsichore Association, a testing association which provides skill certification for both dance instructors and students.

DanceSport International sponsors two performance teams (including about 26 dancers in all) which perform traditional ballroom dance styles in synchronized formations. The Hroudas also serve as sponsors for several ballroom dance competitions, including the upcoming Seattle Star Ball (held August 6 and 7).

The studio's most recent project is a Thursday and Saturday kids' program for young people ages 7 to 18, says Robert. The goal is to create well-rounded dancers, he adds. "They're not only working on ballroom and latin, they are also working on free movement, jazz, ballet, salsa, and hip hop." He says he especially enjoys teaching younger children, who haven't entered the self-conscious stage that inevitably arrives at around age 12 or 13. "When you get them at 7 or 8, they'll do anything," he says. "They don't see it as being silly yet."

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DanceSport International is located at 12535 Lake City Way NE. For more information, call 361-8239.