About The DanceSpace
The DanceSpace was opened in 1999. Through the vision of Gene Leyden and Suzee Grilley, it was conceived as a space not only for dance and movement classes and events, but also as an intimate performance venue for music, dance, and theatre.
With a 1000 square foot, sprung-wood (oak) floor refinished in 2014, airconditioning, high ceilings, a wall of mirrors, natural light from a wall of windows, and an excellent sound system, it is both a practical and a beautiful dance studio.
It has an open area of carpeted, tiered seating for up to 80 people at one end of the dance floor and a crossover wall at the other end for theatrical/musical/dance performances in an intimate theater setting. There is a small lighting plot and control system as well as a small sound board.
The audio equipment is as follows: Shure stereo mixer (SCM262) with three stereo inputs, two mic inputs, and a bass and treble eq; 1/8 inch stereo connector for auxiliary inputs (i.e. iPods and such); Sony 5 disc CD player; BBE sonic maximizer 882i with two channels; and four powered speakers (two DAS 15 inch DS15 and two Mackie Thump 13 inch TH-15A).
Located in a small industrial park, the DanceSpace has two bathrooms, a dressing room and plenty of parking.
The DanceSpace may be rented by the hour or by a specific time slot (daily, weekly or monthly) for classes, workshops, events and performances.
Brooke Friendly took over the DanceSpace in spring 2013. The Ashland Country Dancers, a group Brooke co-leads with her husband, Chris Sackett, was one of the first renters in the DanceSpace. She loves the studio and is delighted to keep it going as the best dance studio in Ashland.
Brooke has been dancing for more than 30 years and has taught dance of the British Isles since 1982. She co-leads a weekly community dance class at the DanceSpace with her husband, Chris Sackett. Brooke also calls for contra, barn, and family dances, teaches an academic credit class on English and Scottish country dance at Southern Oregon University (SOU), and an ongoing class for SOU Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.
She and Chris have devised English and Scottish Country Dances, to increasing international acclaim, since 1996. They have published four books of dances and CDs of the music for the dances--Impropriety Volumes 1-4. You can find out more about Brooke's teaching and publications at BrookeFriendlyDance.com.
Theatrical choreography credits include SOU Department of Theatre Arts productions of Entertaining Strangers (with Chris), Dancing at Lughnasa and Caucasian Chalk Circle, and Oregon Cabaret Theatre’s world premiere Parcel From America.
Chris Sackett is the technical director for the DanceSpace. Chris recently retired from Southern Oregon University, where he was a professor in the Theatre Department. He taught lighting and sound design and was the department's production manager.