Dance to Your Own Beat

Movement to music is a melding of mind, body, and spirit. 

The mind works to remember the choreography or to create it. The body exerts energy, adrenaline, and stamina as it pirouettes, sashays, leaps, and lunges. The spirit is enlivened by an act that is both communal and deeply personal. 

It’s no wonder dance has withstood the test of time as a means of exercise, expression, and community-building. 

While many young girls took ballet classes, or those in their 20s enjoyed dancing socially, as we age, the joy of dance tends to get pushed to the backburner. Lately, interest in adult dance has increased as many of us seek connection outside of screens and a commitment to total health.

We spoke with the owners of three dance studios along the coast, from ballet to ballroom to aerial, about what constitutes their style of dance, a day in the life at the studio, and the multitude of benefits dance provides.

Photo by Savvy Leigh Photography

Studio6twenty5 

As a child, Rachel Prescott, owner and artistic director of Studio6twenty5, thought all adults danced. With a father as a dancer, she knew no different. 

“People shouldn’t stop dancing because they turn 18 or aren’t considered children anymore,” says Prescott. “Dance is something you can do your entire life. It conditions the body, exercises the mind, and is a great social activity, especially for adults seeking a creative outlet.” 

That outlet was just what Prescott and her father hoped to give people when in 2020, they began teaching dance classes on Zoom during the pandemic. Once it was safe to do so, Prescott decided to open a studio. By 2022, Studio6twenty5 was fully operational, and their first production of “The Nutcracker” featured both children and adults. 

Studio6twenty5 is a classical ballet school with three levels—beginner, intermediate, and progressing—of ballet technique, barre, and pointe classes available to adults. The range allows people to come as they are, whether they’ve never slipped on a ballet shoe or have gone through dozens of pairs. 

The classes are structured as drop-ins, but Prescott finds that most end up purchasing class packages or signing up for the entire year. Twice a year,Studio6twenty5 puts on dance productions featuring students from 2 to 82. 

“Participation in our productions is completely optional; that being said, after a couple of months of consistently dancing, even the most timid students end up wanting to perform,” says Prescott. “It’s a fun goal that adult dancers end up feeling really proud to have accomplished.” 

Prescott is particularly warmed when the recitals become a family tradition with both kids and their parents taking classes at the same studio. Likely, she’s thinking of her own father. 

“Adults in particular are busy, but when you’re in the studio, ballet is all-encompassing,” says Prescott. “It challenges us to use our minds in a way that we typically don’t in our day-to-day. No one can give or take your movement away. The work is yours, the ultimate form
of empowerment.” 

To learn more and join a class,
visit studio6twenty5.com.

Photo by C Warm Photography courtesy of First Dance Ballroom Studio

First Dance Ballroom 

In 2025, the spark surrounding the show Dancing with the Stars was reignited. Margaret Takacs, owner and instructor at First Dance Ballroom, certainly doesn’t mind, her hope being that more adults put their best feet forward and foxtrot into a dance studio. 

First Dance Ballroom opened in January of 2020 as a space where all ages and skill levels were welcomed to try a variety of ballroom styles. Adults can take private lessons or group classes for the fitness and fun of it. Adults can also take choreography classes to participate in the studio’s two yearly charity shows benefitting Children’s Home Society. 

An offering that’s particularly popular are choreographed wedding dances, a unique offering in the area. 

“It’s such an honor to be a part of someone’s wedding day and a memory that they can cherish forever,” says Takacs. “I love wedding dances of all kinds because I love watching people be in love and so confident with each other in front of their friends and families.” 

The beauty of ballroom, though, is that your partner doesn’t have to be someone you’re romantically involved with. It could be a friend, family member, acquaintance, or even a stranger. For many, ballroom opens the door to dancing confidently in social settings. 

Takacs, who competed in cabaret and theater arts because she loves tricks and lifts, encourages people to take an introductory lesson, so they can try many different dances and decide what they enjoy most. Outside of the pure joy and adrenaline of ballroom, Takacs cites many brain and body benefits. 

“One of the greatest benefits of ballroom dancing is that it’s great for your brain,” says Takacs. “It’s a puzzle which helps keep your mind sharp. It’s a full body workout to great music.”

To learn more and join a class,
visit firstdanceballroomstudio.com. 

Photo by Elizabeth Cox Photography courtesy of Aerial Dance PC

Aerial Dance Panama City

It took one aerial dance class for Brittany Gillespie, owner and instructor at Aerial Dance Panama City, to run off to the circus—the New England Center for Circus Arts, that is. 

Founded in 2013, Aerial Dance Panama City is Bay County’s first and only circus and aerial arts studio. Aerial dance revolves around a chosen apparatus. At Aerial Dance, those include trapeze, lyra, silks, slings, chains, hula hoops, and rope. Gillespie encourages first-timers to join the Basic 101 class to get a feel for the apparatus they might prefer. 

“The circus world is small, and most people don’t have an aerial background. For most people, coming here is their first experience with the art,” says Gillespie. “People often fear dance because they don’t want an audience. In aerial, you’re constantly moving and completely focused on your apparatus and the next movement. You’re only focused on you. Nothing and no one else matters in that moment.” 

While the act itself may be a solitary pursuit, the studio community is not. Gillespie cultivates an incredibly welcoming space where people of all ages and stages converge to create. 

Many start aerial dance intrigued by the adrenaline of being suspended in air and utilizing gravity for movement. They get so lost in the flow that they don’t realize until after class what an intense workout they had. 

Some come for an hour or two a week, seeing where the music and their emotions lead their bodies. Others have the desire to showcase their skills in a yearly performance. Students have the option to participate in a dance choreographed by an instructor or to choreograph their own piece. 

“What I love about aerial is there is no right or wrong,” says Gillespie. “You do whatever your body wants you to do and wants you to feel. You give in to it. Anytime a human body is moving, it’s eventually going to create happiness within us.”   

To learn more and join a class,
visit aerialdancepanamacity.com.

Boot Scoot Along the Bay 

With the rise in tourism to Nashville and Austin, cities have been seeking ways to bring line dancing to their own neighborhoods. Paired with popular music and synchronized choreography, line dancing is ideal for groups, couples, and solo dancers. Many bars and dance halls have begun hosting line dancing nights where instructors teach both the latest dances and country classics. 

Juana’s Pagodas & Sailors’ Grill

Navarre Beach 

Line dance lessons, Tuesdays at 6 p.m. 

Wild Greg’s Saloon

Pensacola

Line dance lessons,Thursdays at 7 p.m. 

The Block

Fort Walton Beach

Check social media for line dancing schedule 

The Village Door

Miramar Beach

Check social media for line dancing schedule

Yard Bar

Panama City

Line dance lessons, Fridays at 6:30 p.m.

Grand Square Hall
Panama City

Line dance lessons, Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m.

Boots on the Bay Panama City Line Dancers
Line dancing Tuesday nights at Center for the Arts in historic downtown Panama City