Small Business Spotlight: Cary Dance Productions

Dancing Through the Decades

Photos of dancers spanning 29 years adorn the walls at Cary Dance Productions.
Photos of dancers spanning 29 years adorn the walls at Cary Dance Productions.
Tondalaya Pearson helps 9-year-old Anna Dunn with her form.
Tondalaya Pearson helps 9-year-old Anna Dunn with her form.
Jackson Turner, age 8, leaps across the dance floor during practice. CDP teaches a handful of boys in a recreational program that includes jazz, hip hop, tap, lyrical, and contemporary.
Jackson Turner, age 8, leaps across the dance floor during practice. CDP teaches a handful of boys in a recreational program that includes jazz, hip hop, tap, lyrical, and contemporary.
Ballet students stand ready at the barre.
Ballet students stand ready at the barre.
Wood from Tondalaya’s first dance floor now hangs as a reminder of her nearly three decades in business.
Wood from Tondalaya’s first dance floor now hangs as a reminder of her nearly three decades in business.
Spinning on one foot with raised foot touching the knee of her supporting leg, 11-year-old Lily Nathan performs a pirouette.
Spinning on one foot with raised foot touching the knee of her supporting leg, 11-year-old Lily Nathan performs a pirouette.
Students often support one another with cheers and clapping.
Students often support one another with cheers and clapping.
10-year-old Emerson Colchin demonstrates first position arms.
10-year-old Emerson Colchin demonstrates first position arms.
Tondalaya helps 8-year-old Adeline Nickel with barre training exercises.
Tondalaya helps 8-year-old Adeline Nickel with barre training exercises.
Dance students are taught by many staff members who were themselves students at CPD.
Dance students are taught by many staff members who were themselves students at CPD.

For Tondalaya Pearson, owner and director of Cary Dance Productions, the last 29 years have been a cakewalk.

Jazz, hip hop, lyrical, contemporary, musical theater, ballet, and acro classes are offered to dancers of all levels aged 2 and older; the studio’s ballet, tap, and tumble classes for younger dancers continue to be a step ahead.

The studio features five dance rooms and an acro room, all of which are equipped with hardwood professional spring floors, observation windows, and closed-circuit monitoring.

A facility of 8,000 square feet also allows for several homework stations and a café/birthday room, as well as a welcoming lobby with six flatscreen TVs to keep families engaged in their dancer’s education — which may explain why, as Pearson shared, “we have so many third-generation families at CDP today.”

The Anglins have certainly followed this lead, with their two daughters dancing at CDP for over 20 years. “Not only have they had the benefit of learning to be incredible dancers,” their parents Pam and Michael recognized, “but more importantly, to us, incredible leaders, role models, and people.”

Brooklyn Turner, 11, gets a lift from Izzie Kirchner, 13, while walking to dance practice.

On and off the dance floor, it’s clear that Pearson’s moves won’t be slowing down anytime soon. With the Cary Dance Productions stage set for an impressive milestone of three decades in business in 2025, Pearson reflected on her “absolute joy and privilege to share her and her staff members’ love of dance” over the many years with several thousand Triangle-area dancers.

You’ve been dancing since you were a young child. When — and why — did you decide to open your own studio?

After my parents enrolled me in dance at 3 years old, they continued to foster my love for the arts by supporting me in music, singing, acting, and theater. Though my first love was performing on stage, I realized I also loved teaching dance; I spent most of my high school and college days teaching in local studios, as well as a lot of time studying and writing my own curricula. It was my dad who encouraged me to follow my dreams and open my own studio, and I will be forever grateful that he did.

Some of your instructors grew up dancing at CDP. How does this benefit your students?

We are so lucky to have the world’s best staff — they are incredible! Though a couple grew up dancing through the CDP program, our staff is extremely tenured. Many of our teachers have been at CDP for 10-plus years, which allows them to work seamlessly to benefit our dancers.

Students break from dance instruction in the facility’s café.

Can you share some of your current and former students’ successes?

Oh, if only I had the room to list them all! There are so many incredible accomplishments, from CDP students becoming collegiate dance members, dance teachers, Pilates and athletic trainers, professional dancers, and business owners. I’m grateful for social media, as it allows me to follow their lives and celebrate their careers and new families!

What are some upcoming CDP performances?

The spring season is filled with dance competitions and preparation for the spring recital, which is being hosted in downtown Raleigh at Duke Energy Center, a beautiful and professional venue for our dancers. Readers may have seen our famous CDP Sugarplums in the Cary or Apex parades, and we’ve just finished our 20th annual community benefit show (with proceeds being donated to a local charity). Our dancers also enjoy performing for local retirement homes and in special local performances.

CDP now offers birthday packages. Tell us more!

Celebrate your birthday with dance! Bring your besties and learn a dance. Or freestyle. Sing karaoke, dress up in costumes, or shake things up with makeovers. All birthday packages are customizable to ensure your child has their perfect party!

Any exciting plans for the studio’s 30th anniversary next year?

It’s surreal to be celebrating 30 years! There are so many ideas in the think tank, including performances at Disney and the Macy’s Day Parade in NYC. There will, of course, be special guests throughout the year and an incredible season finale, for which we’ll invite all alumni to participate.

Any accolades you’d like to share?

CDP is again the proud recipient of a Maggy Award, in addition to years of hard-earned choreography, prop, costume, and sportsmanship awards. But if you were to ask anyone on our staff about their favorite achievement, hands-down it is seeing the smiles on our students’ faces and receiving their big hugs. We are humbled and privileged every single day to be a part of our dancers’ lives.

carydance.com

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