• Contributors
    • Catherine L. Tully, Owner/Editor
    • Dance Writers
      • Rachel Hellwig, Assistant Editor — Dance
      • Jessika Anspach McEliece, Contributor — Dance
      • Janice Barringer, Contributor – Dance
      • José Pablo Castro Cuevas, Contributor — Dance
      • Katie C. Sopoci Drake, Contributor – Dance
      • Ashley Ellis, Contributor — Dance
      • Samantha Hope Galler, Contributor – Dance
      • Cara Marie Gary, Contributor – Dance
      • Luis Eduardo Gonzalez, Contributor — Dance
      • Karen Musey, Contributor – Dance
      • Janet Rothwell (Neidhardt), Contributor — Dance
      • Matt de la Peña, Contributor – Dance
      • Lucy Vurusic Riner, Contributor – Dance
      • Alessa Rogers, Contributor — Dance
      • Emma Love Suddarth, Contributor — Dance
      • Andrea Thompson, Contributor – Dance
      • Sally Turkel, Contributor — Dance
      • Lauren Warnecke, Contributor – Dance
      • Sharon Wehner, Contributor – Dance
      • Ashley Werhun, Contributor — Dance
      • Dr. Frank Sinkoe, Contributor – Podiatry
      • Jessica Wilson, Assistant Editor – Dance
    • Dance Wellness Panel
      • Jan Dunn, MS, Editor
      • Gigi Berardi, PhD
      • James Garrick, MD
      • Robin Kish, MS, MFA
      • Moira McCormack, MS
      • Janice G. Plastino, PhD
      • Emma Redding, PhD
      • Erin Sanchez, MS
      • Selina Shah, MD, FACP
      • Nancy Wozny
      • Matthew Wyon, PhD
    • Music & Dance Writers
      • Scott Speck, Contributor – Music
    • Interns
      • Intern Wanted For 4dancers
    • Contact
  • About
    • About 4dancers
    • Advertise With 4dancers
    • Product Reviews on 4dancers
    • Disclosure
  • Contact

4dancers.org

A website for dancers, dance teachers and others interested in dance

Follow Us on Social!

Visit Us On YoutubeVisit Us On TwitterVisit Us On PinterestVisit Us On FacebookVisit Us On Instagram
  • 4dancers
    • Adult Ballet
    • Career
    • Auditions
    • Competition
    • Summer Intensives
    • Pointe Shoes & Footwear
      • Breaking In Shoes
      • Freed
      • Pointe Shoe Products
      • Vegan Ballet Slippers
      • Other Footwear
  • 4teachers
    • Teaching Tips
    • Dance History
    • Dance In The US
    • Studios
  • Choreography
  • Dance Wellness
    • Conditioning And Training
    • Foot Care
    • Injuries
    • Nutrition
      • Recipes/Snacks
  • Dance Resources
    • Dance Conferences
    • Dance Products
      • Books & Magazines
      • DVDs
      • Dance Clothing & Shoes
      • Dance Gifts
      • Flamenco & Spanish Dance
      • Product Reviews
    • Social Media
  • Editorial
    • Interviews
      • 10 Questions With…
      • Dance Blog Spotlight
      • Post Curtain Chat
      • Student Spotlight
    • Dance in the UK
    • Finding Balance
    • Musings
    • One Dancer’s Journey
    • Pas de Trois
    • SYTYCD
    • The Business Of Dance
    • Finis
  • Music & Dance
    • CD/Music Reviews

On Leaving…

July 30, 2012 by 4dancers

by Lucy Vurusic Riner

Lucy Vurusic Riner

I have been teaching dance at a high school right outside of Chicago’s city limits for 15 years. As in any other job, I have developed my role here and have become part of the fabric that is this institution. And as in many other teaching jobs, I have seen my share of students come and go. As a creature of habit my assumption was that I would build a dance program that I could live in for all of my career.

In reality, the average person changes jobs at least three times in a lifetime….and I had already left my first teaching job 15 years ago. Teaching philosophies change, students have different needs and administrations come and go. Being a creature of habit in a school system is not always easy. And so I decided to explore change.

Change is good right?  It pushes us, especially as artists, to stretch ourselves and our abilities.

For me leaving was hard for several reasons. I love my colleagues and the people I had grown to know as my second family. Let’s be honest, I spent more time in that building than the one I still have a huge mortgage on. As a teacher, this family helps you live out your philosophies, develop and redirect your curriculums, and when you teach in the right school or studio your department can really make or break whether you want to get up for work each day. [Read more…]

Filed Under: 4dancers, 4teachers Tagged With: dance students, dance teacher, teaching dance

On Giving Back…Part 1

June 27, 2011 by 4dancers

Today we have part one of two from Contributor Lucy Vurusic Riner–tune in on Wednesday to read the rest–

Lucy Vurusic Riner

I didn’t really begin my dance training until high school.  My mom signed me up for ballet and tap as a little girl and I hated it.  It wasn’t until I was a sophomore in high school that I decided I wanted to take another stab at it.

I had my share of disappointments but I worked twice as hard to make up for lost time in training.  And although I have come across my fair share of nay-sayers, the people that had the biggest influences on my life were my dance teachers.  I had some bad ones, we all do, but the ones that I attribute to getting me to where I am today always had my best interests at heart.  Those teachers never told me I had the wrong body, never told me I started too late in life, and never made me feel like I didn’t have choices.

The good teachers recognized my strengths and gave me options on where those strengths might lead me.  The good teachers never tell you that you won’t make it.  Simply put, they can’t know that.

Over the last 20 odd years I have found myself in every position a dancer might have to take on to make ends meet.  I started humbly, by moving to New York over a summer and trying to find “gigs.”  These were most notably at conventions, conferences, even a bar mitzah.  When New York quickly lost it’s luster (for me) I came back to Chicago, finished school by getting a teaching certificate and began teaching high school dance.

I danced with several companies, produced my own shows, and soon learned that in most small to mid-level companies I would serve dual roles as a dancer and (in my case) benefit coordinator, board member, dancer liaison, etc.  Last year I decided to start my dance company so that I could focus on choreography and arts administration a bit more.  I’m sharing this information because through all of these experiences I have met dancers from every walk of life who share their “training experiences” with me.  The stories that always get to me are of the teacher that might have told them to throw in the towel; or that thought that by knocking them down, they would stand up stronger.  And it is because of those experiences that I compiled a new list (my last one went over pretty well) on “Giving Back to Your Students”… [Read more…]

Filed Under: 4dancers, 4teachers, Editorial Tagged With: dance students, dancers, lucy riner, teachers

On Growing Professionally

September 10, 2010 by 4dancers

by Lucy Vurusic Riner

I Teach, Therefore I Do. 

As a dance program director in a high school setting I have always been conscious of staying one step ahead of the game.  After all, I have some very talented dance students who are working at a level far above where I was at their age.  We live in a society where kindergarten is the new first grade and students are focused on what elite colleges and universities might be within their grasp.  So as dance teachers, how do we keep up?  How do we continue to be a resource to our young dancers who are looking to us for guidance?

Lucy Vurusic Riner

I have always hated the old saying, “Those who can’t do, teach.”  I have always thought the opposite.  “Those who do, teach others how to do as well.”  After all, as teachers don’t we learn that modeling is one of the most effective ways to teach our students what are expectations are of them? 

As a dance teacher I am constantly reminding my students that there are a variety of careers in dance.  Are they all lucrative?  Absolutely not.  But can you make ends meet doing what you love while finding ways to supplement your income with other things you love?  Absolutely yes. 

I had a former student once say to me that she dreamed of dancing for a captive audience each night.  I quietly thought to myself that I actually do that every day, for a salary and health insurance.  But I did understand her needs because regardless of how many students I touch with dance, my own personal fulfillment has always come from my own professional development.

I have the honor of knowing many dance educators, in my age bracket (which will go unmentioned) that continue to take class, rehearse for shows, and see dance on a regular basis.  When I look to hire teachers that work in my program, I expect that their drive come from a place where students look to them as an inspiration and motivation to see all that the dance world has to offer.  I want my students to know that they have options.  And I want all of the teachers that work for me to understand and model that as well. 

The world of dance will always have some constants.  I’ll always talk to my students about Doris Humphrey, Martha Graham and Merce Cunningham.  I’ll always expect them to know how to dress for class and behave in an audience.  I’ll always give my speech on the importance of not just performing for yourself, but always allowing your audience into your experience.  But in the meantime, I’ll keep taking classes to keep my lessons (and my body) fresh.  I’ll keep researching colleges and universities that are forever adding and evolving their dance programs for my potential students and I’ll keep seeing and learning about dance as it constantly changes and offers us new insight.

Over the past fifteen years, I have had the opportunity to work with many different dance teachers and see many different programs.  The ones that work do so because they have teachers that are in the “know.”  They have a beat on what is happening in their communities, whether that be at the local dance studios, theaters or universities.  The ones that remain complacent simply stay the same. 

Are we using lesson plans that are ten years old?  Do we get out much to see emerging dance companies in our communities or new national companies that are coming in on tour?  Do you know about new dance studios and college programs that are in your area?

These are the questions we should ask ourselves each year, as we head into a new school year.  Are we one step ahead?  Is our commitment to our own professional development as dancers and educators being met? 

We need to do and then teach.

Contributor Lucy Vurusic Riner is a native Chicagoan who has been supporting and contributing to the dance community for over twenty years. She received her BS Degree in dance and dance education from Illinois State University.  Lucy has been a member of Molly Shanahan/Mad Shak Dance Company, RTG Dance Company and Matthew Hollis’ “The Power of Cheer.”  She has also had the opportunity to be part of the community cast of White Oak Dance Project and David Dorfman Dance. Lucy has taught modern, hip hop, and jazz at numerous studios and high schools in the Chicagoland area.  She has been the Director of Dance at Oak Park and River Forest High School since 1999. In 2005, Lucy completed her Masters Degree in Education from National Louis University and also received the Midwest Dance Teacher of the Year award and was the youngest of four finalists in the running for the National Dance Teacher of the Year award.  Lucy and artistic partner, Michael Estanich, formed RE|Dance in 2010.  This dancer theater company investigates humanity in movement through long distance collaboration.  Lucy has also begun work on a long-term project entitled, “The Moving Vessel” which explores the impact of motherhood on the professional dancer.  When Lucy is not working with independent choreographers and producing her own shows, she is at home with her two great kids, Margie and Luka, and her very supportive husband, Jim.

Share

Filed Under: 4dancers, 4teachers, Editorial, Studios Tagged With: dance program, dance students, dance teacher, high school dance, lucy vurusic riner, teach

Dance Artwork

Get Your Dance Career Info Here!

Dance ebook cover

Podcast

Disclosure – Affiliate & Ad Info

This site sometimes features advertising, affiliate marketing, or affiliate links, such as Amazon Associate links and others. When you click on these links, we get a small sum that helps to support the website operations. Thank you! There’s more detailed information on ads and our disclosure policy under the About tab in our navigation at the top of the site. We clearly mark any and all posts that contain these features.

Copyright Notice

Please note that all of the content on 4dancers.org is copyrighted. Do not copy, utilize, or distribute without express permission. We take cases of infringement seriously. All rights reserved ©2022.

Copyright © 2025 · Metro Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in