Before online tools made dance instruction universally accessible, honing skills beyond one’s local school was much more challenging. Growing up in small-town Illinois prior to the age of the internet, Quinn Callahan, owner and founder of The Rock Center for Dance in Las Vegas, was determined to succeed despite limited resources. As a student at Kim Kallas Studio of Dance, Callahan would come home from dance class so eager to implement what she’d learned that she’d create her own mini-syllabuses. Building on this unconventional practice, Callahan has crafted a training program, Elements, that serves as a launching pad to cast dancers toward their dreams.
Callahan’s initial entry into dance was unplanned. “When I was young, I would walk myself down the main street in my hometown and stare into the window of Kim Kallas Studio of Dance,” she remembers. “I did this so often Kim invited me in.” Seeing Callahan’s natural abilities, Kallas provided her with training.
As time passed, Kallas further challenged Callahan by sending her to dance competitions. “One year, I competed in New York City as a soloist at Dance Educators of America. I learned so much!” Callahan says. “I began auditioning and booking jobs almost immediately after.”
Despite the quick success, Callahan was not immune to insecurity. “I noticed I wasn’t as polished as others around me. My background wasn’t as broad,” she notes. “So, I would return home and practice for hours. I wrote down studies from what I learned and would work intensely to catch up.”
When Callahan traveled to Las Vegas while on tour with a show, a colleague offered to connect her with a local studio for teaching opportunities. “At the time, I didn’t realize how important teaching would become,” she explains, “[but] I had a thirst to better understand a range of dance styles.”
After subbing her first class, Callahan was offered more teaching opportunities. “I was nervous because I didn’t feel experienced enough,” she admits. “So, I wrote extensive lesson plans before each class.” Her conscientiousness earned praise—and invitations to choreograph.
Even when major hip surgeries forced her to sit still for a period, Callahan’s mind couldn’t stop dancing. To occupy her time, she transcribed elaborate syllabuses of several dance styles she had learned over the years. She also began documenting her own thoughts on training dancers.
The result: a supplemental training program Callahan calls Elements. “Elements is my secret sauce,” she says. “It is designed to fill gaps in a dancer’s training across multiple genres. As I built the syllabus, I thought about the necessary tools to make dancers stronger while promoting versatility.” Including active flexibility and core conditioning, Elements also informs each part of the body based on the needs of different technical elements across a range of dance styles.
Callahan had begun dreaming about owning her own school while still deep in her performance career. It was no gamble when, in 2009, she opened The Rock Center for Dance in Las Vegas. She had been preparing for this transition since childhood. Using the lessons learned bypassing her limited access to hone herself into a skilled dancer, she was ready to build a training institution of her own.
Now, after nearly 16 years of studio leadership, it is clear Callahan’s secret sauce is feeding the future of dance. Her students win top prizes at competitions, from The Dance Awards to Youth America Grand Prix, and the fruits of her labor can be seen across stages and on television screens worldwide.
Most valuable exercise: “I developed the Box Barre for my Elements syllabus. We have dancers stand on a box and perform elevated barre exercises. It changes body mechanics, challenges balance, and engages muscles differently.”
The rock-solid difference: “There is a wonderful school in Philadelphia with a name similar to ours. I wasn’t aware of confusion between our programs until we began attending ballet competitions. When I named my school, I kept coming back to the word ‘rock.’ I wanted to provide rock-solid, respectable training. And, in Vegas, we are surrounded by rock, which provides a strong home. This is what we strive to provide and be.”
Between-class pick-me-ups: “Running a school can keep you very busy. I am known to head to my car for five-minute naps. It is a great place to escape for a little peace and quiet.”
Dancers’ direction: “It is important [that] each dancer is themselves. I don’t want them to be copies of one another. The foundation has to be there. Then, you start to see where their talent and love lies and encourage them to go in that direction. Don’t steer them, just help them discover where they want to go.”