Our Appreciation

Welcome to Recital 2025 - Life Is Sweet!

The Concert Hall is filling up, dancers are preparing backstage, and the excitement is palpable! Recital planning begins 11 months in advance, and after lots of hard work by students and staff, we are thrilled to bring you a weekend of live performances!

But what you may not see onstage today is what is even more important. The young dancer performing a heroic feat of courage stepping onto a stage in front of strangers for the first time. School-age kids are learning about commitment, teamwork, and accountability. Pre-teens who want to fit in with the crowd are encouraged to celebrate who they are and find their unique creative voice. High schoolers are learning to juggle a busy schedule while practicing being good role models. And our Graduating Seniors celebrate the incredible legacy they are leaving while preparing to spread their wings in the next chapter of their lives. So while you may see incredible dance moves onstage this weekend, we’re most proud of the leaps in character, life skills, and courage that our students have gained this season.

Many thanks to our Staff, Company dancers, and the best Dance Dad crew on the planet for their collaboration in bringing “The Sweet Life’” to the stage! The sheer joy, energy, and artistry you’ve displayed all season can only be outdone by all of the tenacity, heart, and teamwork that went into the process behind the scenes. Thank you for rising to every challenge, exceeding every expectation, and doing it all with a selfless focus and drive to push the team to new heights. We love you all more than we can say! Enjoy every moment this weekend!

Thank you to the administration and technical crew at Prairie High School - especially Justin Sands - for being the most gracious hosts! A huge thank you to Andrew Rizer Photography, Tiffany Rizer, and many other local businesses for making our studio and Recital 2025 a success.

Our extraordinary faculty & staff - Lexi, Maddie, Kari, Andrea, Leah, Mariah, Carol, Katlyn, Abby, Leandro, Hannah, Matt, Devyn, McKinzie, Rylee, Nichole, Rebecca, Paige, Rachel, and all of our wonderful TAs - There are simply not enough words to sufficiently thank all of you. Thank you for bringing your talent, knowledge, and whole hearts to the studio every week. Watching you model perseverance and teamwork while bringing love and inspiration to hundreds of kids makes our hearts burst with pride. Each year that passes, we realize more and more how blessed we are to have a team that shares our vision and pushes themselves to become better for their students every day. Thank you for all you do, both big and small, week after week. We are so thankful to call you co-workers, friends, and family.

While today is about our amazing dancers, behind each is a network of family and friends supporting them every step of the way. The Dancer’s EDGE is blessed to have a wonderful family support group that allows our students to learn, grow, and enjoy the beautiful art form of dance. From our Prop Dads to Dance Moms who keep every performance running smoothly, to all of the volunteers helping this weekend, and all of the words of encouragement in between, THANK YOU! Your trust, unending support, and positivity always remind us how awesome our “village” is!

Of course, none of this would be possible without our incredible dancers. From our tiniest Tinies to our graduating Seniors - You challenge us, inspire us, make us laugh, and push us to be better people and better teachers. There’s never a dull moment, and we feel incredibly blessed to share our love of dance with you and be a part of your young lives. This is the day we work all year long for – enjoy it! Don’t let a missed step take away from the thrill of performing onstage. We are so proud of you and excited to watch your performances this weekend! 

Finally, a big thank you to our family and friends who believed in us and have supported every ambition since we opened our doors 17 years ago. A very special thank you goes to our parents, Larry & Vicky Vogl and Jeff & Pam Westrom. We’re so grateful to have two families whose combined efforts of mentoring and nurturing continue to make us better people and better business owners each and every day. Thank you for instilling confidence, work ethic, and passion in us from a young age. We could not be more lucky to have you four as our biggest fans.