Dawn Crafton Dance Connection (DCDC) in Gaithersburg, Maryland, is considered a second home to most of their students. It is a warm, welcoming and supportive environment and they are just a big dance family. They have been around for more than 60 years and have taught generations of families in their community during that time. The younger dancers look up to the older dancers and the older dancers take the little ones under their wings to mentor them. Graduates and their families make it a point to come back for recitals, competitions and other activities to say hello and support the younger students.
Dawn Crafton Dance Center’s professional faculty offers classes for all ages, all levels and all genres. The Dance Connection offers recreational to intensive programs for dancers of all ages and abilities in a wide variety of disciplines: Ballet, Pointe, Contemporary, Tap, Jazz, Hip Hop, Conditioning, Leaps and Turns, Pom Technique, Creative Movement, Pre-School Combo Tap/Ballet, ZUMBA! and Yoga.But, according to Dawn Crafton, their Founder and Executive Director, what really sets DCDC apart from other studios is the unique wealth of life lessons, actual experiences, a great combination of backgrounds and extensive connections they can, and do, pass on and share with their students and their families. Dawn taught and toured with every major dance organization in the United States, produced albums, published manuals, shared her technique and choreography with tens of thousands of teachers and their students all over the United States, Canada and Europe for more than 20 years. She has been on faculty, judged competitions, worked, toured and shared the spotlight with some of the greatest teachers of her generation. Her daughter, Kelly Welch, their Artistic Director, has also taught master classes and judged competitions, but also benefits from the additional experience of being a working professional on Broadway, touring companies and productions all over the world. The two backgrounds complement each other and leave DCDC extremely well connected in many different areas and directions. According to Dawn, Kelly moving back to Maryland when she married and coming back to DCDC was the best thing that ever happened to her and DCDC!
Dawn says there have been so many wonderful moments that it is hard to choose one “proudest moment.” As both a Mom and teacher, she has always been impressed by her daughter, Kelly Welch, and proud of her musical theatre career which has taken her to perform on Broadway, all over the United States, Europe, Monte Carlo and Asia. And, Dawn says that she cannot forget her granddaughter, Blair Welch, who grew up in the studio, was on award winning teams and is currently on SMU’s Pom/Dance Squad. Professionally speaking, other exciting events were taking a busload of dancers to see one of her 12 year old 
students, Corrieanne Stein, perform in Billy Elliott on Broadway. Another student, Dede Labarre, was in Fosse on Broadway. One of her boys, Chris Jarosz, was on Season 4 of So You Think You Can Dance and she has enjoyed watching him perform on Glee and other shows and in commercials, Viva Elvis in Las Vegas. Also, she just watched him the other night on the late show with James Corden. Dawn said, “That was SO much fun and exciting for me!” Yes, Dawn is extremely proud of all of “her kids” who dance professionally, but she is just as proud of those students who have used the life lessons that dance teaches them in order to find success in many other areas and become great Moms, teachers, lawyers, doctors and even a judge!
DCDC’s competition and performance team, #teamdcdc, is successful locally and recognized nationally for their wholesome, age appropriate style, precision and technique and they have collected a wide assortment of national titles over the years. In the last few years, we have produced two Tremaine Dancers of the Year. Sophia Adoum is currently a dance major at George Mason University. Ryan Vyskocil has been dancing with them since he was four years old but he’s headed for Broadway just as soon as he gets that break for which he has been training.
Ryan is a perfect example of the generations of dancers who have come through their doors. Both his Mom and Aunt grew up at DCDC and now Ryan, his sister, Alexandra, and their little brother Dylan are all dancing with them!
Another huge event in Dawn’s life was when she was honored to be selected Tremaine’s National Teacher of the Year 2014-15 for “Dedication to the Art of Dance Education.” It was a totally unexpected announcement at the Tremaine Nationals Gala in Orlando and a thrilling experience for Dawn and all the DCDC students and parents who happened to be there to share this special moment!
Dawn believes that with the rise of social media, they are finding a lot of their younger dancers teaching themselves “how to dance” from YouTube. What that means for dance teachers is a lot of bad habits that need to be broken! The kids also see a lot of over stretching on social media. There is now a movement to educate on the negative impact overstretching has on young developing bodies, particularly over time.
DCDC is building a second location in a charming area called Rockville Town Square in Rockville, Maryland, where there are lots of shops, restaurants, arts and activities for families. The location and state of the art facility are a dream come true for any dance teacher. They cannot wait to open with their Summer Intensive in June! Kelly Welch is DCDC’s Artistic Director and she brings in talented faculty from all over the country for a week of Dance, with a capital D! Last year they had the pleasure of hosting internationally known dancer/choreographer Mia Michaels and some of the stars from So You Think You Can Dance. They cannot wait to see the magic Kelly works this year!
Dawn believes she is blessed to have been born into a dance family. Aunts, uncles, cousins and sisters all dance, teach and perform! She grew up in her mother’s dance studio and taught there until her own daughter started kindergarten. Leaving to go teach other people’s children just as her own child was getting home from school was not a good situation and Dawn realized she had to prioritize. Dawn made the decision to stay home and just teach a few neighborhood children in her home so she would be there with her daughter and her two younger brothers. And the rest is history!
Sadly, Dawn’s youngest son was killed in a banner plane accident in Ocean City, Maryland, a few days before he was due to leave for college. It happened on her birthday and it was the saddest period of her life. It was DCDC, the support of all the families, the kids, activities, dance and the love that got her through. She is involved in all sorts of charitable and community outreach events and enjoys giving back or even paying forward whenever the opportunity presents itself!
At DCDC, they are passing on all those life lessons that dance has taught them . . . the good, bad and ugly . . . not just to make better dancers, but to help this generation become better citizens of the world . . . one dancer at a time!
If you would like more information about Dawn Crafton Dance Connection, visit their website at dccdance.com or call them at 301-840-8400, or email them at info@dcdcDance.com. You can also “Like” them on Facebook, follow them on Twitter, connect with them on Flickr and watch them on YouTube.
Please post a comment if you have had any experience with Dawn Crafton of Dawn Crafton Dance Connection.
