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Fans of the Newport School of Artistic Movement have been on the tips of their toes waiting for the announcement that registration for fall classes is open. In-person and online classes in Contemporary Ballet; a fusion of ballet, modern and jazz dance, are open to students aged five to adult in beginning through advanced levels. Classes will begin in early October. Register before Monday, Sept. 5, for a 10-percent discount on the first month’s tuition.Director Nancy Mittleman has been training dancers from preschool to professional for over 45 years. Her holistic approach to dance integrates science, art, literature, music, math and more. Classes at the school are designed to increase grace, flexibility, speed, balance and strength, drawing not only from classical ballet, modern and jazz dance but also from various ethnic dance forms, Pilates and yoga. “Classes are designed to develop the students’ technical skills and spark their creativity through a process of exploration and discovery,” she said. “All classes include improvisations or ‘dance games,’ which increase students’ awareness of the power of body language to communicate as well as developing their acting, leadership and choreographic skills.”Students often work collaboratively to create dance pieces, but Mittleman continuously encourages them to also explore their own unique talents. Students are also trained to create full theatrical productions, exploring not only the world of movement, but a variety of musical genres, the use of costumes, props, sets, lighting and more. Variations from famous choreographers, partnering, counterbalance techniques and lifting are incorporated into the curriculum to further an understanding of different approaches to dance.Students have gone on to study and perform all over the country, including at Juilliard, Martha Graham Studio, American Ballet Theatre and the San Francisco Ballet.During her almost 50 years of dancing, teaching, and directing, Mittleman has studied with such luminaries as Martha Graham, Charles Weidman and Bela Lewitsky. In 1990, she received the Honor Award from the Oregon Dance Association for “History in the Making” from the Oregon Dance Association. She is a founding member of Red Octopus Theater Company, an original board member for the Oregon Coast Council for the Arts and founded and directed a cultural and dance exchange program with the Toshisuna Ensemble in Japan for more than 12 years.Mittleman also directs Pacific Dance Ensemble, a company of teens and young adults well known to the area for its high-quality and artistic performances. The most recent productions were, “Dances from the Heart” and “When the Animals Danced.”Classes fill quickly.

To register, go to pacificdanceensemble.com, email pdedance@msn.com or call 541-961-2316.