AJR Dance Studio

Our Ballet & Jazz exams were over the weekend with APDA and the lovely Miss Moxham!

All of the kids did such an amazing job and we’re so proud of them! They’ve all worked so hard leading up to their exams.

Here’s some pics our lovely parents caught on camera.

Well done everyone!! 🩷

BRING A FRIEND TO DANCE!

Know someone who has always wanted to try dance?

During 7th–10th September, our AJR students can bring one friend along to class for FREE!

✨ Try Ballet, Jazz or Hiphop
✨ No experience needed

Tag a friend who should come along! ❤️

Interested in joining after? Head to ajrdance.co.nz to register or send us a message!

Introducing our Freedom Crew & Lil’ Steppers hip hop teacher

Olivia

My journey at AJR started in 2023 when I joined as a student. After my first year of dancing here, I became a volunteer assistant and spent two years helping the hip hop teachers out in classes. Now I’m lucky to be teaching a couple classes of my own.

I’ve always had a massive passion for dance ever since I was a little girl, with the passion only growing throughout the years.

My favourite part about teaching is watching the kids I teach grow in confidence. Some students walk into their first few classes feeling really shy, but by the time the show comes around they’re on stage shining with so much confidence. Dance has personally helped me become so much more confident, and I love getting to help my students experience that too.

Outside of dance, I’m completing my final year of school. In any spare time I get I love spending time with my family and friends. Kindness and resilience are really important to me, and I try bring those values into every class I teach.

Introducing our amazing ballet/jazz/acro/contemporary teacher!!

BRYLEE

I grew up in Waihi Beach, where I spent most of my childhood dancing, doing gymnastics, and cheerleading. I’ve been dancing since I was four years old and completed all of my Ballet, Jazz, and Contemporary examinations through ATOD.

I began teaching dance at just 16 years old and am now in my seventh year of teaching I’ve taught in waihi Tauranga and Te Kauwhata. I currently teach Ballet and Jazz exam classes, alongside Contemporary, Acro, and private lessons. My favourite parts are choreographing solos and contemporary routines! 💜

After high school, I moved to Hamilton to study at university, where I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in Psychology with minors in Human Development and Dance. I then completed my APDA (Asia Pacific Dance Association) Dance Teaching Qualification, graduating with Honours with Distinction.

Throughout my dance journey, I was fortunate to perform at Disneyland in America which was an unforgettable experience. 💃🏼

I currently live in Auckland with my amazing flatmates. When I’m not teaching or choreographing dances in my lounge 🤣, you’ll usually find me working on TV and movie sets, auditioning and attending castings for creative projects, modelling for clothing brands and websites, or out walking dogs! I love that every day looks a little different for me and gives me the chance to keep learning and growing within the creative industry.

The thing I love most about teaching is building genuine connections with my students. My goal is to create a space that feels like a second home where they can grow in confidence, make lasting friendships, and develop a lifelong love of dance ❤️❤️

Meet Our Staff & Volunteers 👏

This week, we thought it would be a great opportunity to introduce (or reintroduce!) the amazing people who teach and volunteer at AJR Dance Studio.

For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Andrea, the owner of AJR Dance Studio.

Many of you may not know me very well because I prefer to stay behind the scenes, but you’ll usually be the one receiving emails from me or seeing me pop into classes from time to time.

I’m a wife to Paddy (our amazing MVP at our shows) and a mum of six children.

I’ve always had a passion for dance, but I knew our small communities didn’t have many opportunities for children to learn and grow through dance. That’s what inspired me to bring dance to Te Kauwhata and Huntly.

We started our journey in 2021 with just 38 students, and over the past five years we have grown into something I could only have dreamed of.

I am incredibly proud that we can offer something special to our communities. Watching our students grow—not only as dancers but also in confidence, friendships, and resilience—has been one of the greatest rewards. Every single student has their own journey, and it’s a privilege to be a small part of it.

While you may not see me teaching classes often, that’s because we have an incredible team of teachers who do an amazing job looking after your children and helping them thrive. I couldn’t do it without them. 🩷

Keep an eye on our page this week as we introduce the wonderful teachers and volunteers who make AJR Dance Studio such a special place! 😊

First dance competition for AJR 👏

We are so incredibly proud of both Zara & Brooklyn!! They performed so well today 🩷

A massive thank you for all your hard work.

Zara competed in two jazz routines 🧑‍🩰

Brooklyn competed in contemporary, two jazz routines & musical theatre receiving 2nd place 🥈

Well done to our ballet/jazz students of the month for May!! 🩷🩰

Pre primary - Tori
Primary 1 - Amelia
Primary 2 - Makenzie
Junior 1- Bella
Primary 1 Huntly - Margot
Primary 2 Huntly - Millar
Acro - McKenzie
Junior 2- Chloe
Junior 3 - Kate
Elementary 1 - Brooklyn

March Students of the Month 👏

These students put all their effort into every class showing up and working hard, Well deserved 🤍

Ballet/Jazz/Contemporary
Pre primary - Shriyah Prasad
Primary 1 - Eleanor Andrews
Primary 2 - Zara Adams
Junior 1 - Molly Scott
Junior 2 - Ava Drummond
Junior 3- Khloe Drummond
Elementary 1 - Ruby Christopher
Primary 1 Huntly- Maya Tayles
Primary 2 Huntly - Nicha Rinrit

Hiphop
Freedom crew - Bree Tautuku-Heikell
Lil steppers - Isabella Costa
Style Squad - Addison Yearbury
Alpha Squad - Harper Blake
Glow Cypher - Brodie Douglas
Development crew - Sienna Wadham-Nicholson
Rebels - Ruby Christopher