Today we’d like to introduce you to Gina Fancher.
Hi Gina, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Dance has always been intertwined in my life. Starting with ballet lessons at a young age to learning cultural dancing in high school my love for dance started early. So, when my husband and I had our daughters, it was a natural progression to start them in dance classes. After moving to Spring Hill TN 17 years ago we found a studio that our daughters studied with through the end of their high school years. It was during this time that both my girls began dancing competitively and that I began managing the studio. It introduced us all to an entire new side of dance and gave me my first glimpse of dance conventions. Several years later there was an incident involving my oldest daughter and an instructor that verbally broke her dance spirit. In front of peers and her younger sister, she was left feeling worthless, inadequate, and broken. That evening still lives vividly in my memory (as it would with any parent) as she sat on my bed crying and said she was giving up on any dream of ever dancing as a career. After long conversations, we reminded her that only she has the power to give up on her dream and that she was strong enough and worthy of everything and anything she wanted for her future. She went on to graduate high school, graduated from AMDA New York with a degree in Dance Theatre, received her Acro Dance certification, and currently instructs and choreographs! That’s the power of never giving up! That moment impacted me as well and it was there that my vision for Breathe began. I wanted to create an environment that was welcoming, encouraging, and empowering. A safe place that allowed dancers to grow in their artistry, while also leaving them feeling empowered. I wanted to create a space that allowed our instructors to give advice and wisdom that these students could take with them wherever their path may lead, whether it was in dance or not. I also knew that I didn’t want to open anything until my youngest was finished with high school, so I spent the next several years planning, researching, and learning all I could. February 14, 2019, Breathe was born! The vision was still the same, creating a welcoming environment that allowed dancers to express who they are freely, to live in their moments, and to BREATHE.
From that day in February, everything started to move quickly. The convention is a two-day event with classes being held in the morning and a showcase on Saturday evening. I wanted something different, something unique, and something that would separate us from the other conventions, so I created the showcase. A semi-formal banquet-style evening with light food and beverage where dancers who have been selected throughout the day perform. Also included are performances by our Dance Assistants and Faculty making it truly an awesome night of fun, food, and dancing!
This business cannot run by itself and I knew I wanted a family feel to Breathe so my family is definitely involved in several aspects of the convention. My oldest (Makenzie) is an instructor, my youngest (Rylee) manages our social media and works as convention staff during the event while my husband (Eric) works in both production and media. I then hired our administration team which consists of two incredible ladies who are truly family and believe in Breathe as much as I do. Ali and Amanda do it all! Their dedication and hard work these past 2.5 years has been nothing short of amazing.
I also sought out and hired our faculty which are some of the most talented artists in the industry who are currently working in their field to encourage, inspire and train young dancers. Each instructor brings their own style and guidance and passion for the art of dance and are always eager to encourage dancers.
We set out a plan of six cities that first season and quickly learned that was not going to be attainable for a smaller brand-new convention. So, we scaled back and did two, Columbus OH, and Nashville TN, and repeated those two cities for Season 2 and 3. This past season we have seen so much growth and I cannot wait to see what cities will be in our future.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Oh goodness, anything but smooth! There’s a huge learning curve when you open any business. However, you’re also in a race against time for being successful. Although I have had years in business and did my research there were still things I had to learn along the way. Some of them were expensive lessons to learn!! From purchasing apparel and equipment to reading the fine line in venue contracts, to finding the proper marketing outlets that first year was a doozy! We then finished our first season in January 2020 and then 2 months later everything shut down with COVID. My team worked remotely with us holding calls via Zoom. We researched protocols and were constantly looking at CDC and city guidelines. After consulting with my team, we decided to move forward with Season 2. In a time of uncertainty, it was important that we gave these dancers an outlet to express everything they were going through. We put several safety precautions in order including daily temperature checks for everyone that attended, masks, taping 6-foot boxes off for dancers, disinfecting with hospital-grade sprayers between classes, and hand sanitizer everywhere. We followed guidelines and were excited to see that we still had growth even amongst a truly difficult year. It was certainly not the year I had envisioned but it taught me a lot about faith, patience, and understanding.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Breathe is a 2-day dance convention only which allows our dancers to leave behind the extra stress and pressures of competing. Dancers will work with some of the most talented artists in the industry currently working in their field. You can find our faculty anywhere from dancing in theater houses, dancing back up in videos, choreographing for studios, film projects, and plays all while also instructing at colleges and various studios.
We want to help students grow as performers and artists but most importantly we want them to grow as humans. Our hope and goal is to give dancers an educational dance experience, where they dance away from the weekend with knowledge, a sense of accomplishment, and self-confidence in their dreams.
We offer classes for ages 4-19 with dance styles to include: commercial jazz, tap, contemporary, lyrical, musical theater, ballet, improv, and hip hop. We know and understand that every dancer may not take these genres at their studio but we encourage them to participate.
Our unique Saturday night showcase is like no other with a semi-formal banquet-style setting that includes food and entertainment! A light reception station of hors d’oeuvres and beverages are provided as well as an evening of incredible dancing by selected dancers from classes, our current Dance Assistants, and Breathe Faculty.
It absolutely warms my heart when I get an email, text, DM, or comment from a parent, dancer, or studio that tells us how welcomed or encouraged they felt or that their dancer felt seen. For me, if we reach one student and can be that encouragement and voice they needed to feel believed in to follow their dreams (whatever that may be) we did our job.
Breathe is a family business and we want you to feel like you’re an extended part of ours when you attend.
What was your favorite childhood memory?
Growing up there was always music playing. Mom had us listening to everything and I honestly think she is who I have to thank for my love of the arts. Music, dance, and theatre are magical to me! It just transports you. I remember my first solo (Silver Bells) and my first ballet performance (Singing in the Rain) and always playing Mary in the Christmas plays! Growing up we were always dancing and singing around the house to anything and everything that was playing. I absolutely LOVED my ballet classes, although I’m pretty confident my younger sister didn’t feel the same way (when you have 4 kids if one was doing ballet, then at least two were going to do ballet!) Sorry, Dawna!
Pricing:
- Early Bird Ages 8-19 $230 – Full Fee $265
- Early Bird FireCracker Ages 4-7 $165 – Full Fee $190
- Early Bird Studio Reps $230 – Full Fee $265
- Early Bird Observer $70 – Full Fee $80
- Showcase Tickets: Early Bird $25 – $30 at the door
Contact Info:
- Email: info@breathedanceconvention.com
- Website: www.breathedanceconvention.com
- Instagram: @breathedanceconvention
- Facebook: Breathe Dance Convention LLC
- Youtube: Breathe Dance Convention
Image Credits
Eric Fancher
