Tuition: $500

Applicants must submit a $100 non-refundable deposit (credited toward tuition) with the registration form. Full balance must be postmarked no later than June 23, 2025 or you may jeopardize your place in the program. Applicants are able to receive a 5% discount on tuition by paying tuition in full by May 1st. There are no refunds on tuition. Scholarships are available on a talent and need basis.

Host Family

Limited host family housing is available for $250/week. This fee covers housing, all meals, and transportation. Host families will be assigned on a first come, first serve basis. Once matched, host family information will be given to the incoming dancer’s family.

Extended Stay Hotels

There are several affordable options for extended stay hotels within 10 miles of the studio. Prices to be determined.

“I am currently enrolled as a Dance Pedagogy major at Butler University in Indiana. This past summer, I chose to attend the Mareck Center for Dance Summer Intensive. Having never been to Missouri before, I was graciously welcomed by my host family and their two adorable dogs. My host family made the transition and stay comfortable and showed me all that Columbia had to offer! While training at the Mareck Center for Dance Summer Intensive, I was able to work not only with company dancers and artistic director Karen Grundy, but two guest artists as well. Kristopher Estes-Brown and Meg Paul were able to spend a substantial amount of time each day with us, which resulted in each creating and rehearsing a piece on us for the final performances. The personalized corrections and relationships which the Mareck Center for Dance Summer Intensive fosters are truly exceptional and I am so grateful that I was able to experience them. As I embark on my senior year of college and completing my undergraduate career, I believe that the Mareck Center for Dance Summer Intensive was the perfect choice to attend, as it immersed me into the professional dance world and gave me a glimpse of professional life for two weeks in the heart of Columbia under an impeccable faculty and other dancers!” -Ashley Tomaszewski, 2017

“I have been going to Mareck Center for Dance summer intensive since 2015 and it’s amazing. I enjoy it because I get a lot of one-on-one attention and it helps me improve. I recommend it to dancers everywhere! They do many different styles of dance with an emphasis on ballet and contemporary. They bring in spectacular guest teachers and I love their resident staff. The focus is on technique as well as artistry.” -Sophia Schepers, 2015 & 2016

“I have taken the Mareck Center for Dance summer intensive for the past 2 years! I am so impressed with the faculty and program. It took me to the next level in my ballet and the guest teachers were incredible!!” -Savanah Wozny, 2015 & 2016

“I am currently enrolled at Grand Valley State University, located in Allendale, Michigan. This past summer I attended the Mareck Center for Dance’s summer intensive. It was one of the most incredible experiences I have had thus far in my dancing education. I stayed with an amazing host family and their four adorable dogs. They were very welcoming and made the transition and stay comfortable. My host family made me feel very at home and even helped me experience Missouri. While attending Mareck Center for Dance’s intensive, I was fortunate enough to not only take classes from Mareck Center for Dance’s company dancers and director Karen Grundy, but also from two guest artists, Megan Pulfer and Peter Pawlyshyn. All of the instructors gave me feedback that helped me grow as a dancer. Megan instructed with impeccable technique and artistic choreography, while Peter was inspiration in work ethic and had a true gift for helping me understand and apply corrections to my ballet technique. Overall I was truly impressed by the personal attention and care that was given to all the students in the program, from the first contact through to the final presentation. My Mareck Center for Dance experience was phenomenal and I feel that it shaped me into a more confident and strong dancer.” –Sarah Byington, 2015

“Last summer, I attended the School of Mareck Center for Dance’s summer intensive. It was a fantastic chance to take class and learn repertoire at a high level and see improvement in just two weeks, and it was a safe environment to grow as an artist and benefit from the diverse faculty. In addition to personalized feedback and corrections, we also had a brief lecture on how best to take care of the body while dancing at a professional or college level. Skills such as managing nutrition and preventing or recovering from injury are often forgotten but are essential tools for every dancer. The rigorous schedule prepared me well for the university schedule I am now in the midst of and equipped me to continue making the most out of every class I’ve taken since.” –Stephanie Bonham, 2014

“The Mareck Center for Dance summer intensive was a great experience. Dancing all day gives it the same feel of a large institution, yet you get great one-on-one attention here. I highly recommend it for anyone who aspires to dance or wants to get a feel for dancing professionally.” — Camille Laboile, 2013

Mareck Center for Dance Guest Instructor 2025

Sean Aaron Carmon

Sean Aaron Carmon graduated from the Ailey/Fordham BFA Dance program and subsequently joined the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater; he has performed many principal roles including Mikhail Baryshnikov’s original role in Alvin Ailey’s Pas de Duke and featured roles in ballets by other notable choreographers such as Judith Jamison, Ulysses Dove, Wayne McGregor, Robert Battle, Jiri Kylian, Aszure Barton and Christopher L. Huggins, to name only a few.

Mr. Carmon has performed as a guest artist with Joshua Beamish/MOVETHECOMPANY in Canada, Cape Dance Company in South Africa, Vitacca Ballet, Houston Contemporary Dance Company and more. In addition, he has been featured on Conan, the national TBS television talk show, Good Morning America, LIVE with Regis and Kelly, Lincoln Center at the Movies, broadcast nationally on PBS and he was profiled in the Huffington Post for his work as a union representative. As a musical theatre performer, Sean has been a featured performer on Broadway, regional theatre, and national tour stages across America in La Cage aux Folles (Original 2010 Broadway Revival Cast), The Phantom of the Opera, Disney’s The Lion King, Kinky Boots and Ragtime.

Mr. Carmon is a Palm Desert Choreography Festival award winner, a National Choreographers Initiative awardee, a YAGP Outstanding Choreographer, won The Joffrey Ballet’s Winning Works award and has been chosen as Audience Choice Award winner on several occasions. After directing the Vitacca Ballet School Studio Company in Houston from 2021-2024, Sean has recently relocated to Indianapolis and is now the newest Rehearsal Director for Dance Kaleidoscope, joining Joshua Blake Carter and Liberty Harris in artistically managing, coaching and preparing the company members for their various rehearsals and performances year-round. He continues to choreograph and educate as a freelance artist, creating award-winning works and leading workshops and master classes for festivals, companies, conventions, studios and universities across the country and internationally.