Hello friends! Atticus just got back from his second CLI Conservatory intensive, and this time he walked in knowing where everything was, who everyone was, and exactly how much a 9-to-9 schedule was going to hurt. We talk stamina, a music video that took roughly 500 takes, tumbling on a marley floor in the wrong shoes, and how much cash mom and dad would have to save up if he gets into the 10-month program. Then I ambush him with a pop quiz he had no idea was coming.

🕺 Round two at CLI

* December was the winter intensive and Atti says he was stressed the whole time — this summer he wasn’t nervous at all because he knew the teachers, the building, and what was expected

* He still ended the week on the floor with a heating pad, three energy drinks, and roughly a gallon of water

* His advice for anyone considering CLI is the same advice we gave for Master Ballet Academy: build your stamina before you go, because you can prepare and it still might not be enough

🎬 The photo shoot and the music video

* New for the summer session: professional photo shoots, which didn’t happen at the winter intensive and which turned out great

* The music video went about 500 takes — a tumbling section straight into a dance section with no cuts, over and over

* Atti’s gymnastics background put him in the tumbling group, which sounds like an advantage until you’re doing standing tucks on hardwood in low-profile shoes because they looked cleaner on camera

🎯 CY9 and the 10-month plan

* He’s planning to audition for CY9 — the conservatory’s 10-month program — his junior year

* Going to the summer intensive isn’t technically an advantage, but as he put it, they’ve seen your face and know what you’re capable of…that can’t hurt!

* Tuition is somewhere in the $28,000–$29,000 range for the year, and housing is separate — roughly $800 a month for a double and $1,300 for a single

🧠 Pop quiz: how well do you actually know CLI?

* I ran a batch of research questions past him cold, covering location, faculty, styles, age requirements, and cost

* He named a solid chunk of the faculty list, correctly guessed the housing range, and knew the wellness and heels classes were part of the schedule

* He also closed us out with the answer he first gave back on Episode 7: CLI is Create, Learn, Inspire

💡 Fun fact to leave you with

* Atti asked someone at the conservatory what the CY on the t-shirts stood for and felt dumb about it — it stands for “conservatory”

* For the record, I do not think that’s a dumb question, since Y is not usually where acronyms go looking for letters(?)

Thanks for listening! You can find all our episodes and posts at dadofadancer.com, and we’re on Spotify, the Apple Podcasts app, and wherever else you get your podcasts. Follow Atticus on Instagram @theofficialatticusjohnson.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.dadofadancer.com

Hello friends!

This week my wife and Atticus are at the CLI Conservatory in Southampton, Massachusetts for his second week-long dance intensive. As a refresher, we welcome you to read more about the origins/history of CLI, and/or listen to episode #7 of our podcast to hear about our first experience.

Sadly I couldn’t join them this time, so I’m hearing the CLI report second-hand. I also really wanted to have Atti on to tell you about it himself — but he’s been so wiped out that he’s asleep within 30 minutes of getting back to the hotel, and talking in his sleep, which only happens when he’s completely toast. So today it’s just me, a few tips, and one very avoidable wardrobe crisis.

🎬 A quick refresher on why we love CLI

* Last December was Atticus’s first intensive, and he ate it up — mock auditions, a ton of dancing, and filming an actual music video

* The music video from last year was a revelation for him: reset to position one, shoot it again, sweep up the confetti, repeat, from roughly 14 bajillion angles

* CLI works on the career side too — resumes, social media presence, networking, interviewing well — not just raw dance chops

🏨 Changing hotels came with huge benefits

* Last year we stayed at the CLI partner hotel, about 25 minutes away. It’s fine…until you’re driving it at the butt crack of early and again at 9pm with an exhausted kid

* This year we took a chance on D. Hotel Suites & Spa — roughly 10–12 minutes out — and my wife reports nicer rooms, a comfier bed, and a 90-minute massage that was so good she fell asleep during it

* Quieter, too. Fewer kids sprinting down the hallway at full volume, and more shops and walkable spots nearby

🍽️ Do the meal plan

* Our other goal this year was to buy and bring our own food instead of eating out constantly. That one did not happen

* But Atticus has been on CLI’s optional paid meal plan, and we’d recommend it — otherwise you’re driving back midday for lunch and again that night for pickup

👕 “I got this, Mom”

* CLI scheduled a photo shoot with a specific color palette everyone was supposed to pack for

* Before he left our house, Atticus assured my wife he had everything — pink pants, the right top, all set, don’t worry

* This morning she dropped him off at CLI, went back to the hotel, and discovered he had, in fact, not got this. Cue an emergency mall run by #1 mom

🎓 Why I’m home this week

* I’m holding down the fort in the Twin Cities because my oldest, Cam, graduates from paramedic school

* Speaking of confetti: I’ve ordered mini hand cannons for the occasion — the kind with streamers that stay attached so I can reel them back in and not leave a mess for the custodial staff. He doesn’t know about this surprise. Don’t tell him ok?

I’m hoping to do a follow-up episode next week with Atti so you can hear it firsthand (assuming he can stay awake long enough to record LOL!).

As always, head to dadofadancer.com to comment on any post or email me directly — and make some friends in the comments section while you’re there. You can also find us on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. A subscribe helps the algorithm, or the smashing of the like button, or whatever the cool thing is that the kids are doing these days.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.dadofadancer.com

It’s the video you’ve been waiting for (maybe?). Atti and I join forces and dance to Le Freak!

And in case this song makes you want to revisit the music video:

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.dadofadancer.com

Hello friends! Back to school is barreling toward us, and for our house that means a new studio, a new audition, and a whole lot of feelings in my stomach. This week I’m flying solo to talk about what’s coming this fall, what my wife and I are doing to keep the anxiety in check — his and ours. Deep breath. Here we go.

🕰️ How we got here

* We stepped away from big studio dance in early 2025 after about five years — still not ready to tell that story, but I will eventually

* What followed was a great year of Atticus as a free agent, working with a dance consultant who plugged him into networking, coaches, intensives, and camps he’d never have found otherwise

* He started at a performing arts high school expecting big-studio intensity, and that expectation didn’t match reality — no fault of the school, just a misalignment that led to some disappointment

* By this spring, my wife and I knew he needed a studio again to feed the hunger

😬 Why the audition brings anxiety

* Big studio dance can be full of cliques, it can cost a fortune, and the social pressure is real

* For most of his dance life, Atticus was the only guy on his team and started later than everyone else, so he was always the new kid on the block and trying to break into circles that were already tight

✅ What’s landing in the pro column this time

* A small number of teams, with placement based on age. After years of "why am I not moving up with my older friends?", that kind of transparency deflates a huge amount of pre-audition dread

* A staff that says openly they’re a low-drama studio: if we see something, we say something, we squash it. I don’t think you can fully separate drama from dance — it’s baked in — but I love the effort

* A lighter competition schedule that leans toward events with classes and workshops built in, so the kids come home having learned something instead of just surviving an assembly line

📱 The broken record about likes

* When he tells me his dance video got 50 likes, my answer is always the same — the people who really love you love you at zero likes or 20 million

* Some friends and family think we’re a little too brutally honest with him about this. I’m okay with that. Instagram is a real app with real videos, but it’s not real life

🎓 The parallel track

* He turns 16 this summer, has his permit, and already has a list of about six colleges he found through dance — so social media is actually a gift here

* The honest conversation we keep having: your physique and flexibility run out eventually, so let’s build the rest of your life in parallel. Right now he’s eyeing forensics programs (thanks to a deep love of procedural crime shows) or a business degree

💡 His strip mall studio idea

* He pitched us on leasing a small space and turning it into a practice studio — a real problem worth solving, since most studios won’t let you reserve a room for random practices

* Even small spaces around here are wildly expensive, but I love the business drive behind it. Maybe in a few years

❤️ The message underneath all of it

* As parents we say “We’ve got your back. Compete and network, but also build your life beyond just dance.”

* And no matter how many triple-ruby-upside-down-diamond-hyper-uppercut-platinum-sapphire-silver awards you do or don’t bring home, it doesn’t change our love for you one iota — and it doesn’t define who you are

I‘d love to hear your thoughts on this one, or anything else we’ve talked about. Everything lives at dadofadancer.com, where you can subscribe and leave a comment on any post. You can also just DM me, which seems to be what most folks are comfortable with — but hey, why not make a friend in the comment section?

If you haven’t subscribed to the podcast yet, please do — Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen.

Have yourself a wonderful rest of your week, and we’ll talk to you all next week on Dad of a Dancer. Bye-bye!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.dadofadancer.com

Hello friends! We’re wrapping up our Master Ballet Academy series with this one, and this time it’s just me — no Atticus — giving you the full parental debrief on his three-week summer intensive in Phoenix, Arizona. You’ve heard his side over the last couple of weeks; now I’m here to talk about him behind his back. Lovingly, of course.

🎭 How we got here (again)

* MBA was recommended by Atticus’s dance coach months ago — you have to audition to get in, and you can do it in person or online

* We went the online route, which added a layer of stress: glitchy Zoom, audio lag, and a nervous kid on pins and needles trying to follow instructions through a spotty connection

* In hindsight, I’d love to have flown us out for an in-person audition — there’s an energy you just can’t replicate through a screen

* He got accepted, and then came the question: three weeks minimum? Really? (Spoiler: yes, really — and it makes sense)

💪 The arc of three weeks

* Week one nearly broke him. He came in thinking the days wouldn’t be as long as his CLI Conservatory experience in Massachusetts — he was, as he later admitted, “sorely mistaken, literally and figuratively”

* By Wednesday of week one he was saying, “I don’t know if I can do another day of this”

* His coaches had strongly recommended building up stamina beforehand — hitting the rowing machine was the big suggestion — and he passed on that. He felt it big time by day three

* End of week one into week two: things started clicking — stamina, choreography, the works

* Midway through week two: he hit his stride

* Week three: “I can’t believe it’s over already”

The three-week minimum isn’t arbitrary. You need that first week just to survive, the second to adapt, and the third to actually thrive.

🏋️ The coaching style: tough love, emphasis on tough

* Atticus is surrounded by wonderful, encouraging people in his dance world — and I love that for him

* But sometimes the vibe is a little “Atticus, you can do no wrong, you’re a dancing tornado of joy”

* MBA pushed these kids hard. The message was closer to: unless you’re paralyzed, it’s not rest time, it’s dance time!

* As his dad, I genuinely appreciated that. I’m glad he got his butt kicked for three weeks — and I mean that in the nicest way possible

✈️ The real talk: logistics and cost

* My wife and son were away for three weeks — hard on everyone at home (especially when my father passed away right before the 3-week MBA stint was set to begin)

* We were lucky to have family in the Phoenix area who let them stay and use their car — but they were about 45 minutes from the academy, so it was three to four hours of driving per day - and a heck of a lot of gas money

* We haven’t fully tallied the credit card damage yet, but: it’s going to be a lot

* There’s an option for students to stay in dorms on-site, which could reduce some of the logistical complexity — but we weren’t quite ready for that this year

* Bottom line: if you’re considering MBA, especially out of state, go in with eyes open about the financial and time commitment. It’s real, it’s significant, and you should weigh it carefully

🩰 The verdict

* Would we do it again? He says absolutely — learned a ton, loved the teachers, made great friends

* Next summer he wants to explore other dance styles, so the plan is probably to double-up on CLI weeks instead of returning to MBA

* Ballet, as multiple smart dance people have told me, is a foundational core that everything else is built on — so the investment wasn’t wasted (even if ballet isn’t his professional destination)

🤝 The bonus win: a new solo piece

* He connected with a teacher he really clicked with, and that teacher choreographed a new solo for him

* That’s a tangible thing he’s bringing home for competition season

* It’s also a good reminder that even if the core experience isn’t what you expect, events like this are networking gold — in dance, like in any industry, the world gets small fast, and you never know who you’ll need to know someday

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.dadofadancer.com

Hello friends! We’re closing out the Master Ballet Academy trilogy and I could not be more proud. In this episode, I catch up with Atticus as he wraps up his final week in Scottsdale — and the kid who dragged himself through week one is a completely different dancer heading into the finish line. We talk about his physical and mental transformation, a surprise contemporary solo opportunity, what he’d tell his past self, and some real talk about the cost (and commitment) of intensive training.

🧠 The transformation — body and mind

* Atticus reflects on where he started: not the most flexible dancer, having begun ballet at nine while many peers started as toddlers

* By week three, he’s seeing real gains in flexibility and says the difference is “crazy”

* Equally as big: the mental shift — he admits that when he doesn’t connect with a teacher, his face (and attitude) shows it, and MBA pushed him to work through that

* His big takeaway: respecting your teachers, even when it’s hard, is a skill that pays off

💪 Tough love, MBA style

* The teachers don’t ask if you’re okay — they ask if you can get up and dance

* A memorable quote from the faculty: “We don’t want to train backup dancers. We want to train professionals.”

* That line stung for Atticus at first — he clarified he’s not pursuing professional ballet but wants to dance commercially (think Tate McRae-style touring work) — and he realized “backup dancer” in their context meant recreational dancer

* The distinction lit a fire under him

🌀 A surprise solo opportunity

* In week three, a choreographer at MBA — a former student who now dances with another ballet company — approached Atticus about creating a contemporary solo

* He’s planning to compete it through a Minnesota-based studio where he’s been taking classes and has an audition coming up in August

* He posted a sneak peek on Instagram but is keeping the full piece under wraps (choreo theft is real, folks)

* The piece is a big stylistic departure for him — more lyrical and expressive, leaning into his back flexibility rather than his legs

💡 Advice from Atticus to Atticus

* If he could time-travel back three weeks he would tell himself: be ready for tough love — they’ll push you hard, even break you down a little, then build you back up

* If you’re going to do a summer intensive, do as many weeks as you can — three weeks felt just long enough to finally hit a groove right as it ended

* For families weighing the cost: it’s not cheap, but if you can make it work financially, more time = more growth; he also mentioned hearing (unofficially) that some tuition assistance may be available

🩹 The physical toll is real

* A fellow dancer ended up in the ER in the final week with a hip injury, a sobering reminder of what this level of training demands on the body

* Atticus himself notes he hasn’t danced at this intensity since leaving his previous studio

* He’s been pushing hard but plans to ease up the final few days to avoid going home banged up

🗺️ What’s next

* Brian picks Atticus up Sunday and the family heads back to Minnesota

* Almost immediately after, it’s off to Massachusetts for the CLI Conservatory summer intensive

Thanks for following along on the Master Ballet Academy journey — all three parts! If you’ve been listening, you’ve watched Atticus grow in real time, and that’s kind of the whole point of this podcast. Find all the episodes and more at dadofadancer.com, and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts so you don’t miss the CLI series coming up next. See you there! 🎉

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.dadofadancer.com

Hello friends! This was supposed to be week two of three with Atticus joining me live from Phoenix, but a couple of things got in the way. He’d just come through a brutal day — a full day of class plus a couple of solo sessions — and my wife was basically hauling home a bag of bones. And on a much heavier note, since we last talked, my dad — Atti’s grandpa — passed away, so our minds have been all over the place this week. So this one’s just me, offering a parent’s-eye view of how the Master Ballet Academy experience has been going so far.

🩰 The MBA reality check

* No surprise here: it’s really hard, really demanding, and the overall tone is just more serious than Atticus is used to

* The balance at MBA leans more toward tough — they still love everybody, but it’s a no-excuses environment. Your feet hurt? Keep dancing!

* It’s been humbling in the best way. Atticus is a small fish in a big pond right now, surrounded by some absolutely blow-your-mind dancers

🐺 How we got here

* Quick background for new listeners: we were part of big studio dance for years, then stepped away at the start of last year to go a different direction

* Since then Atticus has been a bit of a lone wolf — a solo free agent. We’ve hired choreographers to build solos, and he works twice a week with a dance consultant

* That consultant work isn’t just technique — it’s things like building a dance resume and finding classes and clinics he couldn’t access inside the big studio model. More love than tough, but plenty of both

🎯 On being honest with your dancer

* Before this experience we told Atticus straight up: you’re not going to be the best dancer there, and that’s okay. Some friends and family pushed back — “you’ve got to pump him up, tell him he’s the best!”

* We did tell him all the encouraging things too. But we also believe in honest feedback: “that wasn’t your best one — two weeks ago was better, because of X, Y, Z — but you still did great”

* My worry with the pure-gold, shooting-star, no-flaws approach: if every move a kid makes is the bestest and most awesomest, why would they ever work? You’ve just told them they’re God’s gift to dancing

💔 A cautionary tale from the awards ceremony

* Back in our big studio days, I watched a young dancer completely fall apart after not being recognized at an awards night — heaving, convulsing, gasping. I genuinely thought it was a medical emergency and ran over to help

* Her mom waved me off, then I overheard her comforting her: “they just don’t see how great you are… we just need to get you in front of the right judges”

* Honestly, I didn’t think that dancer was as strong as a lot of her teammates, and I thought framing her disappointment as everyone-else’s-fault was doing her a real disservice. I’m a dad, not a judge — but that moment has stuck with me

⚖️ Finding the balance

* The goal isn’t to crush them (”well, that sucked”) or to inflate them (“you’re the greatest thing since sliced bread!”). It’s somewhere in the middle

* Real affirmation for all the hard work, plus a healthy dose of “you’ve got a ways to go”

* What I ultimately want: Atticus walks into a room full of titans and, instead of feeling scared or ready to quit, thinks “wow, that person is incredible — I’m going to go ask them how they did that.” A healthy sense of self, always improving

📅 What’s next

* Fingers crossed I can get Atticus live again next week for the final-week wrap-up, so you can better decide whether MBA is the right fit for you or the dancers in your life

Thanks for listening this week, especially with everything going on. All episodes live at dadofadancer.com — head there to subscribe, and if you’re not already following us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you take in podcasts through your ear holes, we’d really appreciate it. We don’t run ads or sponsors, so it’s just nice to know people are out there. Drop us a message or leave a comment on a post anytime. Hope you have a wonderful week and weekend — talk soon. 🩰

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.dadofadancer.com

Hello friends! We’re doing something a little different this week — Atticus is joining me live from Scottsdale, Arizona, just three days into his summer intensive at Master Ballet Academy, and I am here for every sweaty, sun-drenched detail. This is part one of what’s shaping up to be a three-part series as we check in with him each week of his time there. Buckle up.

🌵 What is Master Ballet Academy?

* Master Ballet Academy is located in Scottsdale, Arizona and is designed to prepare pre-professional and aspiring professional ballet dancers

* Atticus auditioned via Zoom — about an hour and a half of barre work, flexibility, turns, jumps, and center combinations — and heard back within a week or two that he was accepted

* Students can attend anywhere from the minimum three weeks up to six weeks; Atticus is doing three weeks before heading to CLI Conservatory in Massachusetts

* The summer program culminates in a showcase — this year, Swan Lake, with both ballet and contemporary pieces (and possibly solos!)

* Temps in Scottsdale right now: a very breezy 98°F, heading toward 104–111°F by week’s end. Dry heat, though.

🩰 What the experience is actually like

* Days run from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. — sometimes as late as 6:30 p.m. if Atticus has private lessons afterward

* The pace is fast: teachers mark or demonstrate combinations once, and you’re expected to catch on immediately; no hand-holding

* Atticus hasn’t been in a full traditional ballet class in about two years, so the re-entry has been a little bit of an adjustment

* His focus right now: less “go full out,” more “be clean.” Hitting counts, sharpening turns, controlled movement. He describes it well — if you’re messy and off the counts, you’re not going to look good. Clean first, then power

💡 Tips from three days in

* Build your cardio before you arrive — Atticus spent the weeks between acceptance and departure doing serious cardio prep, and he’s grateful he did

* Don’t expect to be at everyone else’s level on day one, or week one. Atticus started dancing at 8 or 9 (ballet at about 13), which is late by industry standards, and he’s been learning to embrace incremental progress rather than measuring himself against kids who’ve been training since they were toddlers

* Keep an open mind and watch the strong dancers in front of you — there’s a lot to learn just from observing

* Don’t psych yourself out about the social scene; Atticus came in braced for a competitive, cliquey vibe and found the opposite

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.dadofadancer.com

Hello friends! We’re back from vacation. This week’s episode is a shorter one, but it’s built around a question that I think a lot of dance families quietly wonder about: is the competitive studio model actually broken, especially for kids 12 and up?

🎬 The clip that started it all

* A dance educator on Instagram called heyitspickett made the case that most studios fail older dancers — not because they’re bad studios, but because of a fundamental design flaw

* The argument: dance has diminishing returns. By the time a “lifer” hits 12 or 13, they’ve already acquired most of the foundational skills they’re going to get

* What they actually need at that stage is a shift — away from skill acquisition and toward deeper artistry: musicality, movement quality, dynamics, improvisation, choreographic thinking

* When that shift doesn’t happen, dancers stagnate and burn out doing the same training they’ve done since they were four

🤔 Why this hit close to home

* We stepped away from Big Studio Dance last year to go the solo free-agent route, partly because Atticus was feeling stuck and a little stale in new skills development

* I’ll be honest — I thought some of that was him being a little too big for his britches. When he hears this, I think even he’ll admit I have a point

* But what that clip describes maps directly onto our experience: the assembly-line solo package where the music is already chosen, the choreography is already set, and the kid just has to learn it. There’s not a lot of room for a hungry dancer to develop their own voice.

🩰 The antidote: three weeks in Phoenix

* Atticus heads to the Master Ballet Academy in Phoenix in just a few days for a three-week summer intensive — check out our last episode for the full backstory

* I fully expect him to come back exhausted, sore, and soaking in Epsom salts.

* The plan: we’ll record check-in episodes over those three weeks so you can hear directly from him what he’s learning, whether he’s holding his own, and what you’d want to know before sending your own dancer there

💸 Solidarity for the broke dance parents

* I’ll leave you with a clip from brokedadjordan on Instagram, who wandered into my algorithm with a very relatable take on the cost of competitive dance

* His math: every additional dance costs about the same as a lightly used Honda

* If you felt that in your soul, raise your hand. I’m raising mine with you. 🙋

May we all stay gainfully employed so our dancers can keep doing the thing they love. See you next week — and hopefully with our first update from Phoenix!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.dadofadancer.com

Hi friends, Atti’s ramping up for his upcoming three-week intensive at Master Ballet Academy. For months, his coach (as well as his mom and dad) have highly encouraged him to work more cardio into his dance diet so he doesn’t crumble into an out-of-breath pile during the first day of class!

But now here we are, just a few weeks shy of the trip, and how many times do you think Atti has hit the gym? If you said zero you’d be correct! So whether you’re preparing for a big intense period of dance this summer or just taking some time off to chill: keep that cardio up to increase (or at least maintain) your stamina!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.dadofadancer.com