Today we’d like to introduce you to Tu DeVera and Beau Fournier.
Beau and Tu have been friends for over ten years. Tu was the studio manager at a dance studio in Alhambra and Beau was teaching a couple of classes there a week. They danced together on some side community projects and quickly became good friends through work and dance. Tu had scheduled Beau on to take on a few more classes during the week, as well as choreograph the hip hop portion of the competition groups. He quickly became invested in teaching the youth who he had seen have a more professional growth mindset than most kids. The program quickly grew both in quality and quantity. She knew she hired the right person to grow the Team there. In addition, Beau had always wanted and dreamed a space of his own to house his own adult professional dance company to be able to create.
As time went by, they felt that in order for them to be able to provide for the dance community to continue to grow, they needed to open up a space where it can provide continued opportunities, train in a state of the art facility, and feel like home. They opened Elements Dance Space, a 10,000 square foot facility, in the summer of 2017 and it has been growing strong since. With help from crowdfunding and savings, they had a very much hands on approach to building their space, doing much of the painting and remodel themselves. Their space now offers classes for youth, fitness classes for adults, events, rentals, and more. They have over 100 dancers in their award-winning competition and performance groups, where some have been successful in the dance and entertainment industry.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has not been a smooth road but we learned a lot about not only how to open a business, fund the start-up of a business, etc. but how to stay communicative and sane as business partners and friends. There were months during construction, where it came to a complete halt because there was no funds. But we managed through and continued on because we knew how important it was to finish.
In the 1st year of business, Tu’s Dad was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer, while Beau’s Dad’s health was ailing as well. A challenging time to be able to balance the business and family life, Elements continued to grow with the support of the Staff. Tu’s father lost his battle, but Tu continues to push forward knowing how proud her Dad was of her. We’re grateful to report that Beau’s Dad’s health is back on track!
With any new business, there has been challenges, but we always remain focused on why we opened it and that’s what gets us through. We always try to make it work and it has!
Elements Dance Space – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Elements Dance Space is a universal blank canvas for all artists, educators, and students, providing limitless opportunities for creation, knowledge, and training to inspire the advancement of every individual within the space.
EDS is a 10,000 square ft facility that offers dance and fitness classes for youth to adult, from beginners to professionals, as well as intensives and workshops, company rehearsal residencies, private lessons, event space rentals, and more. EDS offers five rooms, all with wood sprung floors, ample complimentary parking, and much more…
We have award-winning competition teams and companies. This past summer, Elements won “Best Studio” at the Countdown Nationals Competition. Our teams traveled to Phoenix, AZ to Hip Hop International Competition where their teams placed in top 3 out of the entire country and went on to the World Finals to represent USA.
Our dance curriculum spans from ballet/tap to pointe, from urban choreography to popping, from Zumba to Aerial Silks and all the genres in between. The only thing we do not offer is Ballroom.
In the 2nd year of business, our 2nd recital had over 150 Dancers perform at the sold-out show, with some Dancers performing for their very 1st time.
It’s difficult to find the RIGHT people to build you business with, but we feel our Staff and Instructors are truly invested in making our space the best. We have the most amazing Team and we truly couldn’t be where we are without them.
Elements is where dancers and artists in the Greater Los Angeles/ Southern California area can find everything they want and need in a space. We truly offer almost every opportunity imaginable in our space.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Our proudest moment of our careers so far is seeing this business continue to flourish. With the opening of this space, it has created not just other opportunities for Dancers but for ourselves as well. We’ve expanded our network and this space has lead us to more projects, more connections, and more continued ways for us to be able to give back and provide for our community.
Pricing:
- Only $60 a month for 1 class a week for our youth classes.
- Only $47 for a 4 class pass for our adult dance fitness classes.
- Only $90 for a 4 class pass for our adult aerial silks/pole classes.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1222 N. Fair Oaks Ave. Suite 110
Pasadena, CA 91103 - Website: www.elementsdancespace.com
- Phone: 626-817-9988
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @elementsdancespace
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/elementsdancespace
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/elements-dance-space-pasadena
Image Credit:
We have the best Team! From left to right : Beau, Alyssa, Tu, Meghan, Clarissa, and Samantha.
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