Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA)
June 9, 2005

Good moves
Jo Ann Warren Studio celebrates 25 years of dance

by Richard Duckett

Jo Ann Warren started dancing at the age of 2. "They thought it would be good for me because I wasn't quite the quiet child,'' Warren said of her parents' motives in taking her to dance lessons.

It would prove to be a very decisive move. For one thing, the then Jo Ann Gentile took to dancing right away. "I loved it. I went all the time.''

Later, Jo Ann Warren (now married) started to teach dance at the Worcester Girls Club. She immediately felt comfortable in that position, as well. "I think I was a born teacher,'' she said.

Such were the steps that led to Warren founding the Jo Ann Warren Studio at 321 Grafton St. in Worcester. The studio opened in September, 1979. Moving on through over 25 years, the studio will be having a dance performance celebration of its silver anniversary with performances by students and alumni (many of them dance professionals) at noon and at 5:30 p.m. Sunday in Mechanics Hall, 321 Main St., Worcester.

There are likely to be some superbly negotiated moves on the stage, but it is doubtful that there will be anything ostentatious or pretentious.

That just doesn't seem to be the friendly and down-to-earth Warren's style. "We've been here the whole time,'' she said of the studio's home on a bustling section of Grafton Street (there is also now a Jo Ann Warren Studio in Whitinsville). It's not a gold-plated dance palace, but it has a functional yet friendly feel to it. Adding to a lack of self-importance, the school has the affectionate and amusing nickname of JAWS.

People who have danced there say they like the place and the people because it has a warm and welcoming environment.

"It felt like home, it really did,'' said Stacey Berkowicz of the time she started taking lessons there at the age of 15. Currently taking time off from college, she is helping run the office at the Grafton Street facility.

Annie Kerins, another alum helping out at the studio this summer, said she had danced at other dance schools before finding a home at the Jo Ann Warren Studio when she was 13.

"I felt like whatever my ability was, I was going to grow,'' said Kerins, who is studying theater at the Hartt School of Music at the University of Hartford and has acted in local productions. "Whereas before no one was going to help me because I wasn't the best dancer. Here, no matter what your level, you can always come here and there are people excited to help you.''

But why take dance lessons in the first place?

"Besides the obvious physical benefit, it's an art - they're learning an art form,'' Warren said during an interview at the studio last week. "It's also something that gives you confidence, and the ability to express yourself. That's so important in every walk of life,'' she said.

"And an everlasting support system, because of my mother,'' said her daughter Cybill Warren, assistant artistic director of the studio, concerning dancing at JAWS.

Students and alumni have been known to get help from Jo Ann Warren for such things as job interviews. "Everything,'' Cybill Warren said.

Dance has long been a popular outlet and art form for young people in the Worcester area. For years, the annual "Nutcracker'' performance by the Boston Ballet and other dance troupes at the Worcester Memorial Auditorium was one of the cultural highlights of the year.

There are many accomplished dance schools around and about which have guided students into dance careers or helped with self-esteem and general fitness. But given the large number of schools, it can be a very competitive business. And, as any small business owner can attest, the movement of the economy can often be critical.

"It's always been a roller-coaster. There are hard times - the same as any business.'' Jo Ann Warren said. "It's hard to have a small business. When there's a recession, it's hard for a lot of families to pay for something that's a luxury like dance.''

On the other hand, "they did it,'' Warren said of people who still sent their children to dance school or paid for their own lessons during hard times. "People do find a way.''

Warren knew she was taking a chance when she opened her studio, but the element of risk was something she rather liked.

"It's always a chance. I like that. `Let's try this and see what happens.' It's exciting to have my own school.''

In her junior high and high school years, Warren was also interested in theater. A piece in The Evening Gazette talked about the backyard productions that a 13-year-old Jo Ann Gentile was staging. Originally from Worcester, she had moved with her family to Shrewsbury (she now lives in Worcester again). However, she was in her teen years and ultimately too young to take a chance on a career on the stage. "I thought about theater, but I was told it's not too realistic.''

But by the time she started to teach dance and found she had an ability to do it, she was not going to be deterred from following her latest dream. ...

"I thought this was something I wanted to pursue,'' she said.

In preparation, she said she took teaching lessons in New York City and was certified by the Dance Masters of America. When the Jo Ann Warren Studio opened in September 1979, 75 to 100 students immediately signed up. "We had quite a big following right away,'' Warren said, attributing the impressive beginning number to the fact that she had become well-known locally through activities such as teaching at the Girls Club.

"Most of the children came from the neighborhood,'' Warren said. "They walked.'' The staff initially consisted of "just me.''

There are now 12 people on the staff of JAWS, and the number of students has increased considerably. Today, many travel to the studio from out of state for training. Besides overseeing the people who attend the Worcester and Whitinsville studios, Warren and her staff direct the dance program at the Assabet Valley After Dark continuing education program in Marlboro and run the dance program at St. Mark's School in Southboro. This summer, JAWS will be working with students at Union Street and Grafton Street schools in Worcester.

The students who come to the Jo Ann Warren Studio are mostly young people, but adults attend, too, including people who are preparing for professional careers, Warren said. There are also more girls than boys, Warren acknowledged, "but we probably have more boys than any other studio,'' she said. "A lot of them continued to very good careers, and they are very good role models for people who want to dance.''

Though she is very well known for teaching tap, Warren and her staff teach across the board: ballet, hip hop, jazz, lyrical, as well as theater, acrobatics and voice.

Dance styles come and dance styles go, as Warren is very aware. "You do have to be ahead of trends in music,'' she said.

When Cybill Warren started dancing at her mother's studio, "I did everything - sang, danced, did aerobics, competed.'' She went on to dance professionally at Busch Gardens in Virginia. Meanwhile, she also earned a degree in criminal justice at Clark University and had thoughts of being a lawyer. There was certainly no family discouragement, but after two days of law school Cybill Warren had had enough. She's been teaching dance at JAWS ever since. She and her mother also give master dance classes across the country.

"It's wonderful,'' Jo Ann Warren said of having her daughter as part of her dance team.

"It's a nice thing to be with your family. I guess it's a lucky thing,'' said her daughter.

But most importantly, "Seeing my students succeed is the biggest payback,'' Jo Ann Warren said.

A lot have - touring with dance companies and musical productions, making it to Broadway, and traveling around the world.

Recently, Warren expanded her own professional horizons by becoming a state-licensed theatrical booking agent.

But this does not mean she's thinking of a career change that would take her away from the studio. And Warren, who describes herself as "50-something,'' definitely is not pondering retirement.

"I don't see myself - no, I love it too much,'' she said.

Her daughter laughed. "That's funny. She's not going anywhere,'' Cybill Warren said. "I'm not going anywhere, either.''