Today we’d like to introduce you to Larisa Hall.
Larisa, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
The aspiration of Tap Fever’s Executive Director and Founder, Larisa Hall, is to give dance opportunities to anyone with the rhythm in their hearts. Dance has been a part of Larisa’s life for as long as she can remember, but it didn’t come easily at first. Larisa was born with severely clubbed feet and had to wear casts on both legs as an infant. She slept with a brace to hold her feet and casts turned out, which the medical team hoped would correct the problem. Doctors had their doubts about how well Larisa would walk, but by age 1½ she was on her feet! As a kid, her doctor recommended that Larisa take ballet lessons as physical therapy for her clubbed feet, which helped tremendously. Although Larisa had a lot of ankle pain while growing up, she never wanted to stop dancing once she got the “fever” for it!
Dancing since kindergarten, Larisa has experienced many styles— jazz, ballet, contemporary, swing, hip-hop… She loves ’em all, but the rhythm and unique art of tap dance have always been her favorite. Born and raised just outside of Washington D.C., Larisa learned a Broadway-style of tap with Mary Lou Peters and performed in many shows. After college Larisa left the snowy east coast and landed in the Bay Area of Northern California, where she broadened her skills with more classic and rhythm steps at Pamm Drake’s Dance/10 Performing Arts Center in Alameda. With this experience, Larisa received high marks in regional and national competitions and performed as a member of Pamm’s professional tap team, “The Tap Dancing Christmas Trees”. One of Larisa’s most memorable experiences with that studio was dancing in the 2001 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York, just two short months after the collapse of the World Trade Center buildings.
Larisa has been in San Diego since the summer of 2003 and teaching her style of tap, which is a culmination of the variety of dance experiences she’s had over the years. Larisa’s classes focus on making technology easy to understand, and having fun! Larisa loves all types of dance and wants to share that joy with anyone who is willing to try. By opening Tap Fever Studios, Larisa has been able to help other students overcome their obstacles and experience the joy of dance. Larisa firmly believes that anyone can dance if given the chance.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Tap Fever Studios first opened April 1, 2008, in the basement suite of 7301 Girard Street in La Jolla. After a short time, we were lucky enough to find the wonderful community of Bird Rock a couple of miles down the road and we relocated to (the above ground location) 5628 La Jolla Boulevard. We stayed there for about 3½ years, then found a larger home at 683 Turquoise Street. We stayed on Turquoise Street for about 2½ years, and it was great, aside from parking challenges and accessibility from the freeway. From there, we moved to 2180 Garnet Avenue #1F in Pacific Beach, which is very close to the freeway, and had ample parking! We were in the 2180 space from January 2015 – July 2019, which is when we moved right next door to 2146 Garnet Ave. This is the coolest space ever! We converted a house into a dance studio, and it feels incredible being in this amazing space. We’re close to the freeway, have great parking, and we’ve got a super long lease, so expect to see Tap Fever Studios in Pacific Beach for a very long time!
Tell us more about the business.
Core Programs
Dance Classes
Through dance, people can increase their balance, coordination, strength, and flexibility. A bonus is how significantly dance can better a person’s mood! At Tap Fever Studios, we strive to make dance a great experience in every way possible for students with and without disabilities. We offer classes in tap, ballet, contemporary, hip-hop, jazz, and cardio tap!
Performances
Throughout the year, Tap Fever Studios has multiple recitals and other performance events which showcase all the hard work that our dancers have put into learning their craft. By providing opportunities for dancers to perform, it gives them a sense of accomplishment, and the chance to share what they’ve learned with their families, friends, and the community.
Dancers With Disabilities
Anyone can dance if given the chance. With this belief, Tap Fever Studios provides dance opportunities to all. We make whatever accommodation that we can to make classes accessible. There are many options for dancers of any age that have disabilities. We can integrate these students into regularly scheduled classes, with an assistant when needed, we can teach private lessons, or we can have classes for groups of dancers with disabilities that belong to local organizations we’ve partnered with.
*Some of our current partnerships include Autism Tree Project Foundation, ARC of San Diego, SANDI Stars, and A Better Life Together. We provide FREE dance classes every week for these groups.
Community Outreach
Being an active participant in the community is important to Tap Fever. We offer free performances at the public library, senior living facilities, at community events, and with the USO. Also, once per year during the holidays, we offer all of our classes free for three days!
Military Discounts
The work and the sacrifices by active-duty military and their families are greatly appreciated. Whenever we are asked if we offer a military discount, the answer is yes! All active-duty military families may receive a 5% discount on their class tuition fees.
Scholarships
Tap Fever Studios offers two types of scholarships: Perfectly Abled & Community Service. The Perfectly Abled scholarship is offered to dancers with disabilities who wish to share their stories, to inspire others to take a chance on dance. The goal of the Community Outreach Service scholarship is to encourage dancers to share the art of dance with the community through a special project of their creation. When awarded a scholarship, 100% of the student’s class fees are waived for a full 16-week session.
Fee Waivers/Work-Trade
To ensure that all dancers have the opportunity to take classes, we offer financial aid. There are two options: fee waivers, as well as work-trade incentives. When financial assistance is needed, either 50%, 75%, or 100% of a qualifying student’s class tuition fees may be waived. For Fee Waivers, proof of income will be required and is subject to the availability of funds. Work-Trade does not require proof of income and is not subject to the availability of funds. Work-Trade is also a good way to volunteer your time to help out our non-profit organization!
Assistant Teaching Mentoring
When students show a strong interest in dance, Tap Fever Studios nurtures their desire to learn more. Students selected to assist with dance classes will work alongside the instructors that teach kids ages two to eight. The mentee will learn how to set an example for the younger kids. They will learn how to lead classes, how to create appropriate choreography for kids, how to be responsible for the equipment that is used in these classes, how to care for and treat the students in these classes, and how to be organized and pay attention to detail.
Internships
High school or college students have the opportunity to see behind the scenes of our non-profit organization. Our internship programs teach skills in marketing, public relations, social media, advertising and promotion, event planning, research, website content, program development, and many other facets of non-profit management. Interns receive school credit for their hours worked. Tap Fever also offers interns the opportunity to take as many dance classes as they’d like (at no charge) for the duration of their internship.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
Here are some quotes about luck that I like: “I’m a greater believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it” – Thomas Jefferson
“Luck is a very thin wire between survival and disaster, and not many people can keep their balance on it.” – Hunter S. Thompson
“Luck is not chance, it’s toil; fortune’s expensive smile is earned.” – Emily Dickinson
“Luck? I don’t know anything about luck. I’ve never banked on it and I’m afraid of people who do. Luck to me is something else: Hard work – and realizing what is the opportunity and what isn’t.” – Lucille Ball
Pricing:
- $15 single dance class
- $55 package of 4 dance classes
- $192 package of 16 dance classes
- $550 unlimited dance classes for one session (16-weeks)
- $0 classes for dancers with disabilities
Contact Info:
- Address: 2146 Garnet Avenue
San Diego, CA 92109 - Website: www.tapfever.com
- Phone: 858-456-7301
- Email: dance@tapfever.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tapfever/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tapfever/
- Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/tapfever/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/tap-fever-studios-san-diego
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/TapFever
Image Credit:
I took all the photos. -Larisa
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