Performing Arts with a Difference
Our Story
Connections Studio is a Performing Arts studio for the
Recreational, Competitive, and Pre Professional/Professional student.
Connections Studio, Inc. was founded by Laura Alatorre, officially opening its doors on June 18th, 2016.
Ms. Laurie's dream was to create a studio that would not only educate and train aspiring artists of the performing arts but also connect them with further education, experience, and performances within the industry.
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We at Connections Studio strive to educate our students with passion, respect, and love for the performing arts as a family-owned & faith-based business. We believe it is important to keep the classical arts alive and deem ourselves responsible to create performance opportunities for our students & our community. With the combined talents of each faculty member and a strong emphasis on technique & injury prevention, our studio offers an array of fun, informative, and family-friendly classes, workshops, intensives and performances throughout the year. We aim to keep things decent and in order; and to have modesty at the forefront of any class and/or performance. We take care in being an all-around "age appropriate" studio, as well as a studio that trains all students in respect for themselves and others.
About Us
Performing Arts with a Difference
Connections Studio offers classes for children, ages 9 months & up through adults/senior citizens.
This studio caters to new and old students alike whether you're just starting at 2 or 72 yrs. old we've got you covered!
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Connections Studio has a strict class maximum/small class sizes.
This practice ensures each student gets noticed, has better overall results, and enhanced learning, classes become a community with opportunities to participate equally, feedback for each student, teachers & and students become a team during class, with time and room for ideas to be shared and questions answered.
Click here to learn more.
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Connections Studio values & practices a curriculum founded on Technique, Terminology, and Injury Prevention.
There are no shortcuts or substitutes for educating our students on proper Technique, Terminology, and Injury Prevention; from strong technical performance to proactively preventing unnecessary injuries, each of these subjects plays a very important role in each of the classes offered at our studio.
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Connections Studio offers performance opportunities to its students as well as its surrounding community.
Performance opportunities are offered throughout the year, ranging from competitions to annual and seasonal performances.
Meet The Team
Laura Alatorre, Owner (Center)
Alexandria Alatorre
Ms. Alex started dancing at the age of 7 in the south suburbs of Chicago. She then went on to further her dance education at the infamous Lou Conte Dance Studio. During her teen years she also studied at John Casablancas Modeling & Career Centers and holds a diploma in acting, film, & modeling and continues to hone her craft in Stage Makeup.
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As both Instructor & Supervisor Ms. Alex developed the dance & musical theater club "Oak Playhouse" for the Oak Forest Park District, was Assistant Director at StagePlay for numerous seasons, and Choreographer for
Jack Hille Middle School.
Ms. Alex has remained connected to her community coaching as well as performing with the Oak Forest Park District, Orland Park Theatre Troupe, and The C.A.S.T.
Ms. Alex also served as head coach for CSDC from 2016-2019, winning special choreography awards and several 1st place titles (most recently in 2019 for her piece "The Dance") from Starbound, CRU Dance, The Power of Dance, and Dupree.
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Many of our iconic & memorable photographs are taken by Ms. Alex, she's also the "go-to person" for make-up, if you ever have questions, she has done everything from beginner, to prom, and stage make-up.
Isaiah Alatorre
Ballet Director
Mr. Isaiah started his dance training at the age of 12 in the south suburbs of Chicago. After high school, he went on to become a scholarship student at the Lou Conte Dance Studio under the direction of
Claire Bataille, and was also a scholarship student of Alonzo King's LINES Ballet in California.
Mr. Isaiah has trained under some of Chicago's best Ballet, Modern, and Jazz instructors and danced with Chicago Ballet, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Fairfax Ballet, Ruth Page Civic Ballet, and with Drury Lane Theatre in their 2015 production of West Side Story.
Mr. Isaiah worked for the Goodman Theatre Chicago as Movement Assistant, which took him overseas with the company to Austria.
In 2016 Mr. Isaiah's choreography for Up to the Mountain won the Cathy Roe Special Award for Favorite Piece.
Most recently in 2019, Mr. Isaiah's piece "Blessed" won 1st Place at CRU Dance.
Jessica Alatorre
Ms. Jessica began dance training in the south suburbs of Chicago at the age of 5. Her ballet training includes Vaganova, Cecchetti, Balanchine and R.A.D methods. While in high school she continued her ballet training at the Lou Conte Dance Studio as a scholarship student, under the directorship of the late & greatly infamous Claire Bataille, and has studied under some of the best instructors in Chicago including Birute Barodicaite, Patti Eylar, Laura Wade, Ariane Dolan, and Meredith Dincolo. Ms Jessica was also a scholarship student at Ballet Chicago, performing in their production of
"Who Cares?". ​In 2014 she was accepted into the River North Dance Chicago Intensive, performing in Becca Lemme's Fault Lines.
Ms. Jessica has performed multiple times in Ruth Page Civic Ballet's
The Nutcracker (most recently in 2019); in 2017 she was a featured dancer for the Civic Ballet marking her first appearance on television (NBC 5 & WCIU) in participation with Illuminate 900 North and Make-A-Wish.
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M.s Jessica has also served as Ballet Mistress to various competitive ice skaters and their teams- training them to further progress & culminate their strength, grace, posture, and injury prevention. ​She also choreographs for CSDC and performs with The C.A.S.T in community theatre & outreach events; she has also received special awards and 1st place titles at various competitions.
Victoria Niedbalec
Tap Director
Ms. Victoria started her dance training in the south suburbs of Chicago at the age of 12. She continued her studies, at Lou Conte Dance Studio and American Rhythm Center, Chicago, under some of Chicago's best instructors including Lane Alexander, Ariane Dolan, Kirby Reed, Trae Turner, Tammy Mader, Julie Cartier, Bril Barrett, Sarah Schafer, Claire Bataille, and Birute Barodicaite to name a few.
Along with her 20+ years of teaching experience Ms Victoria has also served as guest choreographer, judge, and technique instructor for several high school & studio dance teams throughout the Chicagoland area. She was also a well versed Dance Instructor, Supervisor, and Program Developer having served for the Orland Park, Oak Forest, and Naperville Park Districts.
Private lessons & coaching is also a part of her forte having a broad clientele over the years including ice skaters, martial artists, couples dancing, wedding & special event choreographer, and more.
Ms. Victoria's choreography has won several awards - her tap piece Got Rhythm won 1st place at the 2016 CRU Dance Competition. Most recently, she began her directorship of CSDC in August of 2019 and was also co-director of A Christmas Medley that same year.
Our Clients
Our clientele ranges from dancers, singers, and actors to martial artists, ice skaters, football players, gymnasts, and more.
