Drive into downtown Buffalo on a Saturday evening, walk into Shea’s Performing Arts Center, and you will understand immediately why Dance Spectrum has been holding its year-end recital here. The room does something to a performance. Dance Spectrum’s 47th annual recital — Do You Wanna Dance — takes over Shea’s all day on June 13, and the evening Competitive Program Showcase kicks off at 6:00 PM.
About Dance Spectrum
Dance Spectrum has been a fixture in the Western New York dance community since 1979, when founder Patricia “Patty” Polanski Neal opened the studio out of a small storefront in Depew — her words: “the best decision I ever made.” The studio has been woman-owned and woman-operated ever since, and most of its faculty are alumni who came back to teach where they trained. That kind of continuity shows in ways you can feel in the room.
The Competitive Program is the studio’s most intensive track — five levels for dancers ages 5 through 18, training two to three days a week in acro, ballet, jazz, tap, lyrical, and hip hop, and competing in local spring events throughout the region. Saturday’s 6:00 PM showcase is their moment. For a lot of these kids, Shea’s is the biggest room they have ever stood on.
One logistical note worth knowing: Dance Spectrum runs three separate showcases at Shea’s on June 13 — the Children’s Program Showcase at 10:00 AM, the Recreational Program Showcase at 2:00 PM, and the Competitive Program Showcase at 6:00 PM. If your family has dancers in more than one program, plan your day accordingly.
About the Venue
Shea’s Performing Arts Center sits at 650 Main Street in the heart of Buffalo’s downtown theater district, with a capacity of 3,019. The lobby opens one hour before showtime — that is 5:00 PM for the evening performance — and the house opens thirty minutes before curtain. Walk-through metal detection is in effect for all patrons, so build a few extra minutes into your arrival. Download the My Shea’s App ahead of time to access your tickets and the show program digitally. Box office questions: 716-847-0850.
Tickets
Tickets are available now through Ticketmaster — on sale since May 17. Grab yours before they’re gone.