Summer Dance Experience

Summer Dance Experience 2026: July 5-25, 2026

The Mercyhurst University Department of Dance is delighted to present its 2026 Summer Dance Experience. Residential and commuter options are available for dancers who have a minimum of four years of ballet training (pointe is not necessary) and who will be at least 12 years old and no older than 22 years old by the time classes begin. Come dance in an environment designed to spark curiosity, grace, and confidence in your dancing while fostering nimble habits of mind—we would love to spend the summer with you, and we hope you will be proud of how much you have grown when you return to your year-round training program!

Quality Education: Our summer program provides dance education with a solid foundation in ballet, kinesthetically sound practices, artistic exploration, and intellectual growth through both seminars and physical practice.
Valuable Introduction: We provide a safe environment where students can immerse themselves in a university setting while experiencing a diverse range of dance genres and styles.
Artistic Growth and Musicality: We encourage dancers to explore and hone all aspects of their craft by providing movement classes in collaboration with experienced musicians.
Personalized Attention: We prefer to keep class sizes small, where the dancers receive individualized attention and take ownership of their progress.
Experienced Faculty: We bring dance artists with broad perspectives to work with the students. Mercyhurst dance faculty and alumni, as well as locally, regionally, and nationally recognized dance educators, share their experiences in the field as dancers, teachers, choreographers, administrators, and scholars.

Sample Schedule

9 to 10 a.m. — Pilates/Yoga/Dance Prehab
10:15 a.m. to noon — Ballet Technique
12:15 to 1:15 p.m. — Lunch
1:30 to 3 p.m. — Pointe/Variations/Repertoire
3:15 to 4:45 p.m. — Contemporary/Modern/Jazz/Choreography
5 to 6 p.m. — Dinner
6 to 7 p.m. — Seminar: Artist Talk, College/Company, Nutrition for Dancers, Dance/Film, etc.

2026 Summer Dance Experience guest faculty will be announced soon!

Tuition

Tuition (1 week): $460
Tuition (2 weeks): $920
Tuition (3 weeks): $1,380

Housing

Double occupancy room in Warde Hall: $125 per week

Warde Hall is one of the first-year student dorms on campus and is adjacent to the building that houses the dance studios. Each student will have their own bed, dresser, desk, and chair. There are two closets and a private bathroom that are shared by the occupants of the room. At approximately 300 square feet, rooms in Warde are among the largest of the residence halls.

Features of Warde Hall

• A full-size kitchen on the first floor
• A recreation room (two treadmills, one elliptical, one exercise bike, and one weight machine)
• A multi-media room
• All-purpose lounges (including flat screen TVs on each floor)
• A microwave on each floor
• Individually controlled air conditioning and heating
• Free laundry services on each floor

Meal Plan

Grotto Commons, the university's main dining hall, is an all-you-can-eat buffet-style dining hall with various options, including an allergen-free station. Students can purchase a plan in advance or pay per meal on-site with a credit card.

Six-day meal plan: $120, three meals per day.

Individual meals are priced as follows (subject to change):

• Breakfast: $5.50
• Brunch/Lunch: $6.75
• Dinner: $7.75

In addition, we will go grocery shopping on Monday nights, so students can stock up on snacks and small meals that can be made in the shared dormitory kitchen.

Additional Information

Sunday Supper at Grotto Commons when students arrive for the week.

Weekend trips to Presque Isle State Park, Wintergreen Gorge, and other places in Erie.