OTTAWA DANCE CENTRE SCHOOL

What OTTAWA DANCE CENTRE SCHOOL does

Ottawa Dance Centre School (ODCS) is a not-for-profit registered educational institution headquartered in Ottawa, Canada, delivering classical ballet and contemporary dance education under the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) syllabus. Founded in the early 1970s, it operates two studio locations — 501 Old St. Patrick Street within De La Salle High School, and 35 Stafford Road at the Nepean Creative Arts Centre — serving students from toddlerhood through adulthood across the Ottawa/Gatineau region. Under Artistic Director Rebecca Middleton (appointed 2022) and Director Emerita/Founder Judith Davies, the school has run continuously for over 50 years.

ODCS's product portfolio is organized as a tiered curriculum: recreational classes for children and adults, the Junior Ballet Gateway Program (JBGP) as the intermediate pathway, the Ballet Intensive Program (BIP) for serious trainees, a summer intensive known as Interlude, weekend workshops, Progressing Ballet Technique (PBT) conditioning, and the recently launched Tiny Dancer's Club for ages 0–4. Programs culminate in optional RAD graded examinations, with the Artistic Director's students reporting a 100% pass rate. Curriculum breadth, dual-location operation, and complementary seasonal programs (summer intensives, workshops) provide multiple engagement touchpoints throughout the calendar year.

The business model is a B2C tuition-based model with a $30 annual registration fee and semester-based pricing: $352 per semester for recreational classes, $1,560 per year for BIP, and $750–$950 for summer courses and workshops. Revenue is derived entirely from student fees and seasonal program registrations; the school is structured as a not-for-profit and does not publish financial statements. Geographic reach is concentrated in Ottawa and Gatineau, with a 2024 partnership with Académie de danse de l'Outaouais indicating modest cross-provincial engagement. Pricing signals and program structure are consistent with a community-scale dance education provider rather than a large commercial operator.

Name

OTTAWA DANCE CENTRE SCHOOL

Legal name

Ottawa Dance Centre School

Website

https://ottawadancecentre.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

1972

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Ottawa Dance Centre School is a not-for-profit dance education institution in Ottawa, Canada, offering Royal Academy of Dance-certified classical ballet and contemporary dance programs across all ages at two studio locations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Dance Education

NAICS

Fine Arts Schools (61161), Educational Services (61)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Career & Technical Education (CTE) Centers & Programs (EDAJAAAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Classroom Learning Centers & Thematic Units (Dramatic Play, Blocks, Sensory, STEM) (EDACAJAH)

Keywords

• Dance education
• Ballet instruction
• Contemporary dance
• Dance workshops
• Children's dance classes

Headquarters

HQ city

Ottawa

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Tuition and Registration Fees: ODCS operates as a not-for-profit registered educational institution. Collected fees and tuitions are directed to faculty fees for services, studio rental, administrative supplies, and professional equipment. Any residual funds are channeled into scholarships for financially disadvantaged students. Programs include scholarship-based Ballet Intensive Program, reduced-rate Junior Ballet Gateway Program, and recreational class tuition.
2. Summer Course Fees: Three-week summer intensive program (Interlude) with tuition of $950 + GST/HST, separate from academic year tuition. Also includes deposit payments to hold placement.
3. Workshop Weekend Fees: Monthly workshop weekend program with fees of $750 lump sum or installment plan ($250 x 3). Ballet Intensive Program students attend at no additional fee.
4. Tiny Dancer's Club Drop-in Classes: Parent-and-tot dance classes offered on a drop-in basis for walking dancers (typically toddlers and preschoolers) with their caregivers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Ottawa Dance Centre School (ODCS) is a not-for-profit dance school that delivers ballet and contemporary dance instruction following the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) syllabus. It offers structured programs for students of all ages — from toddlers through adults — including recreational classes, junior and intensive ballet pathways, workshops, summer courses, and adult classes.

Product overview

Ottawa Dance Centre School offers a comprehensive suite of dance education programs across a single unified platform. The core offerings include Recreational Classes for children (ages 4-12) and adults, the Junior Ballet Gateway Program (ages 9-12) as a pathway to intensive training, the Ballet Intensive Program (ages 12-17) as the flagship scholarship-based pre-professional track, plus seasonal programs like the Summer Course/Interlude and monthly Workshop Weekends. Additional offerings include The Tiny Dancer's Club for parent-tot classes (ages 0-4), Adult Classes at all levels, and cross-training modules like Progressing Ballet Technique. All programs are delivered at the school's downtown Ottawa studios, with programs following Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) syllabus.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Interlude: A Collaborative Summer Dance Program: Three-week summer intensive program for dancers aged 12-17, simulating life in a professional dance company.

Products and services

• Recreational Dance Classes

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% RAD exam pass rate for students under Rebecca Middleton
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Académie de danse de l'OutaouaiscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 February 2024Collaborative student ensemble project where students from ODCS and Académie de danse de l'Outaouais joined together for weekly rehearsals to create original choreography by Rebecca Middleton. The works 'Celebration' and 'Empowering Elegance' were premiered in April and June 2024, with continued collaboration in summer 2025 at L'Académie de danse de l'Outaouais for the Interlude summer intensive.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• National Ballet School of Canada: Canada's premier ballet training institution offering pre-professional and recreational programs across age groups, integrating the Royal Academy of Dance syllabus. Directly comparable as a RAD-aligned ballet school with intensive and recreational tracks.
• Alberta Ballet School: Western Canada's professional ballet company with an associated training school offering classical ballet and contemporary across ages. Directly comparable as a classical ballet training program feeding a professional company.
• Royal Winnipeg Ballet School: Canada's longest-running ballet company operates an associated professional and recreational training division. Comparable in offering pre-professional ballet curricula and serving as a placement destination for ODCS graduates.
• Ballet Jörgen: Canadian ballet company operating educational and outreach programming in classical and contemporary ballet across the country. Comparable as a hybrid performing-and-training ballet organization.
• Académie de danse de l'Outaouais: Gatineau-area dance academy that has collaborated with ODCS on joint choreography projects and summer intensives. Comparable as a regional classical/contemporary ballet school serving the same Ottawa–Gatineau catchment.
• Toronto Dance Theatre: Toronto-based contemporary and ballet training institution with performance company. Comparable as a destination placement for ODCS graduates and a multi-discipline dance training organization.
• Goh Ballet Academy: Vancouver-based private ballet academy offering RAD syllabus training from beginner through pre-professional levels. Comparable in operating as a private, multi-track ballet school with intensive and recreational programming.

Regional players

• Quinte Ballet School of Canada: Ontario-based ballet training school offering RAD syllabus and pre-professional programming. Comparable in focus area, but located outside ODCS's Ottawa catchment area.

Broad incumbents

• Les Grands Ballets Canadiens: Montreal-based major ballet company with associated educational programming. Comparable as a Canadian ballet training ecosystem that ODCS alumni feed into, though broader in scope as a major performing company.

Emerging players

• School of Cadence Ballet: Toronto-area ballet school offering structured ballet training programs. Comparable as a Canadian private ballet academy with intensive programming, though smaller in scale than ODCS.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/ottawadancecentreschool

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about OTTAWA DANCE CENTRE SCHOOL