After a long, full career in the dance industry, Debbie Diggs, founder of Diggs School of Dance in Gloucester and Bayside Youth Ballet has decided to retire. Bayside Youth Ballet will be taking over Diggs School of Dance and is actively searching for a new space to house the studio.
Diggs started her dancing career as a young child, at only 4 years old. She recalled a few years where she decided to quit dance, but quickly realized it truly was her passion and began taking classes again. “After I graduated from high school I went to college for a couple years, still dancing,” she said. As there were not many colleges that offered dance programs, she had to attend college while also taking dance classes at a separate studio.
A few years in, Diggs realized there wasn’t anything for her in college. “I really wanted to teach [dance], so I moved to Orlando and I went to one of the very big studios that had a teacher training program and I took my two-year teacher training,” she said.
After completing the training, she taught in Orlando for a while, before moving to Nebraska where she opened her own studio. Five years later, she made a move to South Carolina where she opened her next studio while also instructing for two different companies. Eventually, Diggs made a move to Mathews, and opened Diggs School of Dance behind Mathews Memorial Library.
There were not any dance studios in the area and in opening her own, Diggs offered the youth of the community a chance to discover the art of dance and use it not only to express themselves, but to build self-esteem and confidence, as well. Now, Diggs School of Dance is located in the Edgehill Town Center on Main Street in Gloucester, along with Bayside Youth Ballet.
“The ballet company, which is the resident company of the studio, is going on 33 years,” explained Diggs. Bayside Youth Ballet is a nonprofit organization she founded in 1992 to give young dancers enhanced instruction and extra performance opportunities. The ballet company provides community service and outreach through performances and community projects.
Though Diggs has decided it is time for her to retire, she urged what is most important is that the studio will continue on. Over the years, the best part of the studio for her has been seeing the generations of children come through. “Take a child when they’re four and watch them progress until they’re in high school, and see how strong they’ve gotten—it’s been really rewarding,” she said.
“The ballet company, Bayside Youth Ballet, is going to take over our teaching program,” she said. Diggs assured that everything will stay the same, the students, the instructors, the classes. The only change headed the studio’s way is the change of location, which is still a struggle being faced.
“Hopefully we’ll find a building in the near future,” Diggs said, as she explained the company is in need of help finding a new space for the studio. “It’s been very difficult to find a building, we’re still searching.” Between rent and the cost of floating spring floors and mirrors, the cost of moving is looking high.
“The ballet company is nonprofit, there’s not a lot of funds currently, so we are getting ready to initiate a capital campaign in order to raise the funds, so that we can help pay for the expenses of moving, rent, floors, all those kinds of things that entail running a dance studio.”
Diggs is optimistic that with the help of fundraising and the community, Bayside Youth Ballet will continue on offering a place for dancers to learn and flourish for many years to come.