Reif Dance

Grow with Reif Dance

Reif Dance is northern Minnesota’s premier dance program.

Since 1989, we have provided quality instruction in a positive and supportive environment for students of all ages.

Our mission is to support the development of each dancer as both an artist and an individual through strong technical training and meaningful performance opportunities.

Students grow personally, artistically, and physically while building confidence, discipline, and lasting friendships. We are proud to foster a welcoming community where dancers encourage and support one another.

Classes

Resources

Scholarships

The Nutcracker 2024 - Photo by Jennifer Mariano

Hansel & Gretel 2025 - Photo by Jennifer Mariano

The Nutcracker 2024 - Photo by Jennifer Mariano

Hansel & Gretel 2025 - Photo by Jennifer Mariano

Thumbelina 2024 - Photo by Jennifer Mariano

Dance Classes

We offer classes for every age and skill level — from the very first pliés to advanced technique. Click any class below to learn more.

A ballet instructor poses alongside a group of young dancers in red leotards and white tights during a class in a bright dance studio.

A group of ballet students practices posed positions in a spacious dance studio with black floors, bright overhead lighting, and ballet barres along the walls.

A ballet instructor assists a young student with a leg stretch in a bright dance studio while other children in lavender leotards watch and practice nearby.

Dance students in black leotards relax and stretch on the studio floor beside ballet barres and mirrors during class.

Ballet students in black leotards and white tights sit on the studio floor preparing and adjusting their pointe shoes during class.

Styles include:

Dance Fundamentals | Ages 4 – first grade

Dance Fundamentals provides children with the building blocks they need to engage in the world of dance. Our program teaches foundational elements of dance technique while encouraging imagination through movement — the perfect first step before entering more formal classes.

Preschool

Tip-toe, gallop, march! Children are introduced to dance and studio etiquette in this playful, energetic class. Students explore balance, taking turns, and expressive movement through games and music, laying the foundation for a lifelong love of dance.

Kindergarten

Plié, passé, sauté! Students continue to build on dance fundamentals with greater emphasis on dance terminology and studio etiquette, while still nurturing creative and imaginative movement.

Pre-Ballet (1st Grade)

Dancers are introduced to a more structured, ballet-inspired class while cultivating their creative imaginations through expressive movement and play. Students develop the focus, terminology, studio etiquette, and fundamental ballet skills needed to advance into a leveled ballet class.

Ballet | Levels I–VI

Jazz

Modern

Tap

Adult Dance

Resources

Uniforms

Dance uniforms are available through Nimbly.

Shop Nimbly Uniform Store

Support Reif Dance

Donate to Reif Dance

Connect with Reif Dance and Theater on Facebook!

Tuition and Scholarships

Tuition is based on the number of class periods a student dances each week, and our costs are very competitive.

If cost is a concern, the Reif Center offers full and partial scholarships on a rolling basis.

Youth Scholarship Application

Reif Dance provides need-based scholarships thanks to generous individuals and support from the Reif Arts Education Fund.

More information is available at The Reif, or you may download the Reif Dance Scholarship Application.

Download Application

Scholarship for Graduating Seniors

The Reif Dance Company Scholarship is awarded to high school seniors who have participated in the Reif Dance Program.

Apply Now

A group of dancers leaps across a dance studio floor during rehearsal, with arms extended and legs raised in synchronized motion under bright overhead lights.

Studios

Reif Dance has three spacious studios with sprung floors to help prevent injury.

Our location inside the Reif Performing Arts Center gives students access to professional performance spaces.

Students also have opportunities to:

Perform on the Reif Stage

Attend master classes with visiting artists

Receive discounted tickets to touring performances

Our facility includes:

Sprung floors and Marley flooring

Full-length mirrors

Built-in sound systems

Dressing rooms with lockers

Parent waiting area

Student lounge

Meet Our Dance Instructors

The Reif Dance faculty brings decades of professional training, performance experience, and a deep love of teaching to every class. Our instructors are dedicated to building confident, skilled, and passionate dancers at every level.

Katie E. Smith

Artistic Programs Director

Read Katie's Bio

Katie E. Smith is a native of Grand Rapids with a love of working with children and a lifelong passion for the arts. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre from the University of Minnesota Duluth, with a minor in Dance.

A veteran director, performer, choreographer, and supporter of the Grand Rapids arts community, Katie has been involved in local theatre and dance for decades. Audiences may remember her from the stage in roles including Donna Sheridan in Mamma Mia!, Marian Paroo in The Music Man, Delilah Strict in Zombie Prom, Velma Kelly in Chicago, and Ado Annie in Oklahoma!

Katie began choreographing in 1995 and has staged dances for dozens of musicals and dance productions. She has served as Dance Director at The Reif several times over the past eighteen years, directing productions such as Aladdin and The Wizard of Oz, as well as creating original works including Sadie of the South Sea and Life Is an Open Book. She also co-founded the Grand Rapids Players Summer Children’s Theatre Camp, where she directed several of her original plays.

Her experience extends beyond Grand Rapids. Katie spent two years in Houghton, Michigan, where she served as Artistic Director of the Michigan Tech Dance Company and owned a private dance studio. Most recently, she founded Young at Art, where she spent two years nurturing a love of theatre and dance among the youth of the community.

Katie’s passion for the arts has also taken her around the world. She has lived and studied in a variety of places and cultures, including Maui, where she studied hula; Colorado, where she studied fencing and martial arts; London, where she earned her TEFL certification; and Turkey, where she taught English.

Katie believes there is always something new to learn, and she is excited to bring her experience, curiosity, and love of the arts back home to The Reif.

Raeanne Graupmann

Dance Director

Read Raeanne's Bio

Raeanne Graupmann is a native of Grand Rapids who fell in love with dance at a young age. She began taking classes at The Reif at just three years old, studying primarily ballet while developing an appreciation for a wide range of dance styles. Though she considers herself a classicist, particularly when it comes to ballet, Raeanne has studied jazz, tap, modern, hip hop, contemporary, lyrical, liturgical, ballroom, and musical theatre extensively.

After graduating from high school, Raeanne returned to The Reif as a dance instructor, teaching dance fundamentals. It was then that she realized her passion for teaching and inspiring young dancers.

In 2013, Raeanne and her husband, Dylan, moved to Wichita Falls, Texas, through the United States Air Force. While there, she continued to grow as a teacher, choreographer, and student of dance under the mentorship and encouragement of Reggie Milam at Dance Etc. In 2017, Raeanne moved to Germany, where she taught at a German ballet school. She taught classical ballet, jazz, lyrical, modern, and tap to both German and American students and had the opportunity to perform in classical ballet and ballroom-style productions.

Over the past 13 years, Raeanne’s choreography has been featured in musicals, vaudevilles, flash mobs, and liturgical Christmas performances, as well as award-winning solos and duets and more than 100 performances. She takes pride in creating fun, energetic studio classes and providing a positive, safe, and artistic environment where dancers can learn and grow.

While dance has been her passion for most of her life, Raeanne also holds a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Maryland. She has a particular interest in the connection between classical ballet and the historical influences that have shaped its traditions, growth, and continued evolution.

That connection to tradition is one of the many reasons Raeanne feels so strongly about the Reif Dance program and the opportunity to carry its legacy forward. Through her teaching, she hopes to share her love of classical dance with a new generation while inspiring dancers to develop their own lasting passion for the art.

Teran Germscheid

Dance Fundamentals and Jazz

Read Teran's Bio

Megan Parlanti Belcher

Modern

Read Megan's Bio

Megan studied and performed at the Reif for 14 years before continuing her training at St. Olaf College, where she majored in both dance and Spanish. A highlight of her dance career was a summer at the American Dance Festival at Duke University, studying modern technique, choreography, and performance. She holds a Master's in Education from St. Scholastica and is thrilled to bring modern dance back to the community she grew up in.

Jinnea Zenzen

Jazz & Tap

Read Jinnea's Bio

A proud Reif Dance Company alumna, Jinnea grew up dancing at the Reif and went on to earn a Secondary Education degree from the University of North Dakota and a Master of Education from the College of Saint Scholastica. Now in her ninth year teaching social studies at Grand Rapids High School, Jinnea brings the same dedication to her tap classes — helping students build confidence and skill throughout the year.