The art of dance is set to shine in the Ohio River Valley as seven dance studio owners from across the Tri-State area unite for what organizers says will be a spectacular dance and twirl competition Saturday. 

Taking place at Ironton High School, the studio owners said the second annual Tri-State Dance Alliance Dance & Twirl Competition “promises to captivate and celebrate the vibrant dance and twirl community that thrives in the region.”

The Tri-State Dance Alliance was born out of a shared desire to make dance competitions more accessible to families.

Participating studios include Cyndi’s Dance Studio, of Ironton; Dance with Hope, of Grayson, Kentucky; Nancy’s School of Dance, in Proctorville-Huntington, West Virginia, and Yvonne DeKay School of Dance, in Ironton; Studio 301, in Chesapeake; The Inez Dance Academy, in Inez Kentucky; and Ohio River Dance

“We teachers decided it was enough paying all these high fees for out of town competitions so we’ve come together to produce our own for a lot less of the cost,” Nancy Carter, of Nancy’s School of Dance, said. “This is affordable, great judges and, now, the whole extended family will be able to watch the competition.”

“It’s been years since we’ve done something like this locally,” Yvonne Sinnott, of Yvonne DeKay School of Dance, said. “Nancy and I are the oldest teachers remaining. I remember when we all used to do this in the 1960s and ‘70s. That’s how Cyndi, Nancy and teachers like Penny Armstrong and Jerry Layne built our reputations. Tri-State Dance Alliance is rebuilding our local dance community. We thrilled we have more studios this year!”

The event kicks off at 9 a.m. with the baton twirl competition in the gymnasium. The dance competition will commence at noon in the theater. Admission for friends and family is $5, while children aged 3 years and under are free.

Ironton High School is located at 1701 S. 7th St in Ironton.