The owners of Academie Extrava Danse Academy announced expansion plans for their Rockland location, which is expected add over 4,000 square feet of new studio space.
The Hélène Tassie School of Dance, which later became Académie Extrava Danse, has been a part of the community of Rockland for over 35 years.
Hélène Tassie serves as owner and director of the dance academy, and her son, Marcel Tassie, is the co-director. They have two locations, one in Rockland and the other is in Hawkesbury.
“Académie Extrava Danse Academy has been a beloved part of our community for over 30 years, and today marks the beginning of a new chapter,” said Clarence-Rockland Mayor Mario Zanth in a post on Facebook on Aug. 8 as expansion plans for the Rockland locations were announed. “We’re thrilled to announce a major expansion project that will add over 4,000 square feet of new studio space for the dance community in Clarence-Rockland! Thank you for your investment in our city and our artistic community.”
Marcel said the academy has been growing steadily since 2018 and has allowed the team to finally put their plans for expansion into fruition.
“We have seen the growth in the community, and there is a demand for dance,” said Marcel, who started dancing when at the age of four-years-old. “We have been talking about expanding all the way back in 2016, and really started picking up in 2018. COVID-19 impacted us a lot, and put those plans on hold. But we have been able to pick things back up with really strong support from our community. And now we can finally get this going and expand and be able to offer more to our community.”
Marcel said not only will the academy be able to expand its studio space to allow more students to join the academy, but the new space can also be used by community organizations for events they want to host.
“I know I can carry and move us forward,” said Marcel of his family’s dance legacy in Clarence-Rockland.
Marcel said work will start this fall, and construction will be ongoing. He hopes to see the expansion plans complete at some point in late spring of 2025.
The academy has bilingual teachers who offer professional and recreational dance and fitness training from pre-school through to adulthood.
Extrava Danse Academy’s professional staff provides instruction in ballet, jazz, tap, hip op, lyrical, contemporary and acro.
