On the stage
Every student performs.
From their very first showcase to the annual AKA Musical in a professional theatre, performance is woven through everything we do. Here is every stage we put our dancers on, and what each one gives them.
West End
His Majesty's Theatre and 2028 return
1
Full musical in a professional theatre
150+
Students on stage each year
0
Auditions to be in the showcase
Why we do it
What performing actually does for a child
Whether they dream of a career on the stage or simply dance because they love it, every student leaves with so much more than steps and routines.
- 01
Confidence, visibly
The single thing parents mention most. A child who has held a stage in front of four hundred people finds reading aloud in class a lot less frightening.
- 02
Something to aim at
A date in the diary changes how a term feels. Technique, attendance and focus all lift when there is a show at the end of it.
- 03
Working as a company
Spacing, timing and covering for each other. Performing teaches a kind of teamwork that a weekly class on its own never quite reaches.
- 04
Handling nerves
We teach the practical craft of it: preparation, breathing, routine, and what to do when something goes wrong mid routine. Skills that transfer to exams and interviews.
- 05
Memories the family keeps
The first curtain call, the trophy on the shelf, the photo on the stairs. This is the part families talk about years later.
- 06
A route to the profession
For the few who want it, this is the groundwork. Stage hours, audition experience and contact with working professionals, all before college.
The whole school on stage
Showcases
Bi-annual showcases where every student, from Tots to Seniors, takes to the stage.
Our showcases are the highlight of the AKA calendar. Every year we perform at Redditch Palace Theatre, and students also take the stage further afield. Recent highlights include His Majesty's Theatre in the West End, London, and Symphony Hall in Birmingham, with Disney 2026, the Tower Ballroom next February, and the West End booked again for 2028 after we were asked back.
There is no audition and no selection. If your dancer is in a class, they are in the show. Choreography is created by their own teacher, pitched to the level of the class, so every child performs something they can genuinely nail rather than something they are surviving.
Rehearsals happen inside the normal class slot, so there is no extra weeknight commitment for families. We add one full dress rehearsal at the theatre in the week of the show, where the younger groups get used to the lights, the space and the wait in the wings before an audience is ever in the room.
From the tiniest Tots to our vocational Seniors, everyone shines. It is where a term of hard work becomes a memory the whole family keeps.
- How often
- Twice a year
- Who performs
- Every student, 18 months to adult
- Where
- A local theatre, full staging and lighting
- Audition
- None. Everyone is in
“My daughter has been going to Amelia K Academy since 2018. She absolutely loves it, and her confidence has soared.”
What dancers gain
A first stage, safely
For most of our dancers this is their very first audience. Small groups, a familiar teacher in the wings and choreography built around what they can already do, so the first taste of performing is a good one.
Confidence that carries
Parents tell us the change shows up at school long before it shows up in the studio. Standing in front of a full house and being applauded rewires how a child sees themselves.
A reason to work
A date in the diary turns a weekly class into a project. Attendance, focus and technique all lift in the run up, without anyone having to nag.
The whole school together
Seniors help the Tots find their spacing. Minis watch the Advanced ballet from the wings and see exactly where they could get to. It is the one time the whole academy is in one room.
How it works
Step 1
Choreography starts
Teachers set the routine in normal class time, roughly six to eight weeks out. Nothing extra to attend.
Step 2
Costumes confirmed
We tell you exactly what is needed and when. Most items are supplied or shared, and we keep costs deliberately low.
Step 3
Dress rehearsal
One run at the theatre in show week, so every dancer has stood on that stage before the audience arrives.
Step 4
Show day
Dancers are signed in to supervised dressing rooms with our staff. Families take their seats and simply enjoy it.
A full-scale annual production
The AKA Musical
Our Theatre Company stages a full musical in a professional theatre every year.
Each year our Theatre Company mounts a full-scale musical in a professional theatre, complete with staging, lighting, a live audience and a proper run of performances. It is the most ambitious thing we do, and by some distance the most rewarding.
Members experience the entire arc of a production. Auditions and casting, a read-through, blocking, music calls, choreography, tech and dress, then opening night. They learn how a show is actually built, not just how to dance a routine.
Casting is genuinely open. Principal roles go to whoever brings the character to life in the room, and we cast across ages rather than reserving the leads for the oldest students. Every member of the company is on stage, and ensemble numbers are choreographed to be worth watching in their own right.
Rehearsals run weekly from the autumn term, building to a fuller schedule in the final weeks. We publish the whole calendar up front so families can plan around it.
- How often
- One production a year
- Who performs
- Open to ages 6 and above
- Where
- A professional theatre
- Rehearsals
- Weekly from the autumn term
“Amelia K Academy is a family. Every day Amelia inspires us and puts her all into helping us achieve our goals. It is honestly my favourite place in the world.”
What dancers gain
Triple threat training
Song, dance and acting rehearsed together, in service of one story. It is the fastest way we know to turn a good dancer into a performer.
Real production discipline
Call times, quick changes, holding for a laugh, tech notes, and going again when a cue is missed. The professional habits that vocational colleges look for.
Audition experience
Members audition for roles in a supportive room, learn to take a result gracefully, and build the resilience that any performing career demands.
A company, not a class
Twelve months working towards one shared goal builds friendships across year groups that outlast the show itself.
How it works
Step 1
Show announced and auditions
The title is announced in the autumn. Every member auditions, in the studio, with material we teach beforehand.
Step 2
Casting and rehearsals
Casting is published to the whole company at once. Weekly rehearsals begin, split between music, choreography and scene work.
Step 3
Tech and dress week
We move into the theatre for lighting, sound and full dress runs with costume and set.
Step 4
Performances
A full run in front of a paying audience, with families, friends and, most years, a few very proud former students in the stalls.
Competing across the Midlands
Festival teams
Our teams compete at festivals across the region, bringing home trophies and memories.
Our festival teams take to competition stages across the Midlands, performing solos, duets, trios, quartets and full group pieces. They have earned a wall of trophies, and a great deal more stage experience than any weekly class alone can give.
Festivals are adjudicated. That means a written and spoken critique from an experienced professional after every performance, which is the single most useful feedback a young dancer can get. Our students learn to read it, act on it, and come back sharper.
Places are by selection and invitation. That is not about picking the most naturally gifted, it is about matching commitment and readiness to the right opportunity, so nobody is put on a competition stage before they are ready to enjoy it.
We are deliberate about the culture. Results are celebrated, but the questions we ask afterwards are about what improved, not about what placed. Whatever the result on the day, everyone travels home together.
- Where
- Malvern, Much Wenlock, Bridgnorth and more
- Formats
- Solos, duets, trios, quartets and groups
- Entry
- By selection and invitation
- Feedback
- Written adjudication every time
“The festival team gave my daughter goals to work towards and a group of friends she adores. Watching her perform a solo on stage was a moment I will never forget.”
What dancers gain
Professional feedback
An independent adjudicator watches, marks and comments on every performance. Students learn to take critique well and use it, which is a skill for life.
Serious stage time
Festival dancers might perform ten or more times a year. That volume of stage experience is what makes a performer look comfortable under lights.
Resilience
Some days the result goes your way and some days it does not. Learning to handle both, in front of your friends, is worth more than any trophy.
A tight team
Long days, shared nerves and a lot of hairspray. Festival teams form the closest friendships in the academy.
How it works
Step 1
Selection
Teachers invite dancers who are technically ready and keen to commit. We are always happy to talk about what readiness looks like.
Step 2
Choreography and rehearsal
Pieces are set and refined in dedicated sessions, with private coaching available for solos.
Step 3
Festival days
AKA staff are with the team all day, from warm up to results. Families are very welcome in the audience.
Step 4
Review and refine
We go through the adjudication together and adjust the piece before the next outing.
One week, working professionals
West End Summer School
An annual intensive led by current West End and industry professionals.
Each summer we bring current West End and industry professionals to Malvern for a week-long intensive. Students learn repertoire straight from the shows, taught by the people who perform it, and finish the week with a sharing for family and friends.
The roots of this go back to lockdown, when more than fifty West End and industry professionals taught with AKA online. Those relationships never went away, and the summer school is what they became.
Days are grouped by age and stage rather than thrown together, so a keen eleven year old and a pre-vocational seventeen year old both get a week pitched at them. Alongside class there are honest conversations about auditions, contracts, injury and what the working life is actually like.
It is a rare opportunity anywhere, let alone in Worcestershire, and it is open to visiting dancers as well as AKA students.
- When
- One week each summer
- Taught by
- Current West End and industry pros
- Who can come
- AKA students and visiting dancers
- Ends with
- A sharing for family and friends
“Amelia K Academy nurtures all talent and encourages personal growth and achievement in every student. The standard of teaching is the highest and the caring attitude is second to none.”
What dancers gain
Learn from people doing the job
Not a teacher describing the industry, but a performer who was on stage last week. Students pick up the tiny professional details you cannot get any other way.
Real show repertoire
Choreography from productions currently running, taught properly and at pace, so dancers find out what the standard actually is.
An honest careers picture
Auditions, agents, rejection, cross training and how people actually make a living. Invaluable for anyone weighing up vocational college.
A step change in a week
Five consecutive days of intensive work moves technique and stamina further than a term of single classes.
Recent performances
Moments from our stages
Tap any photo to view it full screen.
What families say
The memories that last
What performing with AKA means to our students and their families.
“Amelia K Academy is a family. Every day Amelia inspires us and puts her all into helping us achieve our goals. It is honestly my favourite place in the world.”
Senior student, Theatre Company
“Absolutely fantastic dance school, my daughter has been there since she was 3 she is now 6 and has had so many opportunities including competitions, shows and this weekend even dancing at The Kings Theatre, London. She has grown from a shy 3 year old to a confident 6 year old. Thoroughly recommend.”
Parent of a Minis student
“We could not recommend Amelia K Academy enough. Our daughter has been with Amelia and her team for five years, and has thrived here. Amelia and her team provide the best atmosphere, a warm environment, amazing opportunities and they allow the children to flourish in the world of performing arts. The academy genuinely feels like a second family to us - if we could give this more than five stars we would!”
Parent of a long-standing student
“Amelia is a superb teacher. She is kind, thoughtful and conscientious. Very child focused and professional. I highly recommend Amelia K Academy. Fabulous - keep up the good work!”
Parent
“Amelia is one of the most talented people I have ever met. She is an amazing teacher, filled with great advice.”
Senior student
“The festival team gave my daughter goals to work towards and a group of friends she adores. Watching her perform a solo on stage was a moment I will never forget.”
Parent of a festival team member
Before you ask
Performing, answered
The questions parents put to us most often about shows, costumes, costs and commitment.
Your first class is waiting
Want your child on that stage?
Every AKA student performs. Book a class online and start the journey to their first showcase.