Bridgeville dance studio changes ownership, name

Kathi’s Dance Studio, 535 Baldwin St., Bridge­ville is now owned by two former students, Ashley Verghies and Danielle Rosser.

Trained as dancers by Kathi Shuck since they were youngsters, the two have been assistant teachers for all age groups for more than 10 years. For the past two years, Shuck had been mentoring them on the business of running a dance studio and preparing the studio for its next chapter.

At the end of May, Shuck announced her retirement from teaching local dancers for more than 54 years. She began her career by teaching with her sister, Roberta, at O’Brien Dance Studio in the Baldwin/Carrick area and, in 1982, opened her own studio in Bridgeville. Her experience included being a member of Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre while in high school and dancing professionally. She has shared the stage with the Kenley Players, Sonny Bono, local actor Don Brockett and others.

“While I will miss every student and their parents, in all the years I have taught dance, Ashley and Danielle have absolutely everything required of a dance teacher — patience, kindness, dedication and incredible dance and choreography skills,” said Shuck.

Beginning with the summer session last month, Verghies and Rosser took over teaching all the classes in ballet, jazz, tap, pointe and acrobatics to their students, ages 4 through 18. The new studio name is Dash Dance Productions LLC, a combination of both their first names. They also have introduced a new, custom-made logo.

Their email address is dashdanceproductions@gmail.com. The telephone number has remained the same, 412-221-2715. The fall session begins Sept. 3.

“We are unbelievably grateful to Kathi for this opportunity and hope everyone is as excited as we are to begin this new journey,” Verghies said. “We are looking forward to a wonderful year in this community.”