These dads are doing ballet with their daughters and we are here for it
E’Chappe Dance Arts in Philadelphia gives dads a chance to dance too.
Moms being involved in their kids' dance lives is so ingrained in our minds there is even a show -- "Dance Moms" -- about them.
But now, thanks to a viral video, "dance dads" are having their moment, too.
The video, shared by celebrities including Jennifer Garner, shows fathers taking a ballet class with their daughters at E’Chappe Dance Arts (EDA) , a dance studio in Philadelphia.
The video was filmed last weekend during an annual event at EDA, where dads joined their daughters for one hour of ballet and one hour of yoga, a combination the studio calls BOGA.
EDA's founder, Erin Lee, created the opportunity for dads after seeing so many of them involved in supporting their daughters' love of dance.
"Here we're really big on dance dads," she told "Good Morning America." "They do pick up and drop off and are getting the girls ready for dance recitals."
"Year-round those dads are here and it's very rarely acknowledged," Lee said. "We wanted to show the world that this happens."
One of the 12 dads in the class, Julian Myers, said he had "no hesitation" about taking the class alongside his 5-year-old daughter Nola.
"What I instill in my daughter is that you have to live and you have to try new things," said Myers, a real estate investor and truck driver. "There was no hesitation for me. Being there for my daughter and to support her, it was a go."
Myers, 30, said he also saw the class as a chance to meet other dads because Nola just started dancing at the studio this fall. During the class he was focused on having fun and supporting his daughter, so it was only after, when he watched the video of the class, that he saw how "powerful and needed" the moment was.
"In today’s climate that side of black men doesn’t get seen ... black men who are there to support their daughters and be soft and vulnerable and show a different side," he said. "And it allowed our daughters to look to the left and look to the right and see other dads are out there doing the same things for their daughters."
"It was so moving and so character-building," Myers said.
In addition to giving dads a chance to show they want to be involved, the father-daughter class also puts the daughters in a unique position as masters of something their dads are new to, according to Lee.
"At this point, the things that they know, their dads don’t know so they’re in full leadership mode," she said. "They’re so ecstatic and they’re like little teachers themselves."
Lee said she has had dads emailing and calling her since the video went viral, asking her how else they can be involved.
The studio is already turning their annual BOGA class into a monthly event in response to the demand.
"There's that stigma, that people say dads won’t want to do it," said Lee. "You just have to give them the opportunity and sometimes pull them out of their shells and they’ll do it."
Editor's note: This was originally published on Nov. 13, 2019.
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