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Christina Hall believes in the value of the arts.

Hall recently opened her dance studio, Rising Stars Studio of Dance, on Ridgeley Street in Atmore.

The Semmes native and Mobile resident said she has a dance studio in Citronelle, and before opening the Atmore studio, she rented out rooms at the Poarch Creek Indians’ recreation department.

“They were obviously a God-send,” Hall said. “They supplied us with mats. They built us new dance rooms, and I will definitely always give them credit for giving us the foundation of building the clientele in this area.”

Hall taught dance in Poarch for six years, and when the COVID-19 pandemic happened, she thought about coming to Atmore proper. She rented The Club and held dance classes there until she found the Ridgeley Street location.

“A lot of people didn’t know about it,” she said. “Some people thought it was only Tribal affiliated, which I think it wasn’t as big as it is now.”

Hall said she’s blessed to be in Atmore because the talent here is prevalent.

“I think that whenever I first came up here and first started teaching, the kids were so talented,” she said. “I was like ‘Oh my gosh, if I had never taught class up here, what would it be?’ All of that potential would’ve never been discovered.”

Classes offered at Rising Stars Studio of Dance include for children ages 18 months to 18 years old, Hall said.

“For the little ones, the 18 month olds, we offer a class called Mommy and Me, which range from 18 months to 3 year olds,” she said. “It’s basically a class to help with coordination, balance, stretch and strength. It really is so good for the kids. It’s a lot of fun.”

Hall said the other classes offered for older students include ballet, jazz and tap, hip hop and majorette jazz.

Hall said the majorette jazz style of dance is quite popular with colleges in the south.

“It’s not baton majorette,” she said. “It’s a style of dance. It’s almost a spin off of hip hop. We’ve just added this class.”

Additionally, the studio offers gymnastics classes, including floor tumbling, low balance beams, lyrical and contemporary.

Hall said at present, she has some 100 students taking classes at the studio.

The studio, which is located where Dirty 30 Southern Heat Wrestling was housed, includes two large rooms for classes and a lobby area, where parents can view their children on TV screens during classes.

Hall said Ann Gordon of then Atmore Realty, showed her the building and she knew exactly what she wanted to create out of the space.

“I think the shops and coffee house are a part of a cute, family-oriented street,” she said. “We call our dancers family. We love this location.”

On the studio’s name, Hall said she’s always told her kids that they are going to be the stars of tomorrow.

“I would always say, ‘You guys, keep working, keep working because you’ll be the stars of tomorrow,’” she said. “They would always ask what does that mean? ‘Exactly what I’m saying. You have no clue where this can take you.’”

When asked why she thinks it’s important to have a dance studio in this community, Hall said this will help each student later in their lives.

“I think that when kids or teenagers, or young teens, when kids have hopes and dreams, they’re less likely to get in trouble,” she said. “Or the kids are less likely to get mixed in with the wrong crowd or make the wrong decision.”

Hall said the beauty of dance class is that it teaches a lot about life, time management and accountability, along with teamwork.

“I just thing it’s important for kids to be involved and physcially active,” she said. “The health benefits are far beyond anything you can imagine.”

Hall said she’s excited to be located in the Atmore area.

“I’m super excited to be here and to share the love of the arts with the community and with all of the surrounding communities,” she said.

Those interested in taking classes at Rising Stars Studio of Dance can call 251-321-0117 or visit the studio’s Facebook page.