Agoura Hills Dance Is 'Steppin' Out'

Fred Astaire's "Steppin' Out With My Baby" bursts through the speakers of the Agoura Hills Dance and Performing Arts Center. Inside, four veterans rehearse their yearly tap routine for the upcoming annual showcase at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza.

Come Wednesday evening, Agoura Hills Dance will present Star 2010. The end-of-the-season concert features a diverse mix of genres taught at the studio, spanning jazz, hip hop, lyrical, and—most notably—tap, in the form of the studio's oft reprised "Steppin' Out" routine by Agoura Hills Dance director and founder Betsy along with daughter Carly Melber and sisters Melissa and Megan Wabby. 

This particular dance number has been revived by a number of Agoura Hills Dance students over the years, said Melber.

Long-time student and current So...  You Think You Can Dance finalist Melinda Sullivan alongside Megan Wabby, 25, were the first to receive a perfect score at a regional dance competition with the Astaire classic. Wabby then tackled "Steppin' Out" with Melber in the 2004 annual concert, a farewell to her school years in Agoura Hills. Years later, Melber's daughter Carly, today an Agoura High junior, revived "Steppin' Out" with other Agoura Dance students.  

This year, all four are doing a reprisal of this dance in honor of Melissa Wabby's graduation and matriculation to St. Mary's College in Moraga, California. The performance is dedicated to the elder Melber's husband, as well as the Wabbys' parents. "We know they're going to cry," said Betsy Melber with a smile.

With 25 years in the industry under her belt, Melber founded Agoura Hills Dance in November 1998. "It was just the next step," she said. Today, Melber's school provides professional instruction to local aspiring dancers. Most students are between the ages of five and 19, but can be as young as two and as old as 70.

"People always comment that it's such a friendly place," said Melber of her "family-oriented" school.

Many students, such as the Wabby sisters, have remained loyal.

"I learned how to manage my time between dance and school," said Megan Wabby, who returned to Agoura Hills Dance to teach after graduating from college in 2008. "It's like a home to come back to now that I am here and working." 

Wabby, with sister Melissa, and the Melbers are enthusiastic to revive "Steppin' Out" this year.

Star 2010 will take place on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, which will house the studio's eighth annual original ballet, "Alice in Wonderland," today at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.  Both will bring an end to the Agoura Hills Dance season.

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