TURNERS FALLS — Twenty years ago, a small dance studio in downtown Turners Falls called the JaDuke Center for the Performing Arts took a leap by building its own performance space on Industrial Boulevard to continue nurturing talent.
Starting with the purchase of 3 acres of land, the JaDuke Center for the Performing Arts was able to expand its singing, acting and dancing programs that had previously been offered in the basement of the Colle Opera House building on Avenue A.
“It just really expanded to be a vessel that serves the community in many different ways,” JaDuke co-owner Kimberly Williams said about the company’s growth. Williams has been with JaDuke since the expansion of the studio from Avenue A to Industrial Boulevard, and now owns the company with her father, Nicholas Waynelovich.
The performing arts education center offers 50 classes per week in dance, voice, acting, musical theater and performance for students ages 2 through adult. Students are given opportunities to perform on-stage as part of these programs.
According to Greenfield Recorder archives, JaDuke had 175 students ranging in age from 2 to 40 in early 2006, and a staff of nine teachers. After opening the initial studio, the plan was to eventually expand by adding an in-house theater, rather than having shows at other local stages. In 2019, a $2.2 million building expansion was completed, bringing a 550-seat theater on-site, alongside other building amenities to expand JaDuke’s footprint.
In the years between moving into the Industrial Boulevard building, JaDuke also expanded into providing child care and a driving school, alongside its new preschool on Main Street in Greenfield, which opened in March 2025. In 2017, JaDuke celebrated 20 years since the company was formed in 1997.
Between offering performance education, child care, the driving school and more, Williams said JaDuke has pulled in people from across the Pioneer Valley and out of state for education that is multi-faceted, with technical training and a sense of belonging.
“It’s kind of like with sports where if you have a kid who’s super interested in a certain sport and you really want them to excel in it, and you find a place where not only do they belong, but they can excel and receive good training, you’re going to dig into that,” Williams said. “I think we found a very happy medium where kids can get really good training here, become really good performers, but also find a place where they belong and have community.”
Additionally, Williams noted that technical training is also coupled with social-emotional skills that students get to learn from a young age, which she said translates into skills that students will need in their adult lives, regardless of whether they pursue being performers.
JaDuke alumni have marched in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, earned acceptance into some of the nation’s leading performing arts colleges and universities, performed at Disney World, performed professionally in regional theater productions, appeared on television and national commercials, and taken the stage internationally.
Some former students are now teachers, nurses, engineers, business owners, first responders and health care professionals. While they may no longer perform under stage lights, alumni can continue to use the lessons learned inside JaDuke’s studios — discipline, teamwork, resilience, collaboration, creativity, confidence and perseverance.
Eula Sagan was once such an interested student in 2006, when the new JaDuke studio was being built. At age 9, she was interested in acting, and performed in JaDuke productions like “Annie,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “Camp Rock,” and “Legally Blonde.” In fact, she helped dig up some of the land where the new center would be built.
While Sagan can’t recall exactly what drove her initial interest in acting, she does know that being part of JaDuke created a new sense of belonging for her.
“I think it was honestly that community feeling of everyone knows everyone,” Sagan said, noting that JaDuke was the first place she received a nickname. “Just the feeling of like, ‘Ah, I belong.'”
Twenty years later, Sagan still belongs to JaDuke, working as director. Having both perspectives as a student and then an employee, she said Williams and Waynelovich have “given their everything” to the theater and the education it brings to the region.
While Williams said looking ahead to the next 20 years for JaDuke is difficult, noting you “can’t put a vision in a box,” the goal is to continue the community service.
“I think we’ve built what we need now here, and I can just see that being a generous gift to the community,” Williams said, “and we can really home in on what we’re doing here and continue to just lift kids up, and find their gifts and strengths.”
With its milestone anniversary underway, JaDuke is also looking ahead to a new season. Fall enrollment is now open, with classes beginning for dancers, singers, actors and performers of all experience levels. Families can explore programs and register online at JaDukeCenter.com.
