Dance Attic owner Wanda Lynam-Percise honored

As local dance studio, The Dance Attic, Inc., celebrates 35 years of success, it only feels appropriate to shine a spotlight on the tremendous accomplishments this woman-owned and operated business has garnered under the direction of Wake Forest native, Wanda Lynam Percise.
A true Wake Forest native, Lynam-Percise was born in the original Wake Forest Hospital. She danced and cheered her way through Wake Forest Elementary, Middle, and High schools, before splitting time during her senior year between Wake Forest Rolesville High and Enloe High School to be able to dance at a school with a magnet program. Lynam-Percise drew the attention of her then principal, Bill Fisher. He saw her passion and desire to become a dancer and worked to help her make this a reality during a time when something like this was unthinkable. Percise continued her dance education when she attended East Carolina University earning a bachelors of fine arts in dance.
Upon completion of her education, Percise returned to the area and opened her first dance studio in an actual Rolesville attic above family friend Teresa Privette’s, family owned insurance company. It was in this attic that The Dance Attic (TDA) grew over the next 13 years, before Percise relocated her growing studio to Wake Forest in 2000. While pregnant with her son, Nicklaus, Lynam-Percise built the interior of The Dance Attic in its current Wake Forest location. What started out as two studios has grown, over the last 22 years, to a thriving business with five studios and fifteen staff members.
Percise knows it takes an army and a village to create and continue the success of what has been produced within her studio walls. She will happily tell anyone and everyone that she has “the best staff on the planet.” Lynam-Percise has carefully chosen staff with elite dance backgrounds. Five staff members followed in Percise’s footsteps graduating from East Carolina University (ECU) with dance degrees. Three of TDA’s dance teachers also work within the Wake County Public School System where they run their dance departments. Throughout her years running the studio, Percise has learned that, while it isn’t easy to let go of the reins, her younger staff members have a lot to offer. She has learned, “to open your heart and listen to new ideas and take advantage of learning lessons from those around you.”
In particular, Lynam-Percise works especially closely and counts on co-director and administrator, Hallie Hoy Pardo. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Pardo and other staff stepped up to help Percise maintain close relationships with dancers and navigate virtual dance instruction in completely unprecedented circumstances. Pardo is a TDA alum who immediately returned to teach and lead at the studio upon completion of her degree at ECU. Their relationship is especially meaningful with Wanda counting Hallie as the daughter she never had. Pardo’s love for the business and her consistent efforts to push to make TDA better each and every day, is a source of great pride for Lynam-Percise. “Her talent, wisdom, and compassion is way beyond her years, and we are so lucky to have her be a huge part of what TDA is,” Lynam-Percise commented.
Pardo has her hands in all things TDA, and her work and commitment to the Dance Attic Company as one of the main directors is something to note. The Dance Attic has a competitive company team that has been successful in allowing dancers to have the opportunity to take their dance education to the next level by competing in four to five competitions a year over the last 30+ years. Lynam-Percise is also passionate about providing, not only her competition team dancers the opportunity to perform and compete on stage, but also her recreational dancers. She believes in holding all of her dancers to a higher standard. In addition to The Dance Attic Company team, TDA boasts a multitude of other unique programs to provide leadership opportunities for young dancers to grow as more than just dancers. These include offering opportunities for dancers to serve as teacher assistants and role models for classes of younger dancers, as well as an intern program that provides countless leadership, organization, and learning opportunities for older dancers. These unique programs showcase TDA’s dedication to developing well-rounded young students.
Lynam-Percise credits both her dancers and their families as a huge part of the success of TDA. She believes that the support and love that pours out of everyone is what makes The Dance Attic family so truly special. Students’ loyalty to the studio is recognized and celebrated via the Milestone Achievement Program. Very similar to the Wake Forest community itself, The Dance Attic is more than just a community. Instead, it is a family that once you have the privilege of joining, you will always belong to and be able to count upon. The Dance Attic’s alumni are regularly invited and lovingly welcomed back within the studio as part of the Alumni Program that gives former dancers the opportunity to dance and reconnect over their shared passion. This season we have incorporated Alumni specific classes, where TDA alumni can come back into the studio to dance and share successes and memories with one another.
The Dance Attic is where children and young adults gather to grow their passion, creativity, and artistry. As a parent of a young dancer who has spent countless hours over the past eight years within these studio walls, I can say, with certainty, that The Dance Attic is so much more than a studio. It’s more than just a space with marley floors, mirrors, and barres. It’s a second home, a community, and a family where lucky students learn so much more than just beautiful dance technique. Instead, they also learn about teamwork, time management, perseverance, dedication, self-discipline, handling disappointment, friendship, sportsmanship, and so much more. They do all of this under the leadership, support, and love of Lynam-Percise and Pardo, who both treat their dancers like their own. Lynam-Percise notes “God gave me one son of my own and lots of dancers over the years that I consider a piece of my heart.”
Written by: Heather Cobb of Wake Forest