Pine Bowl becoming a dance studio

It’s bowling shoes to ballet shoes for a former bowling alley in Pocatello.

Pine Bowl in Pocatello is becoming a dance studio. Pine Bowl operated for 48 years, before owner Mel Manning decided to retire. The building has sat empty for the last two years.

Manning said he misses the bowing alley, but he’s happy to see the space being used again.

Renovations to Pine Bowl are already underway. The new dance studio will be combining two local classes: Dana Smith Dance Studios and Brindusa Moore Ballet Academy.

Moore focuses on ballet, while Smith focuses on other styles like contemporary, jazz and hip-hop. Together they will become the Alliance Academy of Dance.

Parents who have kids currently in DSDS said combining these classes and teachers will really benefit those who want to learn different styles. It will give the kids more opportunities and choices.

“I think that no matter what kind of dance you want to specialize in, you’ll be able to become a well-rounded dancer because you’ll have everything to choose from, whether you want to do a lot of one style and then a little bit of others or a lot of it all,” said Melanie Slater, who has two daughters in DSDS. “You can do anything your heart desires.”

“I think with ballet, ballet puts a lot of the foundation for all the other different styles of dance and I think that actually some of our girls have already been working together over there and I think that it just improves their technique in every area of dance,” said Heidi Smith, who also has two daughters in DSDS.

The new location will be 20,000 square feet and will have six different studios inside.

Smith said because some girls have already been taking a few classes from Moore, combining them will save parents a lot of time and travel.

“Having all of the different styles of dance in one location, as a mom, is really nice so we don’t have to go to too many different places,” Slater said.

Slater said another benefit to the new space is there will be more parking. Currently, both classes are held in Old Town, which parents said can sometimes be tough for parking.

So parents and dancers alike are looking forward to moving into the new space.

The academy hopes to have the building done and be moved in by Nov. 1.