JOY AND laughter fill the hallways of Belamour Ballet Dance Academy, bright colors swirling gracefully as dancers of all ages practice their craft. The academy is a beloved location for many families in Lebanon, as students gain both a mastery of classical ballet and a solid foundation of leadership — and at the forefront of it all is its founder, Jenna Jones.
At just 2 years old, Jones knew she wanted to dance. Her sister had begun lessons as a way to strengthen her legs, but Jones herself was too young for lessons. She did the next best thing — wearing her own dance outfit, she would stand outside the viewing window and practice what her sister was learning. Even the higher window and room full of chairs didn’t stop her; Jones simply arranged the chairs so she could see and continued to dance.
“I was obsessed. I knew that I needed to do that,” Jones said. “Finally, when I was 3 years old, I was old enough, and they let me take my first class, and I never stopped after that … It’s just the way God made me.”
At the same time, however, Jones suffered from a severe autoimmune disorder. She started having health issues at just 1 or 2 years old, compounded by an abusive living situation. Dance brought her comfort and faith, and her instructor gave her a place to grow.
“It brought me so much joy, so much peace, so much clarity,” Jones said. “It was my vice, being able to have a safe place to go to with somebody who taught me the right way to do things — not just to protect the health of my body but also the health of my mind.”
Jones continued to train diligently throughout her childhood, learning several dance styles and how to sing and act. Her toolkit included classical ballet, neoclassical ballet, hip hop, and jazz, as well as the foundations of tap, acro dancing, and ballroom dancing. Most importantly, she trained in the foundations of dance first.
“I was very blessed,” Jones said. “My instructor that trained me up my whole life really, really dug into the classical technique and strengthening the foundation so that you can build properly off of that, rather than bypassing what could be ‘boring’ or ‘tedious’ to just skip ahead to the cooler or flashier tricks, possibly leading to long term injuries.”
Several opportunities allowed Jones to experience the semi-professional world of dance as a child with shows like “The Nutcracker,” but an ankle injury forced her to take a step back right before a planned move to New York to continue training. Instead, Jones taught and choreographed for local schools and focused on her musical career. Eventually, that brought her to Nashville and Lebanon, where she eventually founded her own dance studio.
At Belamour Academy, Jones puts all her experience as a dancer and a teacher into practice as she creates a joy-filled, Christian environment that teaches dancing fundamentals safely. Her success as a child and now as an entrepreneur is a gift from God,” Jones said, “because her disorder meant she was projected to die, and to this day, she is supposed to be immobile — not teaching dance on the regular.” Jones doesn’t plan to quit any time soon, either.
“My instructor that I grew up with was leaping around well into her 60s and 70s; she is the healthiest, loveliest lady who is going to live forever,” Jones said. “I love her, she’s amazing, and with God at my side, that’s going to be me.” GN
