Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts

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Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts MCA, located at the Valencia Arts Center in Winona, MN provides quality arts education for all ages.

MCA offers programming that ranges from recreational to pre-professional performing and visual arts camps, classes and private lesson instruction & workshops. Curriculum and programming is designed to provide physical and aesthetic benefits, heightened self-respect, discipline, and confidence to students of all ages in the Winona, MN area. MCA's home the Valencia Arts Center houses 3 dance studios, 4 practice rooms, a black box theatre and a recital hall. Dance classes offered include; ballet, jazz, tap, hip hop, contemporary, Irish, dance conditioning, and creative movement. Private music lesson instruction is provided in voice, piano, guitar, oboe, cello, violin, trumpet, saxophone, trombone, euphonium, clarinet, and flute.

Meet Megan Jenkins — Asst. Director of Dance 💃Megan's dance journey came full circle this year — she's back at the very ...
10/12/2026

Meet Megan Jenkins — Asst. Director of Dance 💃

Megan's dance journey came full circle this year — she's back at the very program where it began, now serving as Asst. Director of Dance. Her training took her through a BFA in Dance Performance and Choreography from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, and into a PhD program in Critical Dance Studies at UC Riverside.
Along the way, Megan owned de•fine/ dance space in Southern California, danced professionally with The PGK Project, OpusMixtus, Brown Paper Bag Dance, and other independent choreographers, and built a highly awarded career on the competition circuit. She continues to judge and choreograph for outside high school dance teams today, alongside serving twice as a cultural ambassador for the U.S. government.

This season, Megan is choreographing three pieces for the Holiday Celebration: Ballet 3/2B, Ballet 2A/1B, and Young Dancer Jazz. "I'm excited to be back where my dance journey began," she shares, "to share my love of dance with a new community of students, and to soak up all the artistic joy that MCA offers."

Fun fact: Megan has one cat (Wisconsin) and one dog (Minnesota) — affectionately nicknamed Wh***ey & Soda.

Meet Tammy Schmidt — Director of Dance 💫Tammy's path to MCA began at age four in a small Texas town, training under a re...
10/09/2026

Meet Tammy Schmidt — Director of Dance 💫

Tammy's path to MCA began at age four in a small Texas town, training under a retired Joffrey Ballet dancer. By 11, she was studying with the Houston Ballet; by 14, she'd signed her first trainee contract, launching a career that would take her to national and international stages.

Alongside her performance career, Tammy pursued graduate studies in ballet, crisis intervention counseling, and dance injury prevention — expertise she's carried into 25+ years as university dance faculty and, since 1999, as Director of Dance at MCA. Her specialties include ballet technique for pre-teens through adults, restaging historic ballets, and teaching dance history and anatomy at the collegiate level.
For this year's Holiday Celebration, Tammy is providing artistic direction for the dance programming — and personally restaging a piece from the historic ballet Don Quixote for MCA's Ballet IV/V students.

"I am most excited for the sense of community created when MCA's arts programs unite to celebrate our students' discipline, commitment, progress, and artistry," she shares. "It is so inspiring!"

Fun fact: Tammy raised two sons who both went into medicine — a running family joke, since she faints at the sight of blood!

This is what a season of learning looks like on stage. ✨ Join us for the 3rd annual Holiday Celebration of the Arts on N...
10/07/2026

This is what a season of learning looks like on stage. ✨

Join us for the 3rd annual Holiday Celebration of the Arts on November 19-21 at the Joseph Page Theatre, Saint Mary's University, with students from the Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts performing dance, theater, and music.

Tickets and details coming soon. Follow along so you don't miss them!

Please join us this Saturday at 3:00PM for our Faculty Music Recital. This event is free and open to the public.
10/06/2026

Please join us this Saturday at 3:00PM for our Faculty Music Recital. This event is free and open to the public.

There's still time to register for classes this fall at the Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts! Music, Dance, Theatre a...
09/02/2026

There's still time to register for classes this fall at the Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts! Music, Dance, Theatre and Art classes for all ages.

All performances for The Little Mermaid are SOLD OUT!
08/14/2026

All performances for The Little Mermaid are SOLD OUT!

06/28/2026

Thanks for a great Intensive!

06/27/2026

Getting ready for the 2026 Showcase!

***MCA SENIOR SPOTLIGHT***Jolie is graduating from Winona Senior High School and has studied dance at MCA for the past 1...
05/27/2026

***MCA SENIOR SPOTLIGHT***
Jolie is graduating from Winona Senior High School and has studied dance at MCA for the past 15 years. Her favorite memory is performing a piece to Pirates of the Caribbean music and creating lasting friendships with fellow dancers Cora, Fiona and Evelyn. Jolie will be attending Winona State University this fall where she will be studying Criminal Justice and Psychology before heading to Washington, D.C. Congratulations, Jolie!

Address

1164 W Howard Street
Winona, MN
55987

Opening Hours

Monday 10am - 6pm
Tuesday 2pm - 6pm
Wednesday 10am - 6pm
Thursday 3pm - 7pm

Telephone

+15074535500

Website

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