Hi there. First, thank so much for th Tribal Moon kudos. I completley agree about the time between begining ATS instruction and taking the stage as pro or otherwise varying greatly. I began studying ATS in San Jose in 2007, another of the troupe members started a few months later and a third another several months after that. All of us have strong backgrounds in dance &/or martial arts. 2 of us began dancing with TM in March of 2008, the third started some time after TF08. That said, we study hard!!

I took begining classes twice a week, added a level 2 class and was attendng troupe rehearsal 2x a week for 2 hours sometimes a third rehearsal for about that same length, this doesn't include practice time at home. With this intensity, we really connected and developed as a troupe. There are now 2, 2hr. rehersals/week (not everyone can make each, but we have one "mandatory" day a week) in addition to at least one class/week. A couple of us can get up to FC for further classes during the week (sadly, I can't). I absolutley feel the very marked difference between attending Wed. & Thurs. rehersals weekly vs. just one of those and if I could juggle it w/ the family & kids, I'd be dancing w/ my ladies (in rehearsal or classes) at least 4x week.

I guess I'd say, for our troupe, we absolutley prefer the feeling of more sessions per week. We start to konk out after 2hrs. straight dancing and we take a class 1x weekly(on average), minimum. The more there are of us, the more need there is for increased frequency of dance time together. We also find that periods of lots of time together (Like say, several months of it) serve as a sort of "tune up" if you will. Making a less intense schedule possible, w/out greatly sacrificing quality, in stretches - but this is still not ideal. For me, 1x month would never cut it. We would see too much of our connection slip and that connection is paramount. I hope this helps. I imagine it can be very challenging to coordinate so many schedules in such a large troupe. You might consider setting aside more 1.5/2 hr. rehersal times per month and then making one or two "mandatory". That way, the dancers can meet in varying combinations, have practice time together and then you all know you will meet en mass for the "uber-rehearsal". Maybe have a google cal. set up so you know who can make which dates and no one is left on their own.

Good luck to you!