Courtesy of Fred Astaire Dance Studio
By Christine Graf
Elizabeth and Sergiy “Grey” Masko, franchise owners and studio directors of the Fred Astaire Dance Studio in Saratoga Springs, have purchased the franchise rights for Southern Maryland and Washington D.C. In their new role as regional directors, they will be overseeing the opening of Fred Astaire Dance Studios in the region.
“There are not any Fred Astaire’s in that area right now,” said Elizabeth Masko. “We’re planning in the next decade to open about ten studios in that area. We will be in charge of the studios, but we won’t be running the day-to-day operations. We will be training the owners and helping them to grow and expand their business.”
It was after experiencing significant growth at their Saratoga location that the couple made the decision to expand by purchasing additional franchising rights.
“We’ve been growing every year, and we decided to expand because it was the next logical step for us,” she said.
To assist with their new venture, they have partnered with Elizabeth’s mother, Joan Regan Hayner. The former COO of Community Care Physicians, Hayner is also a champion dancer.
“She’s combining her business experience with her dance passion to do this joint venture with us in the D.C. area,” said Masko.
The Maskos will continue in their role as studio directors at their 3257 Route 9 Saratoga Springs studio, one of more than 200 Fred Astaire Studios located throughout the country. Legendary dancer Fred Astaire and his business partners opened the first studio on Park Avenue in New York City in 1947.
“We offer ballroom, Latin, country, and social dancing,” said Masko. “We train people to be able to dance socially and competitively, and a large focus of ours is wedding dance preparation. We do a lot of first dances and father/daughter dances and things like that.”
Both private and group lessons are available, with the studio offering a full calendar of adult classes in the evenings. The studio also hosts monthly dance parties as well as studio showcases where a portion of the proceeds are donated to charity. If there is enough interest from the local community, children’s classes will be added to the schedule in the future.
Lessons are available for of all levels, from beginner to competitive, and Elizabeth and Grey partner with students to compete at Pro-Am (professional-amateur) competitions.
“Our focus is now on training the next generation of dancers,” said Masko. “Everyone thinks you are either born with rhythm or you are not, but everybody can dance. If you walk you can dance. There’s a quote from Fred Astaire where he said, ‘Some people seem to think that good dancers are born. All the good dancers I’ve known have been taught or trained.’”
Before opening their own franchise, the Maskos were instructors at the Latham Fred Astaire Dance Studio, one owned by Ukrainian natives Boris and Sasha Spitchka. Grey left his home in Ukraine to work for the Spitchka’s, arriving in the United States in 2013.
“Here in the U.S., the majority of kids take dance classes as a fun hobby, but in Ukraine the kids are training to be professional dancers,” said Masko. “Grey has been actively pursuing dance since he was seven, competing all over Europe. By the time he was eleven, he and his partner were taking trains by themselves to competitions in different countries.”
After meeting at the studio in Latham, the couple became dance partners, competing at professional dance competitions throughout the country.
“We’ve been dancing together ever since,” she said.
In 2017, they opened their own Fred Astaire Dance Studio at 426 Maple Avenue in Saratoga Springs, with Grey proposing to Elizabeth at their grand opening. In 2020, they relocated to the larger space they now occupy at 3257 Route 9.
According to Makso, three of their current instructors fled Ukraine during the ongoing war, brought to America by the Maskos to teach at their studio.
“We helped to support them as long as was necessary for them to go on their feet. We want to help them grow their futures and be able to live the American dream. We want to pay it forward.”
For more information, visit https://www.fredastaire.com/saratoga-springs/