YORK-Cindy Norge, the owner of CB Dance Studios (formerly Country Bootleggers Dance Studio) on George Washington Memorial Highway in York County, has two passions in life: dance and community service. Her studio first opened on April 21, 1994.
Norge was first introduced to dance at the age of six after her mother enrolled her in a ballet class. Like many tiny dancers, her interest was piqued, and tap and jazz were added to her repertoire. Family photo albums reflect her stint as a Little League cheerleader from 1st through 6th grade. After being introduced to baton, she performed as a majorette from 7th to 11th grade. Norge joined Future Business Leaders of America her senior year, and extracurricular activities came to a halt when she started working at Naval Weapons Station Yorktown after school. By the mid-1980s, Norge, had started a modeling career that widened her scope of dance options.
“When I became an adult, I started modeling for department stores like Dillard’s, Macy’s, and JCPenney, and other smaller stores when they first started promoting petite sections,” said Norge.
Her passion for dance was reignited while modeling with a country-western shop.
“The owners booked an event for Country Night at The Inn Place, which was located in the old Ramada Inn on J. Clyde Morris Boulevard, where I modeled country wear and they held line dancing,” said Norge. “The instructors, Dick and Geneva, really took me under their wings, and I wanted to become an instructor.”
She became certified through the National Dance Teacher’s Association and started teaching line dancing, country two-step, and East Coast swing classes through the Newport News Parks and Recreation prior to opening CB Dance Studios.
“When I opened up the studio, I was teaching classes through the York County Department of Recreation and also working full time at Newport News Shipbuilding,” said Norge. “It was a very exciting and busy time. I retired after 35 years with the Shipyard in 2015.”
The people-centric entrepreneur emphasized that she takes pride in running a Christian-based studio that serves as a catalyst for students to build longtime friendships while embracing the joy of learning to dance.
“I’m a strong believer in God,” said Norge. “He’s blessed me with the opportunity to run this studio for 28 years. My eight instructors and I are like family and make a great team.”
A native of York County, Norge is passionate about giving back to her community. “I’ve been here all of my life and enjoy helping out through various fundraisers,” she said.
In addition to supporting many charities, such as LINK of Hampton Roads, Relay for Life, the American Red Cross, and other nonprofits, Norge is active with the York County Chamber of Commerce, Peninsula Women’s Network, Retail Alliance, and The York County Senior Center.
Her dance studio specializes in ballroom, country, country two step, Latin, salsa bachata, ballet, Irish step dancing, line dancing, East Coast swing, and West Coast swing. Norge offers private, group, and partner dancing and implemented Zoom classes during the pandemic.
“When everything was shut down during the pandemic, I had people from all over the world signing up for our line dancing classes because they couldn’t get out and do anything locally,” said Norge. A silver lining at the end of the tunnel, her virtual classes continue to be a success as the pandemic wanes.
CB Dance Studios is located at 7201 George Washington Memorial Highway. Hours of operation fluctuate according to class schedule. For more information, click here, or call (757) 898-1922.