Studio Dionne – School of Dance & Music

I highly recommend the studio to all ages and races. My daughter has been a student for over 2 years and loves the studio! They have great performances each year for the students and have talented teachers who are extremely patient. The studio tries to create dancers and not just a place for kids to play around. I feel our tuition is worth the instruction that is given each session!

I have been studying dance my entire life and have moved from school to school to try to find an atmosphere that was welcoming and encouraging. I finally landed at Studio Dionne and was immediately welcomed with a scholarship by owner, Pamela Dionne. She has helped me through, what now is my career, from the day I arrived and still does to this day. I am now a professional dancer in NYC but always look forward to coming back home and taking class at Studio Dionne.

I am writing this review in hopes that it will prevent someone else’s child from being hurt or discouraged from pursuing their artistic dreams.
I enrolled my now 4yr old daughter (3yrs old in the beginning of the fall session) in her very first ballet class. I chose Studio Dionne based on convenient location and some good reviews that I read online. However, I am definitely now regretting this choice!
My daughter is the only African American enrolled in her class and I can honestly say that I have never felt welcomed by the school. When going to pre-​register my daughter for the next fall session for the 4 yr old aged class last Saturday I was told that my daughter was the only child in the class that would not be allowed to move forward to the next class. When questioning why, I was told that they feel my child is not «emotionally» ready and does not have the attention span to last the additional 15 minutes that the next class requires (btw none of these «concerns» were ever brought to my attention prior and my daughter has been in this class since August). Also, here is the icing on the cake… If someone walked into studio Dionne today with their 4 yr old child that child would automatically be enrolled in the class they say my daughter isn’t ready for just based on age… but my daughter who has been at the school for 10mo and is 4 yrs old is not allowed to be enrolled into that same class.
I know most parents are going to speak highly of their child (in which they should), but my child is exceptionally smart and ahead of most 3 – 4 yr olds in many areas (socially, emotionally, and academically). This has been proven via the state test and assessment given at my daughters school and to say that my child is not «emotionally» ready and does not have the attention span in my opinion is a load of crap! I can’t stand when individuals play the race card, but in this situation race was the only difference of my child and every other child in that class. It’s kills me when individuals of the opposite race try their hardest to «label» an African American child at a young age.
At this age introducing a child to the arts should be fun and exciting, not trying to discourage and humiliate a child. In this day and age when the arts are starting to diminish you would think that a kids dance school would do everything in their power to encourage children to enjoy and embrace the arts. Dancing may not end up being my daughters «claim to fame» but at this age I want to expose my child to every opportunity and as she gets older see what she enjoys most.
My child has 2 more weeks left in the session and I am seriously considering not letting her attend. I DO NOT STAND BY ANY COMPANY OR ORGANIZATION THAT TRIES TO KILL AND DESTROY MINORITY CHILDREN DREAMS.
I do not recommend Studio Dionne to anyone! Especially minorities!

I have been to Studio Dionne once. It was around September 2011. I have a Groupon-​Now voucher for 1 class ($ 8).
I would give this place 4.5 stars.
Do bring: water, wear contact lenses, ballet shoes. Some people wear leotards + tights, others wear t-​shirt+ shorts. Just wear what is comfortable for you.
Location: short distance to I-​85. Parking is extremely tricky. The parking spaces are limited.
Facility: super clean, very well renovated. The classroom I was in was a little crowded.
I took the Monday evening ballet basics class and I had no ballet experience at all. The instructor was a man in his 30s or 40s. I loved the class, the atmosphere was warm and the instructor was quite enthusiastic, however he is sometimes a little strict in my opinion. I thought the adult basic class is for adults who had no experience and who practice ballet for fun. Most of the skills he taught were quite basic, that was until 30 minutes before the class ends. At that time, he increased the difficulty level, and I had a hard time to catch up, especially since I am not familiar with the french terminology. He did correct the form for the students.
Price: For adults, Single Class Card costs $ 20 and 10 Class Card costs $ 150. And I do not think they run any deals except for the Groupon-​Now deal (which I believe is for new students only). So this place is quite expensive in my opinion.
Compare with Atlanta Ballet, Dance 411 and Gotta dance Atlanta:
Atlanta Ballet-​Adult open division:
Pros: $ 10 (student price) drop in price for a 90 mins class. The instructor I had was very patient.
Cons: None.
Dance 411:
Pros: Runs a lot of deals. The instructor I had was very patient.
Cons: Hard time to find a parking space, I had to park at a nearby Chinese takeout each time. They discontinued the ballet drop in class and the instructor was teaching only kids classes now.
Gotta dance Atlanta:
Pros: Runs a lot of deals.
Cons: I took the explore ballet class, and the instructor was not very experienced and not quite patient. I do not recommend explore ballet class taught by Rikki. Also the facility is not as well renovated as Studio Dionne.