Backstage Dance Studio

I did not intend to write a review for Backstage. Sitting here now is a result of lots of conversations with other moms and observing general discontentment, and mixed emotions. So, I thought I would share some thoughts. I know mothers who have pulled their kids out of classes, and yesterday at the dress rehearsal several other moms said they will be doing the same. It seems in general, it all goes to the lack of interaction and professional courtesy of the studio.
My daughter has been dancing with them for three years, and is now seven years old. She absolutely loves it, and I plan to continue to keep her there as of this moment. She is very passionate about dance, a trait she does not get from me but from a long line of professional dancers in my family. If she wakes up one day and decides she has had enough, then maybe we will move on to something else.
Yes, it is true that I have never been greeted with a hello or good morning, and nobody has ever asked how my daughter is doing or how we can improve or move forward. All communication, in my experience, is customer initiated. The girls at the desk are less than pleasant, and the other day, one woman snapped at me and told me to, «get it together mom!» This was in response to my confusion over the rehearsal and show schedules and asking too many questions I guess. I did not respond to her in kind as I am used to handling difficult people and did not let her issues become mine.
Last year, our hip hop teacher was late to class more times than on time, presumably from her late night partying the Friday nights before class. Nobody offered to talk to us about it, or come up with some sort of compensation. I know they lost families because of that.
The school has some extraordinary talent and teachers. This is why we stay. I accept the fact that nobody gives two shits about us personally, and I am alright with that at this moment. It seems the Show Troupe gets a lot of the attention, and those of us mortals just pay the bills. Again, I am alright with this at the moment.
I am not a dance mom, and engage in a little bit of chit chat at classes with other moms. I have noticed the Show Troupe moms do not socialize with us, and the few times I have attempted to engage with them I was rebuffed. I just laugh about it and keep rolling. I work a very stressful more than full time job for the government, and I don’t let these little things get under my skin.
My kid has learned and grown so much in skill, and she is happy. Sometimes life reflects real life, and these are tough lessons we sometimes learn early. It is my responsibility to make sure she is well adjusted enough to handle a variety of situations, and I just throw this in that category. Do I wish they were more pleasant, chatty and communicative, sure I do, but I wish a lot of things.
This is a great place for your kids to learn, just be aware ahead of time of the atmosphere and you won’t be caught of guard! Enjoy and dance your heart out!
UPDATE 07÷09÷15
I had a wonderful chat today with one of the owners! I give much credit to tracking me down based on this review and asking me questions in person about it! I love that she cares so much about her business and the kids to engage and ask tough questions knowing she may not like the answer. We had a wonderful talk and I hope we both feel better because of it. I wish some of the other mothers who expressed discontent would go and speak with her in order to air their thoughts and share in a healthy exchange. As she said to me, «we don’t learn and grow if people don’t tell us what is wrong.» Kudos and much love for that!
UPDATE 06÷05÷16
My daughter had an amazing year at Backstage! She had two new teachers this year and loved them both. The improvement in her dancing ability is clearly evident. Yesterday was her recital and she was so excited yet sad to have the year end. Backstage knocked it out of the park, and all the performances were outstanding. We are already planning her next round of classes!

Hello Unilocal family and friends, it saddens me that I have to use social media to notify the public of the integrity of this dance studio. I was forced to make a judgment call today when I removed my daughter from backstage dance studios hip-​hop class. It saddens me that Mrs. Diane (OWNER) feels that she can make derogatory statements to the parents of her students that patronize her business. I was told today «that you can take you peoples out of the ghetto but you can’t take the ghetto out of you people». Mrs. Diane proceeded to let me know that «she did not need my money» and that it was fine with her if me and all of my ghetto friends withdraw our children from her school. Leaving a rating of one star would even be too much.

My daughter just started attending backstage this year and she *loves* it. She started off in Rockin Tots (very cute!) and has moved on to the 3 – 5 ballet and tap classes. The teachers are all very nice, as are the desk people. The studio is clean, and has a lot of room to change, sit etc. Bonus: You can watch the dancers from the monitors outside the room without the kids being distracted! Love!