The Academy of Music and Dance

Our 4 year old daughter has been attending The Pasadena Academy of Music & Dance for two years now. From day one their professional & courteous staff has nurtured and educated our child in the art of Ballet while making it a fun, inviting experience. The class sizes are small and the instructors well trained. They also offer a yearly recital where all of the dancers showcase their skills in short choreographed skits. To say our kiddo has fun is an understatement. We only have one child and we are happy to say The Pasadena Academy of Music and Dance was a well invested commitment to our daughters weekly curriculum! If you have any doubt, give them a trial and see for yourself!

Enrolling at Pasadena Academy of Music and Dance was one of my family’s best decisions. The teachers are incredibly talented, knowledgeable, and caring, and the classes are the perfect balance of education and fun! All of the kids always have a great time, and I have seen a huge improvement in my daughter’s technique and self-​confidence. In addition to stellar classes, the office is well-​organized and super professional. They make my life easy, so I can just sit back and watch the kids’ classes on the big screen TVs in the waiting room with the other parents!

I enrolled my daughter in the 2 – 3 year old class and was so excited. I didn’t have any outrageous expectations for her based on her age but was totally and completely disappointed for several reasons. When I enrolled they told me about the recital that they recommended and encouraged her to sign up for because everyone in her class was going to be in it as well, so I did. What I couldn’t believe was the cost for it all. It was $ 100 for the costume, $ 60 for the DVD, and $ 20 for the flowers. And the worst part of it is the cost of tickets. They were a whopping $ 50 per person. It was $ 400 for my entire family to come and see her and her group bounce around on stage for 2 minutes to a routine that every parent in the group agreed was far too difficult for their age group. They required the little girls to be dropped off at 12:00 in the afternoon and they didn’t go on stage until 3:30 and were not aloud to leave until 6:00 pm. Are you serious??? The girls were all stuffed in this tiny room in the middle of summer with no air conditioning and trust me when I say this room was a filthy backstage room that was far from child proofed. This company may be good for older girls but they have no business having classes for children under the age of 6 years old.
If you are enrolled in this school you are allowed to take one month off without paying to go on vacation or things like that. My vacation with my family was in July but if you are enrolled in their recital you can not take that month off even though they shut down the first two weeks of July for «their» vacation time. You are required to pay for the full month even though there are only two classes.
I spoke to the owner Fia and informed her that I wouldn’t be there at all the month of July but I would see them in August. This is where I lost it with them. I returned to class with my 2.5 year old and sat down and waited. 15 min after the class was supposed to start a girl named Destiny walked over to me and said «oh I’m sorry your daughters class has been cancelled. We actually dropped this class for a couple reasons, but if you want she can come back later for the five year old class.» I said no I’m sorry thats not going to work for us so we are just going to drop out of the school because she is only two and I do not want her with 5 year olds. I then said, and I assume I will not be charged for the month of august or anything else correct? and she said,“well you didn’t give us 30 days notice so you will be charged for August.” I then said you are telling me that you are going to charge me for a class you are no longer offering and dropped without giving me any notice? She said, «well its the billing department not us» I told her I could care less that she better get on the phone and explain to them what happened or she would be hearing from my lawyer.
I did get a call from destiny apologizing for the mistake and never informing me of the dropping of the class. She took responsibility for her mistake and spoke very kindly of my daughter and offered a free month of class which I did appreciate but I received no call from her boss who should have been the one apologizing because it was Fia that I informed about my vacation time but as others commented before me, it is apparent that all she cares about is making as much money as possible.
This school is a joke and I hope someone takes the time to read this and avoids the scam.

My daughter met Miss Victoria at a summer theater class in Pasadena in 2010 and wanted to take classes wherever she taught. We followed her to the Academy of Music and Dance. My daughter has had a great experience in both their regular and company classes. She has participated on both a Jazz and Hip Hop team. She is developing as a dancer and looks forward to her classes each week. Miss Victoria is still her favorite teacher and she is a positive role model that my daughter absolutely adores.

My 3 ½-​year-​old daughter has been attending for almost 2 years — started with Mommy & Me class then promoted to 2 – 3 year old class without mommy, which to our surprise my clingy little girl happily attended (parents can observe the classes from the TV monitors outside the classroom)! She absolutely LOVES the class! What we like the most is that the kids not only learn dance moves, but good discipline. The annual recital is an amazing production. We highly recommend!

My daughter is now in the tap/​ballet class. Last year we participated in the Mommy and Me class. So far so good, the receptionist is always helpful and the teachers Ms. Stephanie and Ms. Jessica have been great. My little one always looks forward to ‘dance class’. AMD is highly recommended!!!

The staff at Pasadena Academy of Music and Dance are amazing. My 4 year old started ballet and tap this year and she is typically very shy. The intructors and staff make it a very comfortable environment for everyone. Now my daughter looks forward to ballet class every Saturday morning. They are professional yet very nurturing and caring. Ms. Jenna is amazing.

My daughter has been taking dance hear for two years. She started with the mommy and me class which we loved. The instructors are very nice and she truly loves it. She is now in a solo ballet and tap class and she looks forward to it every week. We are very happy with her progress.

Simply the best.

I think this studio is great for my preschool daughter. It is a serious dance studio and even if though my daughter is very young, she is getting a good introduction to training as an actual dancer. Although this studio is pricey up front (so I do agree with Candace b), if you commit to the studio, the monthly tuition is about the same as any other studio in Pasadena but I think the kids are getting fantastic teachers and a good foundation for the future. Many kids can’t handle the separation from their parents at age 2 or 3, so I can see how frustrating that can be, but there is a trial class available during Open House (call for dates).
One word of warning though: For the annual recital, between the costume, professional pictures, DVD (no cameras allowed at the recital), and 5 front section tickets (San Gabriel Auditorium), I spent $ 500. That said, however, it was a completely professional experience and if my daughter was older and performed more than once, I would feel it was well worth the money.
If you aren’t sure your child is ready or you are just looking for something for her to do to pass the time, then go to your city Recreation Department. But if your daughter enjoys dancing and you want her to learn dance skills, do give this studio a try.