Choosing the Right Dance Studio

Choosing a dance studio can be an extremely important decision as this choice can impact your child for years to come.  Before registering for a studio, it is important to feel confident that your choice is the best for you or your child.  Prior to deciding, a few items should be considered:

Why do you (or does your son/daughter) dance?  Do you dance because you are passionate about dance?  Do you dance for fun and fitness?  Do you dance to compete?  Do you dance to perform?  Each studio tends to focus on one or more of the aforementioned options so be sure that it fits you or your child’s reasons for dancing.  If your child is new to dance, you may want to focus on the philosophy and culture of the studio (see below).

What is the philosophy (vision, values) of the studio?  Does the philosophy of the studio align with the goals you or your child have for dance?  How does the studio and teachers encourage their students? 

In which genre(s) does the studio focus?  Does it focus on ballet (and contemporary, lyrical, jazz)? Hip Hop? Tap? Musical Theatre? Does this align with your goals?

Is Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) ballet certification important to you? Does the studio offer this?

Does the studio have sprung floors?  If a studio does not have sprung floors, it provides no give to the students’ bodies and can cause permanent damage to knees, hips, etc

What are/is the fees/tuition?  You generally pay for what you get so does the tuition fit into your goals?

What is the culture/environment of the studio?  Talk to the studio teachers and students (and families).  Visit the studio and see what feeling you get when you are there. Does it focus on inclusion and care? Winning and Trophies? Both? How do the older students treat the younger students? How do dancers treat each other - as family or as competitors?

Because selecting a studio is a major decision, it is important that you do your due diligence and ask the right questions.  The aforementioned questions are just a few that can get you started.  Be sure ot check with current families that attend.

We would love for you to come and visit us at KIUAN but we hope these help you to choose the studio that will best benefit you or your child’s dance career.

Originally posted in 2009.