Menlo Park Academy Of Dance

My daughter has been taking dance with MPAoD for four years now and counting. The ballet instructors are professional and wonderful role models to the young girls and boys who take their classes. The school does excellent to teach their students proper technique and dance etiquette. My daughter takes ballet, jazz and lyrical all which have excellent teachers, but also many of them are Royal Academy of Dance certified teachers. By chance I signed up my daughter at MPAoD but with the RAD curriculum my daughter wants to aspire to be a professional dancer someday and the teachers and dancers at this school are molding my daughters dreams and for that I am grateful. My only warning is towards the receptionist who they hired this year. She can be nice but is mostly very arrogant and dismissive. I’ve dealt with her and I haven’t had the best experience and I recommend the studio put her through some kind of sensitivity training or hire someone who actually cares about the studio.

This is the place to go for your child to acquire great technique. Ballet classes follow the Royal Academy of Dance curriculum. Young kids to advanced students will be taught by very knowledgeable faculty. Helpers in the classes are more advanced students and little kids really enjoy having role models.

This privately owned Ballet studio in Menlo Park is well run and organized. Instructors are experienced in dance. The location is very convenient. The performances are fantastic. I strongly recommend this dance studio to family with small kids.

My daughter has taken classes here since she was 4. In the younger classes there are quite a few kids, but the teachers are very good. This studio has a wonderful reputation in the dance community. When I chose Menlo Park Academy of Dance I did so because the teacher (Miss Sarah) was firm, strict and was willing to correct students mistakes in a way that made them want to fix it. I also really like the annual Royal Academy of Dance exams. It has helped motivate my daughter to work harder in order to earn a higher mark. The exams are not required nor do all students take them. I highly reccomend this dance studio. To the reviewers that complain about the parents talking too much, this is really not the fault of the studio. These parents need to take a lesson in manners.

This review is solely based on the space, as I have been taking a fitness class here lately that is not a part of the dance company.
This building is very cold, drafty and not heated well. It is not pleasant to be inside nor use any of the facilities. It is better then not having any place to do the class, but it could certainly used some improvements as to the comfort level and lockerooms, etc.

I have three kids who are currently in hip hop classes through MP Academy. They take classes with Lee. They love him — he’s a little on the strict side but the kids enjoy that; the moves have to be precise and the kids take direction well from him. The billing is a little strange. If you aren’t on top of things, it’s tough to figure out what you owe because it’s month to month. Most places you pay by say, the 6 week class, this is a little different.

I am very irritated with some of the parents at my daughter’s ballet class.
Isn’t it common sense not to talk loudly when your kids are in class? I don’t care where you went for the summer vacation or if you are thinking about getting coffee after class. Is it so important to talk about it so loudly right now?
When you ignore the teacher’s dress code and let your child wear a different dress or accessories, you make it harder for the kids who are following the rules. Yes, this is a class for young kids, but it does not mean that you can do whatever and whenever you like. And to the teacher: please be firm and enforce the rules.

Well, the verdict is in. My daughter tried out the summer session and does not want to return for the fall. Darn! I was hoping she’d like this place because it’s so close to where we live. When I asked her why, she said, «not so fun. i like teacher XX better» We then tried 4 sessions with another studio/​teacher in MV and she’s been stopping in mid-​walk to show folks her arabeque and plié eversince, something she used to do before she came to MPAOD. The lack of connection between the young instructor and my daughter (and many of the other girls) just didn’t work out.
This is the 4^th studio we’ve checked out and it’s the only one that we’re bummed about. Perhaps limiting enrollment to smaller class size like the other studios in the area would help facilitate a stronger teacher student interaction.

Welcoming attitude with high standards for practice and performance.

I bring my 4 year old here for weekly pre-​dance classes with Layla. Layla is wonderful with the kids, yet she is able to control the chaos well. The children do a combination of ballet, hip hop, tap, and tumbling in each one hour class. Parents are sitting right next to the class, in a seating area. Children can come and talk to their parents at any time. The environment is not strained, yet the children all sit in the circle when instructed, and get into lines to go across the floor. They get a period of free dancing which they seem to really enjoy. There’s a yearly recital though we’ve never done it because my daughter is not interested in doing so. I like the way Layla handles interruptions in class. She is very positive and the children love her. She seems to have established the rules of the class well, and I was surprised to see how well it runs. When kids do not feel like participating, they are free to come back to their parents in the seating area. Most parents stay to watch the class, because it is truly fun to watch. Layla knows the names of all the children and they get time to talk in the beginning of the class. The games they play are fun for the kids, but they are learning at the same time. They pretend to be princesses, they pretend to pick butterflies or flowers or stars. Some days they sit in a circle and practice making different faces. They talk about where they want to fly. The only criticism I have is that the atmosphere is very princess like, and some of the songs she plays are so Disney. I can’t see many little boys enjoying this atmosphere. But overall, we love this class.