We are incredibly happy with Premier. My daughter took dance lessons at two other places - one was…read morerecreational, and the other was rigid. The dance instructors at Premier, on the other hand, balance fun with just the right amount of rigor, and they are very professional, caring and encouraging.

My daughter has been a student at Premier Dance School for the last three years and we are thrilled…read morewith the progress she has made and how Premier continues to inspire her to dance. Premier is a local and family owned business operated by highly trained professionals. Premier offers a variety of classes including ballet, pointe, hip hop, contemporary, jazz, modern, tap and (not easily found at other local schools) character dance. We love that faculty members take pride and set high expectations for each and every student. We would recommend Premier Dance to every dancer from beginner to advanced!

Very professional ballet instructor who provides her dancers with strong ballet technique.read more

My daughter danced at Newington Dance Center for two years. Jane is an excellent ballet teacher and…read moremy daughter improved in her dancing while with Jane. Unfortunately, Jane's emotional abuse and torment caused us to have no other choice but to leave the studio. Jane is a vicious and petty woman that attacks children's emotional well being during every class. Her verbal abuse and passive aggressive behaviors were so hurtful to my daughter. Jane allowed other students to use foul language towards the younger students and meltdowns were a frequent occurrence from students during class. Janes interactions with me were totally inappropriate and unexeceptable but I tolerated it to give my daughter the opportunity for a first rate dance education. I have debated for months about writing a review because we are so happy to be gone from the studio but I want others to know what an ugly person Jane is and protect other young innocent girls from becoming victims of the owner of Newington Dance Center.

We just saw the play " Kiss me Kate" Amazing cast of UHART…read morestudents in this performance!! Their dancing and voices were SPECTACULAR! Their performances are fantastic throughout the academic year!

I am writing solely about the instrumental music program, including private lessons, Suzuki group…read moreclasses, orchestra ensembles, and chamber music. Both of my kids participate in lessons, classes, and concerts through the Hartt Community Division, and they are one of the best-organized youth music programs of this type in the country. Having observed numerous Suzuki schools in the US, Asia, and Europe, I am always impressed at the quality of the organization and the consistently high level of music making of the students at the concerts. The cello studio, in particular, is always a joy to hear, with strong performances at every level, from "Twinkle" to Tchaikovsky. The instructors are highly engaged with the students, and I am always enthused at the depth and breadth of material covered in their private lessons--and parents are encouraged to attend and take notes until the students are old enough and don't want us there anymore. :)

Though they are only place that takes in younger children this place lacks diversity, and empathy…read moreto younger students. In this day in age it sad to still see people of color be treated different in this studio not only by staff but by director. For such short clases the prices are extremely high and lack actually teaching half the time the director isn't even present to help these children out. Newbies beware they cater to the long members that are part of the family and shunt newbies to make them feel Uncomfortable! Moral is this studio isn't recommended for toddlers and moms who are new to the dance world, Overly priced, awful Communication, and all they care is about money money money

GHDA is the best in the area. My two girls have been going to GHDA since they were 5 and 6 (and are…read morenow 12 and 13) and they absolutely love it. Not only is the owner and staff compassionate and dedicated, they also know how to teach. The girls do not play for an hour (like at many dance studios) - they learn to dance. Every Christmas and birthday- all my girls want is for me to allow them to take another dance class the following year. They absolutely loved that they are challenged, that they are encouraged and that they have to work together with their team mates. The recital is amazing (and so am someone who hates sitting through things like that) and it's only every other year.

I have two children that attended this school for a few years. I will say that when we first…read morejoined the studio, we were very happy to meet the teacher and get started. Miss Heather was the teacher at the time and she was knowledgeable about dance, fully engaging with all of the children (every age group) and also put all the parents at ease. It was a small studio but it was packed with goodness. That was 3 years ago. Miss Heather passed on and the business was taken over by her sister. We stayed on w the studio and we quickly found that the new teacher, Haley, was not a trained dance teacher! We had signed a contract so therefore we were obligated to finish out the year (we will not be returning now that the year is finished). What I found in the last year with the studio was very unprofessional leadership, neither of my daughters were challenged or learned any new dance moves, the children were not put in classes based on ability but rather, to make it easier for scheduling on their part. Example, my 16 year old daughter (third year acro) was in a class with 5 year olds that were first year and still learning very basic moves. In my opinion, it became more about fundraisers, after hours wine parties, a place to hold a birthday party and such. It became time for us to move on when I realized that my daughters (who LOVE to dance) would moan and groan about going to class because they felt they weren't being challenged. Because of the lack of learning and being challenged, my daughter (younger daughter) would occasionally daydream and rather than pulling her back into the dance routine, the teacher called her "annoying" in front of the whole class. Sad to say that the quality of this studio has gone down, the teacher is not qualified and the ability to engage the students is also totally absent. I would not recommend this studio. I have read the response and I stand by my review 100%. I highly recommend visiting and seeing for yourself and asking for dance teacher credentials. Also speak to families that have gone before you, as I can guarantee there is not a 97% return rate. I know of more than 5 families not returning next year.

Very unprofessional. Manager/Owner tends to talk about everyone and share private information (who…read morehasn't paid tuition). Plays parents against each other. No mirrors in the studio. Studio is set up like a living space without any private rooms for the dancers. Dance teacher is an art major, did not go to school for dance (she did grow up dancing) but she took over the business her sister started. Three dogs and a rabbit live at the studio in a back room on a full-time basis.

This class is wonderful! It is fun for one or both parents to attend with a child, or a…read moregrandparent or caregiver! You get yo interact with other parents and children, and the tuition includes CD's that you can play at home or in the car. We have so much fun singing, dancing and acting out the songs! Every 10 weeks the music changes, so there is always something new and fun to discover!

Ms. Jane is the best. You can feel her love for music and the children each class. We started our…read morefirst class when my daughter was 13 months, and over the course of the 10 weeks you could see her love of music grow. She enjoyed singing, dancing and making new friends. Now at 18 months she will ask for songs and loves to dance to all forms of music. Thank you Ms. Jane!

I have been at Riley's going on our sixth year and love it!! I now have my two sons and my daughter…read morein this school. It has been a great pleasure watching my children grow as dancers and also as individuals. This school is very professional and does a great job making you feel part of an extended family. I have so many new friends and always feel welcome and comfortable. I can only say great things about the staff. They know what they are doing and have been a family of dancers and a school for over 75 years. I have always recommended this school to family and friends. The recital is a true show in the sense of Broadway and my family comes from all over to enjoy this spectacular event. I am one proud dance dad!! As for a previous comment I saw regarding the rules; it is clear every year what is expected of our children and ourselves every year when we register. It is in writing and you sign it. I think for you to say how horrible your experience was and then say you went back to register again shows that you see the quality of the school. My kids are always fed before the show and during intermission and have never been told they cannot eat. Your child is with you and is not left with the staff of the school. So if you brought your sick husband to auditorium full of people ad could not find a baby sitter for your youngest is sad and is your responsibility as an adult and parent. I also have never had an issue with my family seeing my children during the show. You are over exaggerating everything.

My daughter has been enrolled at Riley's school of dance for eight years. It is more than a dance…read morestudio, the staff there have become our friends. My daughter loves her classes and has made many friends. In my opinion, they prepare the best recital around. Riley's has shown my daughter to also care about the surrounding community, with the work they do for the local loaves and fishes. As far as the first review, I have signed the rules every year, when you make another decision you meed to own it. My daughter actually was sick at a recital when she was 7.. She vomited multiple times. They were more than helpful with the situation, allowed her to have food and drink to help the situation. We also had the option to leave if she needed to. However, my daughter did not want to, so we made the best of it. The next day she was not feeling better and we weren't able to attend to recital. The staff at Riley's wanted to make sure Catherine was feeling better. They were never mean or inappropriate. The staff and co-directors have always been respectful and wonderful.

I had no reason to be care free, no, no, no Until I took a…read moretrip to the other side of town yeah, yeah, yeah You know I heard that boogie rhythm, hey I had no choice but to get down, down, down, down Dance, nothing left for me to do but dance Off these bad times I'm going through just dance Got canned heat in my heals tonight, baby -Jk Ok, so I didn't actually write that, but it sums it up. The girl loves to dance and she get it so good here ( know how it sounds, 5 stars, still sticking to it) soon to be the other one, so a total of 14 classes idk fml. We've tried several studios, something is just special about Morlock. Parking lot still can be a situation, but nothing like what it could be. Pretty easy to get to once you hop on 2. See you from the audience

Best dance studio in Connecticut. The dance teachers are a great inspiration. Must check it out.read more