This place is amazing!…read more I'm so glad it's doing so well, it's such a great thing for the city to have! It's one of the UK's largest dance studios and is currently expanding to Blackpool and Liverpool. It also holds classes in Blackburn and Bolton. Classes include ballet, street dance, hip hop, jazz, salsa, lindy hop, pole dance, breakdance, contemporary, acting, reggaeton, tap, street salsa(?!), modern, locking, popping, ballroom, latin, singing, flamenco, martial arts, belly dance, vogueing & whacking. It's really affordable too and the staff are really really helpful, they run classes from beginner to advanced level so there's no need to be afraid of being the worst there because new people start all the time! Classes are mainly in the evening but they do have weekend sessions too and they also have summer schools. See the website for more details.

Salsa, Zumba, Tango, Bollywood, Street, Jazz you get them all here!! If you want to learn…read moreprofessional dancing or just go for those odd classes when you feel like doing some exercise this is the best place for that in Manchester. They have a wide range of classes so you can pick and choose and their membership fee is definitely pocket friendly. It is located right in the heart of Manchester City Centre so its very convenient if you want to go for a class after work instead of going to the gym (yawn). Tip: Definitely attend one of their street dance classes, supposed to be the best in Manchester!

As a child ballet dancer, and let's face it, many girls were, I donned my pink leotard and flexed…read moremy legs and as a result I have cyclist's calves. I spun in my tutu and allowed my mother to scrape my hair back into a bun so severe it looked like my fat baby cheeks had been liposucked. But when puberty hit and the next step was to go up on points, I saw those shoes with the wooden blocks in the toes and I got a severe case of cold feet. Wait, scratch that. Make that TERRIFIED feet. Make that my feet realised how much my toes would bleed and nails would crack and went running in the opposite direction before my head could even make a decision. So a ballet dancer's life was not for me, but I was pretty good back in the day. Had I wished to continue into the competitive and bulimia-stricken world of professional ballet, I might have found myself here hoping to be the next Darcey Bussell. And don't start whinging at me for making blackly comical jokes about dancers with eating disorders because I was ABOUT to point out that here at the Northern Ballet School, they've adopted a very important preoccupation with the 'physical and mental wellbeing of students'. Dance injury records are kept, lectures on dancer nutrition are mandatory, trained and experienced counsellors are on hand because let's face it, if you're going into ballet this seriously both your body and your brain are likely to encounter hard times. Physiotherapists are even in practice near the school and medical insurance is advised, but more so than anything, student welfare is the priority. The courses on offer here are the NBS Diploma in Dance, the Jazz Theatre Dance Focus course and Classical Ballet Focus. Performance experience takes place at the school's home, the Dancehouse Theatre, and scholarships are awarded to students who show the most potential. All in all the whole thing makes me feel whimsical; I think of Fame, I think of legwarmers, I think of Jennifer Beals in an off-shoulder sweater auditioning for Juilliard. I try not to think of that rather racist film about gang culture juxtaposed with the joy of dance with Julia Stiles in it. How many copies of that have been done now? All in all this is one of the most prestigious schools for creative talent in Manchester and I for one get excited every time I think about it. Maybe there's still something of that ballet dancer in me that just won't go away...

My eight year old son loves his dancing lessons, he never stops dancing since starting the class!…read moreHe's learnt such a lot in a short space of time.

My 6 year old daughter has loved watching Strictly from a young age and has wanted to learn…read moreballroom and latin for some time. I was so pleased when we found Nicky's class 8 weeks ago, although I wasn't sure my daughter would enjoy the reality of learning a prescribed set of steps, but how wrong I was! Caitlin absolutely loves the class and already knows the steps to the foxtrot, waltz and cha cha. She loves coming home from class on a Thursday evening to show her Dad what she's learned and then plays at dance classes in the playground at school with her friends. Nicky has suggested the children can start taking medals in April if they want to but there is absolutely no pressure to do so. I just can't wait til my husband's injury free so we can learn too!

I must be some sort of masochist by agreeing to spend my day of holiday leave taking my daughter…read moreto her regular dance class, followed by an hour of soft play, but hey - I enjoyed it! My 2.5 year old has been going here for a few months on every Monday now and she has a great time - for £4 they have a 30 minute dance class from an instructor and then they get as much soft play as they want - it really was a case of trying to drag her away in the end... The onsite cafe isn't anything to massively write home about - the prices are cheap, but you get what you pay for. The espresso based coffee wasn't great at all - but at least it woke me up!!! Loads of onsite parking.

From the owner: Dance School of The Year for four consecutive years including International Vocational School of…read morethe Year. 100% pass rate with two exam sessions per year and two shows per year allowing students to progress and perform regularly. Students 16 + can enrol onto BTEC Performing Arts 2 year course validated by Stockport College and fully funded.

This is the outlet at the Lowry. We hadn't been here in a few years certainly long before wu flu…read morestruck. I'd guess it's now half empty store wise. Key shops like M&S Clothing, Black & Decker, Tefal and many more all long gone. Harry Ramsden's fish & chips still there along with subway. A chicken shack of sorts, an independent Indian and a BK. The Indian has most food pre cooked and heated on order so no thanks. When there's a Harry's I'm afraid this sort of competition has no chance with me. They used to have a spud u like but it's gone as has an ice cream parlour. The Cadbury alleged chocolate shop is still there but prices are rip off with supermarkets offering identical products much cheaper. Costa coffee is still there and they are now advertising the fact that they are selling M&S food so at least that's quality food. I'm not sure I'd make another trip back here but they still do the artisan market days so that would bring me back.

A wonderful modern theatre in Salford at the Lowry Centre. The Lyric Theatre is the biggest of the…read moretwo theatres inside of the huge Lowry Centre. It hosts many amazing plays, musicals and many other entertainment options. I have been to see two National Theatre productions here which include the amazing War Horse and recently the Curious incident of the dog in the nighttime. It also has a couple of restaurants and cafes and amazing views to go with it. I have sat in many places in the Lyric theatre and there really isn't one bad seat plus the seats are really comfortable! All the staff who work here are really friendly and they seem to love there job. So take a look at the Lowry website to see if theres a show coming your way soon. Even if you're not sure that you might like the theatre, give it a go you may love it! The Lowry also hosts many art exhibitions which currently has Behind the Mask, the biggest collection of BAFTA-winning actor portraiture ever assembled, which has come to The Lowry for its first time out of London which is worth the trip out of town alone! You can easily get to the Lowry from the city centre of Manchester on one of the Metrolink trams which head towards Media City UK!

My sis and I were walking around looking for things to do in Manchester and Royal Exchange was on…read morethe list of things to do! So we stopped by and we learned this: High Yield: If you go at 9:30 am you can pick up front row tickets for the featuring performance later in the day for 10 pounds! Details Interior: Beautiful modern modern theater. So when you come into the building, the theater is contained within a cool glass looking structure and there are different tiers for viewing. We went at 9:30 am to pick up the 10 pound tickets and then came back at 2:30 to watch our show. The colors of the modern theater are purples and blues. Inside interior is beautiful Play Watched: We watched Sweet Charity- without giving away details and the ending, it is certainly such a well performed play. The cast put their heart and soul, the dancing numbers were clean, and the vocals were solid. Very solid performance, and because it is a smaller theater than like Broadway, it felt very intimate and cozy watching this from the front row. This is rated PG 13 in my opinion, no dirty or inappropriate stuff but if you want the true nuances and understanding of this play, be prepared for talks of brothels and purity. The front seats are like coahces btw, so if you're a tall person, your legs may feel awkward. But if you're a shorty like me, it's totally nice. Refreshments: You can purchase drinks, snacks and pastries from outside- not the cheap popcorn and like soft drinks but like actually baked goods, wines, and stuff Audience: Generally an older audience, middle to upper class, mostly caucasian population

This venue certainly has the wow factor.. I walked in expecting a typical old & majestic theatre…read morebuilding, which it is BUT it also has a huge modern twist, with a scaffolding type looking auditorium in the middle. It took me a while to like this, being the traditionalist that I am, but once the musical (Little Shop of Horrors) was in full swing I fully appreciated the set up they had going on, with the audience sitting in a round and the stage in the centre. The acoustics were absolutely fantastic and the space created a really intimate feel. My only gripe is that the seats really are packed in, I felt quite claustrophobic and if I had needed to leave for any reason during the show at least three other people would had to leave their seats and move into the aisle so that I could pass. I will just need to bare this in mind next time I book...

I started dancing here when I was 2 and a half. I decided that I wanted to be a dance teacher. I…read morewas supposed to be getting support with my exams to become one but I got the opposite. I was sent for exams unprepared and ended up failing one because I'd not been given all the things I needed for it. I have been a loyal student but have ended up being treated poorly. The principal decided that she didn't want to help me anymore and instead of telling me, she just decided to unfriend me on Facebook. Not professional at all.

I was 12 when I joined, I've since been here for 6&1/2 years.This school is the place I found my…read morecareer path,Miss Michelle & the other team members have always been so encouraging and always striving to work hard and to help the students work hard and most importantly have fun, I personally I owe a lot the Miss Michelle, I was having a rough time with various things happening in my life at the time, but she helped me realise that I could dance and do it for a career, with a lot of hard work and help from everyone at the dance school I gain admission in to the Northern Ballet School in Manchester. I am forever grateful and this school is definitely worth joining.

julie and karen are first class dance teachers. zoe and…read moremyself have been dancing for about 15 months; up to then i could not dance a step. my confidence grows each time we go down. great fun great people in the classes. GO ON GIVE IT A GO. again a big THANK YOU to JULIE AND KAREN.