For context, my kids are ages 7, 5 and 3; my 5 year old being the ballerina in the group. We've…read morebeen going to IAD for three years now. My daughter started when she was 3 at their super fun and creative summer camp programs. The following fall we signed up for a weekly ballet class and by that winter my girl was dancing in her first big time performance in their production of the Nutcracker. I continue to be impressed by the professionalism of this dance school. They are extremely organized and the administrative side of their business is excellent. The productions they put on in the winter and the spring are amazing. The dancers are so good! I am continually impressed by the kids' performances. What prompted me to sit down and write a review today is the performance my kids put on for my husband and me this morning. Out of nowhere the three of them informed us we'd be watching their production of the Nutcracker. Kitchen chairs were arranged for the "audience" and we were given tickets and instructed where to sit. What followed was a multi (like 9!) act performance of the Nutcracker. My daughter playing all lead roles (Harlequin Doll, Clara, Snow Queen, Arabian, Mother Ginger, Sugar Plum Fairy, Clara again) and her brothers shining as backup performers - Nutcracker, Rat King, Mice, Arabians, the Chinese Dragon, Gingersnaps, Flowers etc.. It was amazing. I realized during this performance that even though it is only my 5 year old taking classes and performing at IAD, her siblings are benefitting from what she's doing there as well. My sons surprised me with how accurately they acted out parts of the play. My 7 year old shaking his leg as he "died" while playing the Rat King, and my 3 year old running around Mother Ginger, refusing to go back under her skirt. Our whole family is learning so much from this school and I am literally filled with JOY when I watch my kids perform together - now at home and on stage. This is not just a dance school but a community that is really a family. Over these last three years I have seen them come together to support staff who are going through difficult times, celebrate dancer's achievements, encourage staff to grow and thrive with opportunities both inside and outside of IAD, and show so much gratitude to the volunteers and families that help make IAD so wonderful. Thank you IAD for bringing so much Joy to Santa Cruz county!

an excellently choreographed and performed ballet, with lots of different dances, beautiful and…read morecreative costumes, and a bit of Halloween added to the mix. There was audience participation, which is always fun, and all of dancers, young and old, gave us a wonderful show and experience.

I've taken a couple classes with Mario and he's by far my favorite dance teacher in Santa Cruz. He…read moreis passionate about dance and has a lovely sense of humor. He's also great at drilling in a fun way until you get the pattern.

I'm a teacher myself and know a good one when I experience one. Mario put my wife and me at ease…read moreimmediately. He was able to discern our level of experience right away and gave us "deliverables" that we could enjoy and practice after our very first lesson. He then had us record our own tutorials so we could practice when we got home. As mentioned in most of his other reviews, his positive spirit and love of dance are contagious! When my wife and I started "floating" across the floor, Mario let out a "Whooo!!" that really made us feel good! We recommend him highly!

Great classes for my son. He does the hip-hop dance. Teachers are sweet and great at what they do…read more My son loves coming here and I definitely appreciate the non-competitive environment.

It's incredibly difficult to find a studio that is welcoming to adult beginners, so finding Motion…read morePacific was wonderful. Every class I have been to has been amazing and accepting of anyone who wants to try out dance. I know their children's classes are marvelous, but I highly recommend them for any adult who wants to start dancing as well. It's never too late!

My daughter (9 years old) just completed 2 different summer dance camps here. The camps were each a…read moreweek, with different themes. My daughter had a lot of fun at the camps offered. She also learned a lot of wonderful, diverse dance moves. The instructors (probably late teens/college students) and are very sweet and outgoing. The camp offered healthy snacks and crafts related to the theme/or era of the dance. My daughter now wants to take regular classes here, so we'll be signing up. We live in the mountains, so it's a bit of a drive, but it's worth it.

Our two daughters just took several dance classes at this small-but-bustling studio and were so…read morehappy there. The teachers are nurturing and supportive and the whole environment is really fun. This studio has been around forever....long enough to be considered a Santa Cruz County institution. They moved about a year ago from their longtime location on 41st Avenue and now are in (IMO) a MUCH easier and better location on Bay Ave across the street from Nob Hill. (They are in the same center with Dairy Queen.) My girls are preschool and elementary age but if you look at their website you'll see that this studio offers many classes for all ages including adults. We live out of town (were in town for summer classes) otherwise I would definitely take yoga and bellydance at Dancenter. I believe this studio offers the widest variety of bellydance classes in a single location in the county. I also really appreciate that the studio does a lot of community-involved work such as supporting National Dance Week, performing at local events like the Art & Wine Festival, and classes for kids & adults with special needs. Prices are comparable to other area studios.

This Dance school is so amazing!!! my little daughter looks forward every Friday to practice…read moredancing with her instructor, Evelyn. Evelyn is such a kind and hard working girl, It has been such a privilege having her teach my kiddo! I think Wings has the most thoughtful and supportive teachers out of all the dance schools I've seen

Several of my friends send their kiddos here and love it, we had an urgent change and I was so…read moreimpressed by the owners response. We will surely try wings in the near future!!

The best dance studio in the county! My daughter has been dancing there for the past 9 years and it…read moreis her JOY in her life! They accept everyone here. It feels like a family here! They honor the seniors who graduate every year with a luncheon and speeches about who these dancers turn out to be. Please come be apart of this special place and the family.

Elaine's dance studio provides a very warm, friendly, yet a professional place to bring your…read morechild/teen of any age! I danced with EDS from ages 7-15 1/2yrs. this was where I learned discipline, rhythm, creativeness and of course enjoyed many fun forms of dance! Elaine teaches a variety or dance classes: jazz, tap, ballet, acrobats and hip hop! She has a wonderful staff and a large/sound proof studio in a very convenient location! We love Elaine and will always remember her positive impact on our childhood! You will never forget some of those dance moves either! ;)

Great Capoeira school especially for the young kids They…read morelean a new language , lean about instruments , lean the dance , and lean self defense . A must for kids who have high energy.

I love Capoeira and I love this school. I have only been training about a year with Mestre Papiba…read morebut I'm sticking with it. I felt so welcome as a newbie even though I was nervous to come to class. Luckily, everyone wants to see each other succeed and that makes for a great community. Papiba returns often to his home in Brazil where Capoeira is from then teaches us what he's learned about the culture and history there. Root's of Brazil is such a great place to train. Every time I'm there I feel so lucky to have found this great community who trains hard and has a lot of heart. If you've ever thought about trying Capoeira, this is a great place to do it. Raizes do Brazil! Capoeira!

Been here many times to watch theatrical persons very very willing to entertain their audience…read more Little theater is more fun and a lot more interesting than the large stage productions of SF, LA, Chicago and NY. Hands down, I enjoy the smaller venues and really appreciate the actors and actresses. I love the stage sets of All About Theatre. Very well done.

I'm a student in AAT and I cant believe how awesome this is. aside from the occasional stress with…read moretech week or opening night, every experience I have ever had here has been wonderful. and instead of some lame, disgruntled parent, I actually know first hand how we are treated. the staff is wonderful, my castmates are great, and over all I've had the best experiences ever here. sign up now. NOW. Orion N. age 12

My 14yo daughter was exposed to illegal drugs at Kennolyn. We were under the impression that…read moreKennolyn was a wholesome, sheltered place, but one of the campers, a very wealthy boy, was apparently allowed to bring a marijuana vape pen into camp (despite the fact that the camp assures parents that they will search kids on the way in). He apparently bragged about having the weed vape all week to the other campers, and when the Camp left a group of teen campers unsupervised at night (why?), someone apparently used the weed vape. When the boy was later busted by the camp, he denied using it, claiming that my daughter and another 14 yo girl were the real culprits. The boy insisted he didn't even know he had the marijuana vape in his bag, that someone must have put it there, and said that my daughter and the other girl had "bullied" him into letting them use it. To be clear, though more than a dozen kids were there when the weed vape was used, no one OTHER THAN THE BOY WHO BROUGHT THE WEED VAPE TO CAMP ever said that the girls used the weed vape. For whatever reason, Kennolyn joined the boy in pointing the finger at the girls, and on that basis alone locked my daughter in a room by herself for a long period while they tried to extract a "confession" out of her; they performatively humiliated her by forcing her to serve the other campers at a food line, as if she was the lunch lady and no longer one of them; they refused to let her say goodbye to her cabinmates and friends, or even to collect their contact information; they made her do manual labor for a period, moving heavy bags off of a truck; and, as a final indignity, forced her to go to sleep in a cabin in the woods by herself. My daughter is a young 14, she was absolutely shamed and terrified, and said she cried herself to sleep. I'm paying $2,700 a week for that?!? When I picked her up the next morning she was visibly stressed and shaken, but she was even more angry, because she insisted she'd been falsely accused and had never even seen the boy's marijuana vape, let alone used it. When I emailed Kennolyn's management to challenge the boy's lies about my daughter and complain about the way they had treated her, suddenly their story began to change: now they insisted my daughter had confessed to the boy's accusations! My daughter categorically denied confessing to anything, and the more I dug into it, the more Kennolyn's story changed--first it was one counselor who purportedly heard the confession, then, wait, it was a different counselor altogether who had heard it, then suddenly there were TWO other counselors present for the confessions; etc. The more their story changed, the lower my trust for Kennolyn's leadership dropped. I'm not sure exactly what really happened, but they acted captiously and callously toward my daughter, and were suspiciously inconsistent in their dealings with me, particularly in the way they bent over backwards to exonerate and excuse the boy who actually brought the illegal marijuana vape to camp. My daughter feels disrespected and unfairly maligned, and regrets ever having gone to Kennolyn--they really treated her poorly. I don't blame her, and can't believe I wasted so much money to send my kid somewhere unsafe, where she would be exposed to illegal drugs. We won't be going back.

I went to Kennolyn Camp for a few summers as a child and greatly enjoyed it. I would go for…read moretwo-week sessions which was the right amount of time for me. I think this camp is particularly great for younger children too who are ready for sleep-over camp. It might seem a little too sheltered and not exciting enough for some older campers... My favorite activities were the amazing climbing wall, ropes course, vaulting (gymnastics on horseback), ceramics, and trip to the Beach Boardwalk. When I took a fall from a horse, the nurse was great at comforting and taking care of me. The staff was also fabulous. I always loved my counselors! My only big complaint is that Kennolyn is expensive. Another summer, I went on a two-week program to Australia which was the same price (including airfare!) as Kennolyn. So, send your children because you want them to enjoy a fun, safe camp experience but definitely not to save any money!

My children have been doing gymnastics with Vargas for over 10 years. Beginning from weekly…read moreclasses, they developed their skills over the years and joined the competitive team. This experience has provided them with forming lasting friendships with kids inside and outside of their school environment. It is so precious that they look forward to going to gym every day. It has turned them into stronger athletes physically and mentally. Being on the competitive team taught them to be in tune with their bodies and learning to focus to perform their best. We can't say enough positive things about this gym.

My girls have been going to Vargas for almost a year now and let me say, it can be hard trying…read moresomething new for kids (and their parents) but Vargas has been a great environment for trying something new! The coaches and staff have been nothing but supportive, encouraging, helpful, and communicative. Both my girls have grown in confidence and strength and I'm just so appreciative that this facility is here in our local community. We love Vargas!