My two daughters take hip hop and ballet here. They are four and five years old. We are just about…read moreto finish up our first month of classes and love it!! This studio is family ran and you can tell. It's super welcoming here! Every staff member, from the instructors to the parents in the waiting room are really friendly!! What I'm mostly impressed with is the love, the connection and the passion, each staff member has for every single students. All while maintaining structure and control of the class. There's so many students and it's very impressive to see them connect to each and every dancer. They are super organized, have great communication and always send out emails on updates. I called 4-5 different studios, before I found Encore, with no call backs from my voicemails, no reply to my emails at all and the one studio that we did a trial class with was a a total fail. They put my girls in the totally wrong level class and the instructor was completely unprofessional. Encore replied immediately and got us right in.!! So, don't settle for just any studio they are not all the same. I have a 19 year old daughter and have been through this industry before. I'm a dancer myself, (well I'm only dancing in the kitchen these days lol) but let me tell you, sometimes it is like an episode of dance moms and it's important to find the right fit if your trying to build your child's confidence in dance and plan on having them dance long term. Check Encore out!! They are amazing!!! They really care about their dancers!! I'm very happy to become part of the family!!!!

My kids have been taking classes from Encore since 2013. My…read morefavorite things about ENCORE: * High quality teachers for every age range/class level * Personalized attention to each student and their dance career * The most well developed street styles program I know of in the area * An excellent acrobatics program, with highly knowledgeable instructors * The Pre-Pro program is amazing! Geared toward kids who are working toward professional dance careers, this program prepares them in every way, physically, practically, and with the knowledge they will need. I cannot recommend Encore enough!!!

We enjoy Starr Dance Studio and most importantly, my daughter does! The teachers are great with the…read morekids!

Fabulous place for your little one to learn dance and socialize. Wonderful teachers and parents…read more All the kids are made to feel very special We love it - give it a try!

Love this studio. My daughter has learned so much from the amazing choreographers/teachers at this…read morestudio. They have two studios that are always full of eager dancers. They staff is very nice although at the same time very professional. I would definitely enroll my daughter in this studio if she wasn't already in so many activities. Love this place and I would highly recommend them.

Beware of the staff at this dance school! The customer service and care is awful. I've never been…read moretreated so poorly by a business that needs my money to keep afloat. The teaching is average...nothing special. My 4 year old hasn't learned anything that she hasn't already learned at our previous school in Los Angeles. If you're even 1 day late on tuition, no matter what family emergency had happened, you will receive relentless harassing phone calls from Phyllis demanding money and an exorbitant late fee. I've never experienced such awful treatment by a business.

My partner and I started taking lessons here and let me tell you coming here was great. The entire…read moreatmosphere is laid back, everyone is very welcoming and helpful I guarantee you will become at least a reasonable dancer provided you put in some effort. Loved everything about our lessons and the social dance aspect and hope to return soon for additional lessons.

If you are a beginner dancer, I highly recommend this place! Lora is a kind and wonderful teacher…read more The environment is low key and she makes it easy and fun to learn to dance. I get very nervous about how I am dancing and if something feels right and I love that she takes things step by step. She gives you enough moves to be excited for the next, without overwhelming you. I have taken classes with other instructors and for me, no one competes. This place is incredible, the price is amazing in comparison to other dance studios and she really makes you feel like you are a part of her family.

Our daughter doesn't go here anymore because she's now off to school but when she did a couple…read moreyears ago, her time here was very beneficial to her. She blossomed as her dance skills grew. The staff treated her so well and encouraged her keep expressing herself. There was a good balance between making it fun and still pushing her a little. I would not hesitate to have your child attend class here!

My daughter has been taking dance classes at Sherwood Dance for about 2 years and she LOVES it. The…read moreinstructors are all very professional and great with children. They make it structured and fun at the same time. My daughters dance technique improves more and more every week. If you are looking for a fun place for your child to grow as a dancer this is the place for you!

New place is amazing! Nice open spaces for variety of classes- dance, tumbling, ballet, yoga etc…read more Can't wait until my yoga class next week.

My daughter is 5, and takes preballet here. Marci is an excellent teacher!! My daughter just loves…read moreit here. Also, I am taking an adult ballet class, taught by Marci's daughter. I look forward to Thursday's, because I feel so refreshed after class. I highly recommend!!

Our granddaughter loves this place. Very friendly and they work hard to make sure all the dancers…read morefeel comfortable.

We have two 4 year old girls who wanted to start dancing this last summer. Through a friend at the…read moregym she talked about how her daughter had been going to Columbia Dance Center for quite some time and had nothing but glowing things to say regarding the staff as well as the center itself. We got an introduction to the programs here through their "Super Hero" Summer program. The girls had a blast and they had a short show to demonstrate what they learned at the conclusion of the summer program. My wife and I had concerns about our daughters ability to listen to instructions and we thought that the more exposure they had to structured classes of any kind would be helpful. We were so thrilled to hear that they would be happy to have the girls participate in their kids dance classes during the school year. We enrolled both girls in Miss Molly's 9:30am class on Saturdays and to say my wife and I are impressed would be an understatement. She has so much energy with the kids it makes me feel lazy. The girls love her, love the class, and look forward to coming every weekend. As parents we cannot ask for much more than that, and we look forward to getting further exposure to their dance programs as our girls progress.

This might be a great dance studio if you signed your kid up young and then have been there for…read moreyears and years but if you have a child that is older, fourth/fifth or sixth grade, it's not great at all. Everyone, including the teachers are very much a clique and not the most welcoming. They don't take time with new kids or kids that are new to dance. They don't do anything to encourage a comfortable atmosphere for new kids and are very non-responsive when trying to get a hold of them. My daughter really wanted to be part of dance but after a few classes felt so disconnected and uncomfortable I just couldn't force her to go anymore. If you sign up, just know that if it doesn't work out you need to give a 30 day notice of cancellation, even if your child doesn't attend during that time, you will be charged.

We are new to BDC this year and their performing company tap classes are first rate! My daughter…read morehas also really enjoyed rec jazz and hip hop. The performing groups are competitive but supportive of each other, and everyone has a blast.

We've been involved with Shoestring for 2 years now and are very thankful to have a local community…read moretheater group. My oldest daughter was in The Sound of Music the summer before last and both my daughters were in Willy Wonka this past summer. What a great local resource that, for some unknown reason took me too long to discover after moving here 6 years ago! I've met some really nice and talented people from the local community and beyond. Shoestring doesn't have it's own facility so it can be a bit costly to put on performances, but they do a nice job at the St. Helens HS and, more recently, at the new Scappoose HS auditorium. I recently volunteered and was elected to serve as the Secretary on the Board and am hoping to see some more community support for this group and the arts in this community in general so I don't have to always go to Portland to scratch that itch. While my talents don't lie in acting, dancing, doing anything backstage, etc, I love watching! Through my kids' involvement with Shoestring, I also found that I enjoy taking tickets and manning concessions, probably because I enjoy meeting and talking to people. We are lucky to have this in our area!

From the owner: The ShoeString Community Players has been producing plays and other performances in Columbia County…read morefor over 30 years. Formed from a dedicated group of "Reader's Theater" performers, SSCP was officially founded in 1982. The first production was Brigadoon, performed at the St. Helens High School Olmscheid Auditorium. SSCP has consistently produced productions and performances since that time, tapping into the rich and "undiscovered" talent Columbia County and its surrounding areas have to offer. We perform Revues, Musicals, Dramas, Comedies, Children's Theater, and any other type of production that captures the attention of the community.

This school is honestly the best!! Teacher Sara, the owner, taught my daughter about 20 years ago…read more Now my granddaughter attends and I am just in awe of the productions they put on! I have been to many other dance school recitals over the years and they dont compare to PAPA! The Nutcracker performance they did at Elsinore was absolutely unbelievable! Very professional and beautifully done! Tonight was their annual Dance Recital also at Elsinore, and it also was so impressive!! Sara hasn't aged in 20 years, & is still SO sweet to the children. I highly recommend this school to anyone in search of the BEST Dance school around!!!

Went to support a dancer tonight at the PAPAS Halloween show and- wow! The dancers were incredible…read more The whole show was so moving! A rollercoaster of emotion, entertainment and surprises. So much talent! I am in awe of the director's vision and creativity. Haven't seen a show this incredible in many, many years. Will be following this studio as a fan. Way to go dancers and way to go Director!! A very memorable night.