NOT for ballet. other styles of dance might be passable but the ballet instruction is dangerously incorrect. my step-daughters have been attending here for years and it's literally painful to watch the performances because of the lack of proper technique en pointe and the complete disregard for the tenets of ballet as a discipline and an art form. beyond this, the performances are just additional money-making opportunities for the business and are torturous to sit through. if you're serious about dance, avoid this place. read more

I am going to give Alisa's Dance Academy (ADA) a mixed review. My daughter has been going here for two years now. In two years, I have seen some amazing dances from ADA students. ADA has a team of dancers called the ADA Elites that competes in dance competitions. These ADA Elites girls are amazingly talented and dedicated. Every year, ADA has Nutcracker performance at the Westlake Performing Art Center. My daughter was a part of this event for one year. It was an incredible experience for both her and me. The whole show was also accompanied by Westlake high school live orchestra. It was Alisa's intention to promote art, dance and music amongst young kids. Hats off, Alisa. It's truly an admirable effort and production. Now the not so good.... The first year my daughter went to ADA, she went to her first ballet class and afterwards she told me she hated it. She almost gave up and refused to go back the next week. This was coming from a girl who had been going to dance classes 3+ years before ADA. She kept her dance classes on my urging and things did get better. I talked to one of the mom of a girl in her class. It turned out, this girl had the same problem. Apparently, the teacher was speaking nasty stuff to the girls during the first class. I was quite appalled. I never had this happened to my daughter before. Her previous dance places had been all nice people. Thankfully, I had not seen this teacher the next year. The second year was better, my daughter took two classes: ballet and jazz. Compared to last year, the ballet teacher this year was super nice. She's kind and compassionate. But my daughter recital piece was way too simple. Because of this, she did not like ballet as much as jazz. The jazz teacher was young but talented. She had choreographed quite a nice piece for the 12 girls in her class. My daughter loved going to the jazz class. My daughter would be coming back for her 3rd year in ADA next Fall. She would also be going there for summer camp. She also said she would want to participate in Nutcracker again. Hopefully we have a great experience again. read more

My twin daughters attended Alisa's for a dance series and they decided they finally liked this studio after the recital, which was impressive. Today we showed up for a week long summer camp, that is not cheap. All of the students were sitting in the hallway 15 minutes after the camp was to start and the teacher was clueless that she had a complete class of students waiting outside. Upon complaining to the receptionist, the teacher came into the hallway surprised that her students were there. No one gave any of the parents instructions. There is no official sign in or sign out sheet - this made me uncomfortable. The receptionist did not seem to care whatsoever that the morning was confusing for all parents dropping off and was meh about everything. I hope they prove me wrong and my daughters enjoy this camp at the end of the week. Shocked at how poorly this long standing business is run. read more

My daughter dances here and I *love* it. She used to dance at another studio and there is no comparison. Here are the reasons for the love: 1. They are incredibly organized. They have a website that is full of information and always up to date. They email me everything I could possibly need to know regarding deadlines, performances, costs, etc. The shows they put on are almost professional - wonderful stuff! They allow you to have a credit card on file so you aren't always worrying about tuition or whatever else you need to pay for (and there's a lot). 2. My daughter gets great dance instruction from qualified teachers and has fun in the process. 3. I don't know Alisa personally, but I respect the sh*t out of her as a businesswoman. She runs the dance studio, and then provides tons of services that a) make it easier on the parents and b) make her money. I like that. She owns Dancer's Closet right next door and yup, they always have what we need. You can order professional pictures, you can order flowers through the studio to give your little dancer after shows, you can buy a dvd of the various performances, on and on. I am thrilled to have found this place and think my daughter will be dancing here for many years to come. read more

I love this dance studio! It's great because it's small so it's unlikely that your little kids will get lost. Also they make it so you can go class to class back to back which is great! read more

My daughter danced in their 4 year old class all last year. The teacher didn't have control over the class and there was no structure. At one point, all the parents were complaining that it didn't appear they were learning anything. Kids were rolling on the floor. Etc. Finally there was an incident where a child frog hopped on another child's fingers while they were wearing tap shoes, because the teacher thought it would be a good idea to allow them to hop all over while wearing tap shoes. The child was injured and bleeding from it. They waited until 1 month to learn the recital dance. NONE of the kids new what they were doing at the recital. They just stood their while the song played. Additionally, The office staff is always "meh", and acts like she can't be bothered to help anyone. I was over looking all of this, thinking, maybe things will be better next year. I signed my child up again in a recreational ballet class, and the system kept kicking me out of registration with out telling me why. I showed up to take the class and was told it was because she is 5 and not 5.5 years of age. I kindly asked for an exception. Since this is the only day and time that fit in our schedule and was told no, that they need to save those spots in that class for children that are 5.5 years old that MIGHT come, despite the teacher saying my child kept up with the pace and beat of the class. Alisa only cares about age restrictions and limitations, NOT about fostering growth in a child that is present and ready to dance. We will no longer use Alisa's for anything, and wouldn't recommend it. There are plenty other places you could go instead. read more

This is our second year at Alisa's and this year has been great. I took off one star only because our first year was not the best. The teacher had to be changed because so many parents complained...it just wasn't a good fit for this age group she was much better with an older group of girls. We gave it another chance this year and I'm so happy we did. Sarasue is absolutely amazing! After the first day of class my daughter was so excited and expressed how much she loves her new teacher. She looks forward to dance and is learning so much. Sarasue is just the right amount of strict but still makes it fun for the girls. She has total control of her class and the girls respect her. Now for the front desk....Krista is awesome! She is always all smiles and very welcoming. Quick to answer any questions and is very informative. read more

I have been dancing here for over 9 years now. The styles of dance vary from tap to ballet to hip hop! And the best part, you mom's and dad's out there, ADULT CLASSES. You can finally learn to salsa dance (which you've been meaning to do for awhile now) while your little angel is in her first ballet class! Pros: Great teachers, you really learn to dance! Cons: sometimes the prices aren't so low... read more

My daughter has gone there for several years, and most years have been good, but when they are bad they are REALLY bad. It all depends on the teacher. Sadly, there is no way to tell if you are going to get a good teacher or a BAD one until it is almost over. Alisa's does not ask for feedback from parents, and there is no way of telling who the losers are. We used to get feedback from the teachers as to how our daughter was doing, but this dropped apparently. So no feedback either way. For all the money you pay, plus recital, there should really be a little more professionalism in this operation. They need to stop counting the money and start monitoring the instructors. In most instances the kids are much smarter than the teachers so if you get bad feedback at the begining of the year from your daughter, act fast and pull them out because it only gets worse. Pretty soon the teachers just give up and your daughter is stuck doing stretching exercises instead of learning to dance, getting let out early, starting late, etc. And then pretty soon you notice there are only a few girls left in the class, your daughter is one of them, and you are stuck. But they still have their hands in your purse getting all they can. Sadly they are probably the best choice in Westlake but not nearly as professional as we are accustoimed to in other cities with our older daughters. read more

Not impressed...thought the instructor was rude and the studio is a bit run down. Won't be back.

My daughter has been dancing here for five years. First two years were great, third year was rocky and it's been down hill from there. This year I can't count how many times I wanted to look elsewhere for dance instruction but the Nutcracker Spectacular has been the saving grace for this studio. My daughter has absolutely loved being a part of it for two years now. The office staff is rude and unprofessional, we are constantly having an issue with billing( being charged twice in one month, random charges that appear for no reason ect.) the recital costumes this year were higher than usual and falling apart when I pulled it out of the bag. Classes more often than not started late, her teacher was very distant, I had to literally grab her as she rushed out to have any communication. The place was wonderful when Alisa was there but since opening her second studio things have really changed. read more

My daughter had been here for 4 years and we love it! She has learned so much. She loves performing in the Nutcracker and finds the strict but friendly staff to be a perfect fit. There is no comparison to the technique she has learned here and other friends her age who go to more recreational dance studios. We spent two years at another studio that focused on fun not technique. My daughter wanted something mire serious and I am glad we switched. This studio has amazing talent and they teach the proper skills for people who want to be dancers. read more

My daughter has been taking ballet at Alisa's since she was three years old (almost 5 years now). She has always enjoyed the classes and likes her teachers there. She also loves participating in the Nutcracker Spectacular performance, which she has done for the past two years. The performance is high-quality, with amazing effects and music from the Westlake High School musicians and technical crew. My daughter has also always had good recital prep -- plenty of time spent in advance on the routine. I do find it irritating that they charge for tickets to attend the dance recital as it really is not a professional performance worth paying for. When we invite family to the recital, I feel ridiculous asking them to pay for tickets, so I just pay for them. We already pay a performance fee and a costume fee. It seems inappropriate to also charge for tickets to a kids' dance recital. I also wish there were more guidance from the studio in terms of opportunities. I feel a little lost about all the different performance groups they have, although I think it's great that they do have so many without pressuring kids to join them. read more

I am so thrilled that Alisa opened a studio in Lakeway! Both of my daughters are beginning their 2nd years of dance at Alisa's. My older daughter learned more at Alisa's after one year than she did the 3 years prior at another studio. I have met Alisa and she is very personable and professional. She promptly deals with any problems or issues and is quick to address any concerns. Amanda, at the front desk, is very polite and helpful. I feel that Alisa really tries to ensure that the studio meets the students' and parents' needs. Plus, the dance instructors have been wonderful. We are looking forward to many more years of dance at Alisa's! PS....as far as I can tell, the prices are the same as at any other dance studio..... read more

Wonderful dance studio! My daughter is on her third year at Alisa's and at a young age shows great technique... Thanks to her teachers. We have been happy with all of the dance instructors. You won't find a better dance academy. read more

i would go somewhere else if at all possible. Problem is that Alisa is not around and there is no supervision of the teachers at this place We did not find it out our daughter had not learned anything until the recital. Our daughter went there for a couple of years and most were good. When she got a bad teacher and we thought it was just a fluke. The next year before her recital we were surprised to hear that once again she did not know what to do for the recital. Her teacher apparently just started teaching them their routine the week before. So if you want to avoid tears and find an environment for your child that is uplifting and puts them in a position where they can succeed, then find somewhere else. I also found out something strange about this place in talking to some of the other parents. I thought that we were the only ones who had a problem as I had relied on all the 5 star ratings they had achieved on here. But then one of the other parents told me you had to look at the "filtered comments". I had never heard of this! But sure enough, if you click on the link and go through all the security screens, there you wil find all the 1 star ratings!! So I am sure that is where this one will end up. What an unethical way to hide bad reviews!! read more

This place is a complete joke and I will never send my kids there again. Disorganized, loud, poor facilities and mediocre teachers. My kids have learned nothing but how to wear an expensive costume for a pathetic recital. If you want a loud hangout for your teen daughters, this is the place. If you want your kids to learn something, look elsewhere. read more

It is our first year. I have been satisfied with the communication, level of organization, ease of payment, teachers and studio. Can't wait for the first recital read more

Classes were overpriced and always started late. I found the staff to be very unprofessional and disorganized. Good teachers though.