Joe and Sarah are some of the friendliest people we know. Throughout every session, they were…read moreincredibly patient, encouraging, and attentive, always helping us correct mistakes before they became habits. One thing I especially appreciated was how Joe allowed us to send practice videos over text so we could receive feedback even when we couldn't make it to a lesson. They were also extremely flexible with scheduling and always made sure we left each lesson feeling confident and satisfied. Small gestures, like greeting us with smiles and hugs and walking us out after every session, made the entire experience feel warm and welcoming. My fiancé had absolutely no prior experience with music or dance, so during our first lesson they took the time to break down the fundamentals of rhythm, timing, and musicality before introducing choreography. Neither of us had experience with ballroom or partner dancing, but after 10 sessions, we feel dramatically more comfortable dancing in front of people and genuinely well-prepared for our first dance. The studio itself is also exceptionally clean and organized. The music quality is crystal clear, the space is always tidy, and the tables and chairs are neatly arranged so nothing interrupts the dancing experience. It's also inspiring to watch the other skilled dancers practicing during lessons, which creates such a lively and motivating atmosphere. Would 1000% recommend anyone to learn their first dance with Joe and Sarah here!

My fiancé and I started taking lessons for our first dance, and so far it's been such a great…read moreexperience! We came in feeling a little nervous, but Joe has made the entire process feel approachable and fun. One of the things we really appreciate is their flexibility in scheduling late-night lessons to end our day in a peaceful, and welcoming environment. The studio is never crowded, which makes each lesson feel very personalized. On the rare occasions when other couples are there, it's been comforting since they're often in the same boat as beginners learning for their wedding too. As someone who works in healthcare, cleanliness is also important to me, and I've really noticed the care Joe and Sara put into keeping the studio clean between clients. That extra attention means a lot to us! Regarding the actual lessons, Joe is incredibly friendly, patient, and encouraging. He has a great way of breaking down each step so it feels easy to understand and natural to follow along. We've learned so much in a short amount of time, and we're having fun doing it. Highly recommend this studio to any couple looking to feel confident and enjoy the process of learning their first dance! :)

I haven't explored other instructors at Groove Dance Fitness just yet, but have taken several of…read moreMatt's classes. He's incredible! Love his energy, cues, and positivity. I'm beyond impressed by his ability to teach while seemingly-effortlessly demonstrating the moves himself. I struggle with dance technique (and basic coordination---eek), and feel like I'm slowly improving while consistently enjoying a killer workout. Matt's classes are such a warm, welcoming way to start (or end!) the day. Grateful for him, and for the communal safe space that he has built.

Unfortunately I felt the need to write this review. I signed…read moreup for and attended a heels class here as an experienced dancer returning to dance after a hiatus. First of all, this studio is EXTREMELY hard to find. Obviously it is listed as "Groove Dance Fitness" online, however when I followed my navigation's instructions to the parking lot, I could not find any signage that advertised this business. I circled the block 3 times before parking somewhere random to pull up the website. I scoured the website to see if there was any specific instruction on where to find the studio to no avail. So, I figured I would call the number on Yelp. Once I opened Yelp, it stated that the studio was only open from 6pm to 8pm... I was signed up for a class that STARTED at 8pm. Confused, I called the phone number listed. After ringing for several minutes, it went to a voicemail that only stated a person's name as the outgoing message, nothing about it being associated with Groove Dance Fitness. Feeling defeated, I searched through the photos on Yelp and deduced that the studio was in a certain parking lot I had passed multiple times. I parked and watched someone walk into a door which was labeled under a different fitness studio name, but she was carrying a Burju bag, so I figured I would try it. Upon approaching the door, I saw in very small font to the left of the entrance "Groove Dance Fitness". I knew I was a couple minutes late when walking in due to the confusion of actually locating the studio. However, nobody greeted me. I joined the warm up on the floor which consisted of less than 10 minutes of stagnant stretching and a 60 second plank. Feeling zero percent warmed up, we were then asked to put on our knee pads and heels. I will say that the combination was fun, but I had some aches and pains since my muscles were effectively still cold. Towards the end of the class, the teacher paired us up as "watching buddies" to "amp each other up" during our run of the combination. My buddy did and said nothing as I danced. I decided to leave at 9pm since the class was listed as an hour and I do believe leaving a class early to be bad studio etiquette. This was also the time people were taking out their phones to record and I did not feel like being filmed. The cherry on top was that a fellow classmate saw me leaving and asked why I was leaving already. I just mentioned I have work in the morning. She then went on to ask if I have any dance experience, what my background is, and "who I train with". I stated that I've been dancing my whole life, but had to take a break due to personal reasons. I don't train with anyone as I am just getting back in the game. She then suggested to I try out a different studio that is more "beginner friendly". I politely smiled and took my leave. But not before the instructor noticed me, I told her "thank you for the class" and slipped out. Safe to say, I will not be returning. Personally, I did not feel welcomed at this studio. Hopefully, other people have a better experience than I did.

After checking out several studios, I'm so glad we chose La Vida Dance. When I first called,…read morePatricia told me, "You came to the right place, we got you," and she was completely right. We wanted an unconventional first dance for our wedding, and they truly listened. Huge shoutout to our instructor, Lewis, for bringing our vision to life and helping us choreograph a dance that fits both my fiancé's and my personality perfectly. The whole process has been fun, easy, and so special. We can't wait to perform it on our special day.

My husband gifted me dance lessons for Christmas, and we just had our first class--such a great…read moreexperience! We worked with our instructor, Anne, who was amazing--so patient and encouraging. Patricia, the owner, took the time to walk us through the membership options, and we ended up getting a package with 10 private lessons plus 9 months of free group classes to build our skills and try different styles. All of the instructors are incredibly welcoming and friendly, which made us feel comfortable right away. We're really enjoying our private lessons and are excited to start joining the group classes more. Thank you, Anne, and thank you La Vida Dance--we can't wait to keep dancing!

Words cannot describe what a great dance teacher and person Kathy is. (But I'm going to try!) I am…read morenot an easy person to work with but Kathy was delightful, professional and truly an artist in her craft. She choreographed an amazing first time dance for our wedding in a believe 6-9 weeks. It included the foxtrot, swing and cha cha. Kathy has the biggest heart for her students and really spends the time with both partners. She was open to ideas and exceeded my expectations for our number. It was amazing! You will not regret going with Kathy!

I knew I had to contact Kathy for private dance lessons after reading her amazing reviews! For…read moresomeone like me who has never learned how to dance, I was nervous, but she assured my fiance and I that we had plenty of time to learn how to dance before our wedding day (coming up in March 2020). After our first lesson with her yesterday, we were confident and knew that she was the perfect dance teacher for us! We are so excited to continue to learn from her, and show off our elegant and sophisticated first dance to our family and friends on our wedding day!

Working with Oleg to create our wedding dance was so much fun! We were on a pretty short timeline,…read morebut he made the whole process feel easy and made sure we felt confident every step of the way. He took our music and quickly choreographed a beautiful dance that fit us perfectly. As we got more comfortable, he added more challenging moves and fun "wow" moments that made the dance feel so special. I also loved that he took all of the lift and dip inspiration I brought him and actually taught us how to do it safely and seamlessly, incorporating everything into our routine. He was patient, encouraging, and made every lesson enjoyable. It was such a pleasure working with Oleg, and I would absolutely recommend him to anyone looking for wedding dance lessons, no matter your experience level. He made our first dance feel so memorable, and we're so grateful!

This is a great place to prep you for your wedding!!! My fiance (then) and I went from not knowing…read morea single step, to nailing our 1st dance!!! If we can do it so can you.

Alex was our dance instructor for our first dance for our wedding day in 2018. We took lessons for…read more8 months and he truly knows all dances, is funny, patient, and so so talented! You will not regret the investment in dance lessons at all. Look no further. Here is a picture of us from our famous "lift" part of dirty dancing!

Alex and Midori are wonderful people. I took a few weeks…read moreof "Dad n' Daughter" lessons for her wedding. Just fantastic. Remember it's up to you to practice.

My husband and I just graduated from Align 3, and I will continue to attend open classes. I…read morestarted to practice ballet a couple years ago, and I always wanted to introduce this art to my husband, who is a real beginner at dancing. The basic level adult ballet classes in other dance studios are sometimes too difficult for people who have zero background, and this could often cause them feel left behind. However, the Align method avoids this problem by providing constructive classes that help my husband to systematically learn basic skills, and also help me to adjust my postures accurately. As an adult practitioner, I am amazed by the efficiency of this method. Our instructor, Miss Kiara, is the perfect teacher that I highly recommend to people who want to enjoy dancing with good music in a pleasant environment. For me, she is very artistic. Her movements and the design of combos are smooth, elegant, poetic, and match the music well. There were some moments that I felt I was too engrossed in dancing and couldn't believe that one hour just passed. Kiara is also good at using creative ways to explain techniques, which make perfect sense and at the same leave strong impressions of the correct ways of doing a specific movement. Her language can capture the "spirit" of a movement. In a nutshell, the classes that Kiara offer are energetic, enjoyable, and most importantly, her classes will lead you to see the beauty of ballet.

Where do I even start? Align Ballet Method is the ideal program for adults who have never taken…read moreballet before and want to learn. From talking with other students in the class, there isn't any studio or program that is like this one. As a 30-something, with Kiara's instruction, I revived my childhood dream of dancing ballet. I don't have any dance experience and am oftentimes not coordinated or have musicality, but I've definitely improved so much since starting with Align Ballet Method in July 2019. I'm so, so, so happy and thankful that Kiara is able to teach down here in OC (more studios are based in LA). She is such a blessing to have as an instructor. What I always imagined how a ballet class would be like is how Kiara instructs us, her students. I feel that I'm getting professional ballet instruction with a more relaxed atmosphere where a beginner can learn more comfortably without judgment. You can advance through the different levels at the pace you feel comfortable. What makes the Newport Beach location special is definitely the great instructor of the workshops. Even if you retake a workshop for another 6 weeks, no class is ever exactly the same and you still continue to build on previous classes. I always leave each class feeling more motivated and inspired to improve my dance practice. Happy dancing!

My niece is part of this studio and has been training with Dance 4:13 for years. We love everyone…read morehere and the community approach. Everyone feels like family! Every instructor is great and they are a well rounded studio. Every year they put on a recital and they have a photoshoot leading up to the recital. They bring in a professional photographer and they have the kids try on their costumes and shoot in them as well as running through show makeup and hair so that they are prepared on the day of the recital and what to do. They do this to work out any kinks with the outfits in time for the recital. The amount of thought and detail is crazy. They really do care about all of their students and make their best efforts to show the parents where their investment is going. 10/10 recommend!

Instructor Maya was so professional and wonderful with the kiddos, and she truly made camp…read moreworthwhile. Even though my son isn't a strong dancer, he really enjoyed his experience at this studio and felt comfortable and encouraged the entire time.