Don't be fooled by the description of Lyric Theater as "community theater" -- such a phrase evokes…read moreimages of high school seniors hacking their way through "Our Town." The performers and staff of Lyric are as dedicated to providing the audience with an enjoyable and fulfilling theater experience as any professional troupe. I've attended performances of Gilbert & Sullivan's "HMS Pinafore" and "The Gondoliers", and both times I've been amazed that everyone on stage and in the pit has a day job as well. The costumes and choreography are fantastic, and even the ushers attend to their duties with aplomb. Bravo, Lyric!

The Lyric Theater is right in downtown San Jose, on the same block as the Tech museum. I'm certain…read morenobody who goes to the Tech museum in the day and then the Lyric Theater at night, as the audiences are from opposite ends of the age spectrum! We park at Cityview underground parking on Park street, eat at that greasy spoon Peggy Sues to validate our parking, and walk two blocks to the theater. Not sure if it worth the $7 to put up with those overpriced greasy hamburgers. The temperature at 730pm was 80 outside, and probably an AC induced 65 inside, so cold that I, in my shorts and light tennis shirt, felt like I was in a meat locker! If I had know how cold it was, I could have smuggled in my chicken leftovers from dinner instead of pigging out to eat them all. We discretely raid the candy jar closest to the will call desk, and farthest from the ticket seller, on our way past the restrooms. I stop by for a complimentary calendar, until the desk clerk says a $5 donation would be appreciated, causing me to drop the calendar like it was contaminated with Ebola! The wife stops by the restroom, and so do I, as there are always women lines at intermission, and sometimes mens lines, as there are only 2 toilets, and 3 urinals in the mens room -not much for a theater that seats 300. We have season tickets to the Lyric theater, which shows mainly Gilbert and Sullivan opera type live productions. Gilbert and who? It might as well be the stone age for you young Yelpers! And most of the audience seems so old that they may have been born in the age of G & S! We have season tickets at $100 apiece for 3 shows, while you can get Goldstar discounted tickets for around $20 apiece. Season ticket holders like us get the best seats in the house - I like the center section seats on the aisle. 14 rows, 2 aisles, 10 staggered seats across the orchestra section, with 6 seats on each side, and a separate balcony section. You have to rise to let people pass, as the seating is tight - don't step on my passion flower Birkenstock sandals! And the row in front of you is barely lower than yours, so you don't want to be seated behind some guy with a Frank Sinatra hat that I saw! The young couple in front of us move over one seat, due to a very tall man in the aisle seat. After intermission they are gone -another couple who are not sufficiently cultured to appreciate the finer points of G& S opera, like my wife. I don't even bother to read the subtitles over the top of the stage, but doze off between the musical singing scenes. Well wife, at least I don't snore! We were told that this show, Utopia, has not been performed in Northern California this year, and not in the Lyric theater for the past 20 years. And if my reaction is an indication, it will not be performed here for another 20 years! Once I had extra tickets for Mikado, and gave them to the ex-wife and hubby -yes even my ex-wife has a new hubby -probably one of those mail order grooms! Both of them left at intermission -not their cup of tea, as the stuffy British aristocrats would say! Afterwards you get to meet the actors and actresses in the play -there's me being escorted by 2 British redcoat soldiers to the stockade! The Lyric theater management is trying to expand their membership, and running more traditional plays -The Sound of Music is in March, 2015. And my ex-wife loves Sound of Music. I will give them our extra tickets that come with the season subscription -with my wife's permission of course!

Only one more weekend to go for Bless Me, Ultima: The Play. This is an adaptation of a classic…read moreChicano novel about a young man growing up in New Mexico, protected by a healer. There's a lot about the tension between healers, witches and the Catholic church. There's a lot about small-town culture and the losses from the war and family vendettas. There's a lot of music. Ultimately, the play is heartwarming and magical. It's not a perfect play, and suffers from the problems of adapting a novel for the stage, but I really enjoyed it. Tip: don't get seats in the first two rows as you have to crane your neck to see the supertitles. I moved at intermission. The play is mostly in English and if you miss the relatively few lines that are in Spanish it won't hurt your enjoyment of the play too much, but it was annoying, and the first row is a little too low with respect to the stage anyway. Aside from that, it's a nice auditorium and the play makes effective use of the huge stage. Family-friendly for perhaps 13 and older. There is some violence and some cursing in Spanish. Full disclosure: I know one of the actors.

Teatro Vision is quintessentially San Jose. It is a local company that does a wide range of…read moretheatre. It offers Chicano expression that touches everyone regardless of background. It is smart, funny, tragic, artsy, real, and extraordinary. I am very biased, having worked with them occasionally.

Christine was amazing from start to finish in helping me and my husband plan our first dance, and…read moremy and my dad with our father daughter dance. She was so easy to work with, and adapted to our various skill levels. We would genuinely look forward to going to classes and our wedding day dances turned out amazing. The dances were the highlight of the night and we could not have done it without Christine!

Making the decision to do a choreographed dance was the first best decision we made. Choosing…read moreChristine is a close second!! My now husband was not a dancer at all. But Christine managed to teach us a wonderful choreographed (4min!!!) dance! Our friends and family complimented us throughout the wedding stating that it was a very nice treat for them to see us perform our first dance. Additionally, I've said to all my family and friends that learning our first dance together and going to our dance lessons was the BEST part of our engagement journey. During the stressful wedding planning time, it was time to focus on one another, be present, learn and experience something new as a couple. It was an amazing experience that I will cherish forever. As for Christine, she is truly a teacher. Patient but direct, and knows when to adjust to accommodate learning styles. Thank you so much Christine for being part of our wedding journey! Hiring you was a cherry on top!

More than a dance class, West Valley Dance Co is a dance community! My daughter has been attending…read morefor 4 years now. We love the teachers and staff (yay Rebecca) My 8 year old dancer says, "Ms Julianna and Ms Vanessa are the nicest teachers who push our whole team to be better and stronger! They are the best!"

Edit: Just learned that the 2026 seniors were allowed to…read morevote on who *they* wanted to dance with instead of promoting dancers that should have earned that spot by the audition process. Also amazing is the placement of dancers who pay for private lessons always seem to be much more prominently showcased. One particular teacher is quite bipolar, yelling one week and 'i brought donuts' the next, our kids are downright frighted by A. While most of the instructors here are very professional, supportive, and put the best dancers in the front, sometimes you can really tell who the 'golden child' is (sometimes as obvious as the offspring of a faculty) by how they will always be featured and front and center. New for 2025 is their SPOTLIGHT Award, which will be handed out by staff to the most Above and Beyond, and who do you think those will go to? Betting right now the same set of insiders that already get the best spots. There are also many extra fees and costs that are just added to your account without asking: including a year end 'pizza party celebration' that didn't include any actual pizza, 'team bonding' events like going to a movie, or 60second Holiday performance AND a season end show that require more makeup, shoes & costume purchases. I guess kids had a great time but no thought by staff on costs parents have to pay for these add-on. Updated to add: make sure your kid keeps an eye on their things... I've heard recently that several things have gone missing, wallets & phones gone through, cash & clothing stolen. Given the size of the number of studios I suppose there's no way to do a locker system but the casualness of the staff response to the thefts was a little troubling. I had to hear about it from the dancers as nothing was ever mentioned to the parents. Youd be better off at a smaller, more caring studio, IMO.

My mom turned 75 this year. Considering we almost lost her 5 years ago and I didn't believe we'd…read moreever celebrate 75, it was a pretty big deal and we wanted to celebrate. My mom always wanted to have a Luau vibe party so it seemed like the best time to do it. I thought it would be really neat to have some Hawaiian Dancers and the search was on. I came across Ha'a Hula. I contacted them full of hope on such short notice. They were able to fit us in to their busy schedule thankfully. Days later mom is still talking about it! Everyone at the event complimented on how great and fun the show was. They were all impressed. I wasn't sure what to expect, but believe it was the perfect choice for our event. Everyone in the show did an amazing job. I would definitely recommend them 100%.

Ha'a Hula / Te Reva O Te Manu brought the spirit of the islands to our Boardwalk Summer Luau! Their…read moreteam, especially Malou, was incredibly professional, responsive, and a joy to work with from start to finish. The live music and Polynesian dance performances were vibrant, engaging, and beautifully executed--with costume changes and cultural variety that wowed our guests. We received so many compliments on the entertainment, and the performers went above and beyond by connecting with guests after the show for photos and conversation. Their presence truly elevated the guest experience. Highly recommended--we'd love to have them back!

I've been here to CineArts Santana Row twice now and each and every time I am left satisfied!!…read moreShout out to my Little for recommending & damn near demanding to come to this specific theater!! Parking is easy due to the neighboring parking structure. Do keep in mind that parking is validated for a few hours- just make sure you make your way to the information desk to input your license plate info. Seating is comfortable- allowing patrons to recline and heat up your chairs. Best of all, each seat has its own table- great for kids and for huge snackers! CineArts is well kept and always clean during my visits. The concession stand offers alcoholic drinks, hot foods, popcorn, candies, and sugary beverages. Hot dogs, popcorn, and the pizzas are great- chicken tenders and mozzarella sticks are trash. Don't bother getting the tenders or mozz sticks unless you like it dry and hard. 5/5 stars overall. Tickets are pricey but i guess everything is nowadays. Idk about you but I'd rather spend my money on a place that guarantees comfortability and cleanliness.

Really solid experience here. Parking was free and easy, which already made the visit stress-free…read more The theatre itself was clean and well maintained, and everything felt organized. I also want to mention Alexander, who was working at the time. I had misplaced an item and he stepped in to help without hesitation. He stayed patient, moved quickly, and made sure we actually found it instead of just brushing it off. That kind of attention and effort doesn't go unnoticed. Overall, great service and a smooth visit from start to finish. Definitely coming back.

We had an amazing experience at Immersive Gamebox at Valley Fair, thanks to Benji!…read more He was incredibly patient while explaining all the game options and helped us choose the best one for our group. He took the time to make sure everyone understood how to play and never made us feel rushed. His enthusiasm and customer service really made the experience even more enjoyable. We ended up having so much fun that we're already planning to book my nephew's birthday party here! Thank you, Benji, for making our visit such a great one. We can't wait to come back!

First time here and came with one friend. We had a reserved time slot and the employee was helpful…read morerecommending a game based on our interests. We did the Spider-Man game and I was honestly surprised at the fun we had. It had slow parts where each player takes turns but also times when we both played. I'm not sure a larger group would be as much fun because it looked like those games are more turn based.

Just finished a 6 week Pottery Wheel class with Ashley. The instruction was thorough and easy to…read moregrasp. She taught us multiple methods for each step so that we could decide which option worked best for us. I am coming out of the class with 12 finished pieces and will definitely be signing up for another class. Thanks Ashley!

Initially I was very excited to take a 4 week pottery class because it was a hobby I have been…read morethinking about trying for a long time but my experience here has honestly dampened my interest in pursuing pottery further I'm unsure if it's typical protocol but essentially the instructor would do one tutorial and then let the class figure it out from there. He would then focus on his own pieces instead of checking on how to students were doing. The classes rarely started on time because the instructor would be eating their late lunch and would consistently forget what he taught us the previous week. Because there was poor time management, we would be working on pieces and then 15 minutes before the class would end, we would be told we have to start cleaning up so everyone would rush to finish what they were doing Because there was barely any hands on instruction, I was constantly watching online videos from other pottery instructors before class to teach myself the tips I was missing from my own instructor The studio also lacked a proper storage system, so every single week we came in, our pieces were in a different place which made it extremely difficult to find our work -- I lost a few pieces because of this The overall experience has been so disappointing and a waste of time and money - if you are serious about making pottery a hobby, I would suggest looking for a different pottery studio