My daughter trained with Heba from age 9. Yes, she is strict. That's exactly why she produces serious dancers. Calling her "mean" is simply inaccurate. Ballet at a high level is not gentle. When my daughter was accepted into the prestigious San Francisco Ballet, we saw firsthand that this level of intensity is standard, if not harsher. Some instructors there were even more cutting, including sarcastic remarks like telling my daughter to "eat more fish to help her brain," implying she was not smart. That is the reality of elite training. What people often miss is that Heba genuinely cares. She has continued to mentor and support my daughter well into adulthood, my daughter is 18 now. My daughter's acceptance into SF Ballet did not happen by accident, it came from the strong, disciplined foundation Heba built. Strict does not equal mean. It means she is serious about her craft and fully invested in her students' success read more

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Both of my daughters are in ballet class here and they love it! It's been helping their development in many ways (creativity, focus, discipline, etc.) and they enjoy the exercise and seeing their friends every week. Highly recommended! read more

Peninsula Dance Academy - Pre-dance stretches - Dance Schools Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Sandra L - don't review a place you've never been to. It's irresponsible and in fact, is also rude. Perhaps the phone connection was bad. Perhaps you should have paid a visit to find out for yourself. Here's a review from someone who actually knows what this studio offers. My daughter has been going here for a year and a half and it is wonderful. Teacher Heba is an incredibly well trained dancer, having studied and now teaches the Russian Vaganova method. She moved here to start the studio with her husband Matt. She's no "dropout." Most ballet studios don't let the highly trained instructors teach the pre-ballet classes. Usually you get an assistant or student teacher. Not here. From day 1, your child will be taught by the best. This studio is anything but rude or arrogant. They are wonderful people who work nonstop to make this place great. And the prices are in line or cheaper than other good studios. Check around. And yes, it's mostly ballet. That is the specialty. But their tap instructor is very good and the tap class regularly competes around the area. My daughter loves ballet and it's because of Peninsula Dance Academy. read more

Peninsula Dance Academy - Nutcracker 2012 - Dance Schools Near Me - San Mateo, California

We have had our daughter taking ballet here for over three years and she loves the classes and the teachers! I also like that there is a ranked order to the class, better more interested students up front and the newer less motivated students in back. But I am of the mindset that not all participating kids get a trophy - that just promotes mediocrity! Try hard at PDA and you will be rewarded, so thank you Heba for keeping this culture! I would and have recommended this school for ballet! read more

Heba is a great dancer herself. As far as teaching pre-ballet to young ones is concerned, I'm not so sure. The class size is really big - at least 30+ students. The students do not get a lot of attention, especially given how little they are and probably need more personal attention. The teacher sits up in front of the class and more experienced students in the front row and newbies and not so great dancers in the last row. My daughter often complaints that she cannot see what the teacher is doing, although Heba insists that this should not be a problem since the front is all mirrors - but really it's hard to look at the mirrors when you're lying down. We've been going for a few months. I think it's a good class for older kids. read more

My 5 year old daughter has been taking Ballet lessons (Pre-Ballet II & III) here since Sept '11 and loves it! Its affordable for the Bay area and the class sizes are smaller (6-12) so every child gets attention. I had looked at some of the other big name schools nearby and was appalled at the number of kids in a beginner class; the one I viewed had nearly 40! Proper technique is taught here along with stretching and choreographed dances. Its not just running around to music. There's a Nutcracker performance in December and a recital in June. My daughter can't get enough Miss Heba! She's now coming twice a week and learning so much. read more

A friend asked me for comments about this dancing school, then I realized I should write it here so that more people know before they sending their little ones. 1. Their program focused a lot on stretching than dancing for younger age, and if the kids cant do it, they will be humiliated by Heba. She asked the kid to do it in front of anyone, and then laugh at her. Yelling and humiliating is her way of teaching. 2. 80% of the class time Heba just sat in front of the studio and surf on her cell phone, that's why she got so mad if some parents tried to see through the glass windows to check how's the class going. Yes she does YELL to the parents too, I've heard so many moms had fights with her. 3. They charged $55 to RENT one costume for the performance. Most students were required to do two/three dance, means the parents had to pay hundreds just to RENT the costumes which they will only be wearing once or twice. My daughter has never disliked any teacher, but she was so scared of Heba, and begged me to quit Ballet. When I asked her how's your class going, she said, Heba barked at us again.... read more

PDA is amazing! I've danced for four years in school and this is the first studio I ever joined and I love it! I've been dancing here for about 5months and I've been improving so much. Heba is a great teacher and she's very patient with her students. The studio isn't too big so there's a greater sense of community. Definitely the place to go for high quality dance lessons. read more

Peninsula Dance Academy has drastically changed my dance technique!!! I had moved there from another studio and in that first year I was there I had a completley different outlook on all kinds of dance. The teachers are focused, tough, and incredibly nice! This studio deserves the best because it gives the best! read more

So this is exactly the type of comeback I would expect after my experience with Peninsula Dance Academy. Now they want to control how I review them. The phone line was perfectly clear and the perfectly clear voice was rude and talked to me as though I was uneducated because I didn't have a dance background. Here are the tuition rates of notable dance studios on the peninsula for taking 1 class per week... Ayako $65 Captivating Dance by Nona $60 Dance Arts Center $60 Dance Mode Studio $60 House of Mayhem $60 Menlo Park Academy of Dance $62 PENINSULA DANCE ACADEMY $80 Not sure too many people would agree that this is "in line or cheaper", but clearly you believe it. If ballet is the specialty, then be a ballet school don't try to pretend to teach variety if the variety isn't worth the prices you are charging. If the ballet is worth $80 a month because it is the specialty, someone is still charged $80 for a tap or hip hop class. My experience with this studio was bad enough, it made me start a yelp account and write a review, but apparently writing a less than perfect review of Peninsula Dance Academy is irresponsible and rude. read more

This is a terrible place, the teacher forces the kids into unnatural positions, and they dont warm up before class! every good dancer know that you should warm up befor e you dance or else you can hurt yourself! the teacher has no patience and heba makes up rude nicknames for the kids, such as noodle and tornado, just because the students are not good doesnt mean they cant improve. she focuses on the students with more talent and leaves the others by themselves. do not come here read more

My daughter was at Heba's class when she was 3.5y. She is now 5y. I waited over a year to write this review and I regret I haven't done so sooner. The reason I am writing it now is because my daughter is still tainted by this bad experience. I have never wrote a review and this is my first but it's unfortunate it is not a review I wish to write. Teacher Heba is probably a very good dancer and had good dancing experiences, however I question her teaching style and technique with young children. My daughter was just learning about ballet and doesn't know how to do all the warm up positions and doesn't understand fully what she was asking her what to do. Teacher Heba could easily help her position her body so she understand how to do it properly, but instead she asked every child to do it in front of her and embarrass her in front of all the children that she doesn't understand. Right after that, all the kids came in to the resting area for water/bathroom break. My daughter came over almost with tears in her eyes. At that moment I just knew she was very upset and hurt by the incident, so I asked if she wanted to leave and so we did and never went back! To this day, my daughter refuses to join other ballet/dance classes thinking teachers will be mean like Heba, even though I tried continuously to explain to her not every teacher is like Heba. She has destroyed my daughter's experience towards ballet and will always link this experience to be a negative one. Personally I think Teacher Heba is insensitive to a young child needs and lack patience in working with young children. I hope she reads this review and make positive changes. read more

PTA is the best dance studio you can find in San Mateo - Foster City area. My daughter has been there for over 5 years. She learned ballet techniques, gained stage confidence and made dozens of friends. She has a strong attachment to the studio and the teachers. PTA is small enough for anyone to get full attention, yet big enough to give you the best dance lessons and provide great performing opportunities. read more

My 6 year old daughter did the summer camp here this year and she improved dramatically, both in her physical condition and her ballet techniques. Ms Heba is a really great teacher that ensures that the children learn the proper techniques before advancing them to ballet moves. My daughter enrolled in the year round class after the summer camp and is only disappointed that she can't be there all day like she did during the summer camp. Caution, Ms Heba is really strict, but my daughter doesn't seem to mind and is motivated by her. read more