Take Five Dance Academy

i wonder if its good i am going there in a couple weeks so well hope its good i am 9 years old i love to dance i have been on football field twice and they loved me and my friends it was the best day ever well good luck to me more

Friendly instructors, but the office gal could use a lesson in customer service. My only issue's are: 1. the amount of time they take off with no adjustment in monthly fee- we don't have time to be making up so many days of classes and 2. My daughter should be moved to the next level, and they knew that, but classes are full and costumes are ordered. I guess they need an additional class, if they really are there to promote the growth of the students. 3. If you are there for acro- skip it, and go take gymnastics, otherwise enroll in a dance class. I think that's where their strength's are. more

I just want to say that my family's experience with Take Five has been wonderful! I know that in October we received information about the recital, including the dates that the tickets would be on sale. I made sure that I budgeted money so that I was ready to purchase my 4 guarenteed tickets when they became available in May. (Thank you Take Five for giving me over 6 months notice so I wasn't taken by surprise). I do know that a friend of mine put off getting her tickets for several weeks, and found out that her daughter's show was sold out. However, Christina, the office manager, was wonderful about putting her on a waiting list and eventually finding tickets. She was even given the chance to perform in another night's show so that more family members could come and see her dance. I also am glad that the studio continues to work on skills during the year, not just the recital dance. I have seen my daughters' level of dance increase because skills are taught the whole year. I also felt they were as prepared as possible for their dance, and my 4 year old was as cute as could be up there on stage. Thank you Take Five. more

Dg is not lying. This was the first year I had my daughter at Take 5. On the day of the parent's meeting, when the 4 tickets were available, I specifically asked them if there would be any problems getting the tickets the next Friday (1 week), as I did not have the money to purchase them at that time. Maryanne assured me it would not be a problem. Specifically she told me, ""the tickets don't start to sell out until June, closer to the actual recital date."" Two other moms in the class were told the same thing. Exactly one week later there were signs posted everywhere that our show was sold out! This was THE FIRST DAY they became available for the ""general audience."" When I reminded Maryanne of her exact words to me, she remembered but all she could offer was that I could usher in order to see my daughter perform. In my opinion, 2 tickets should be held for the parents up until the day of the dress rehearsal or the parents specifically say no. The parents should ALWAYS be able to see their child's recital. We pay enough money to this studio, that should be a given; and they are the most expensive studio in the West Valley. If I don't have the money on the exact day (sorry if I don't have unlimited funds), I should not run the risk of not seeing my daughter perform. Additionally, I was less than pleased with the fact that they did not start working on the recital routine until February/March, and even after they started working on it, they only spent 15 minutes out of the 55 on it. Yes, my daughter is younger, so I admit I don't know when some of the more advanced classes started nor how much time they devoted. However, the younger ones need more practice. I must say, as well, that it doesn't matter if a poster knows how to correctly spell the owner's name. That means nothing and does not negate their opinion. It's not like the girl got her name wrong, just the spelling. Oh, and I don't know what dancers you're talking about - most of the older ones I've run into their have little to no class, nor manners, just brushing past 4,5 and 6 year olds like they were nothing, not to mention some of their rudeness to the adults in the lobby. more

I just happened to see this post, and must answer it. my daughters dance and are in the co. here and all of what I am reading is a lie. 4 tickets are held for each family for 1 week. After that, the tickets go on general sale. This is clearly explained in the recital packet since the shows do sell out. If a family didn't get tickets, it is their fault. \r Also the poster doesn't even know how to correctly spell the owner's name. Maryanne has been very professional in all my dealings with her. It sounds like a student from another studio trying to ""throw mud."" I am glad this person won't come back because the students I've met at Take Five have much more class. more

This was the first studio I dance at they would not let my mom see the show beacause they WOULDNT SELL HER A TICKET! MARYANN THE DIRECTOR PLAYS FAVORITES AND IS NOTHING BUT A RUDE PERSON I WILL NEVER GO BACK TO TAKE FIVE! also almost every person in our studio and studios company traveled from take five to us and NONE OF THE FEEDBACK HAS BEEN POSITIVE! more

I have been with take five for alomost 5 years now, and have never had a negative thing to say about them. They are one of the leading studio's in Arizona. I have never seen the owner yell or cuss at somebody, i know her very well and she handles every situation apprpriatley. They have amazing teachers who know what theyre doing look at Clifton Brown, Shannon Beach and many others who were trained by Maryanne and Alyce. Which show they know what theyre doing. I have seen many other dance studios perform and they look like hookers whith hardly any clothes on and shake there buts and boobs all the time. And thats just not how take five is they have class! I commend take five for having morals and not being another trashy studio!!! Pros: EVERYTHING!!!!! more

I am the mother of 2 girls, and a former dancer myself. My girls have been taking lessons for several years at Take Five, and are currently involved with the company. I can tell you, this studio is one of the best on the west side. I know from my experience as a dancer that the training that the children are getting is great. Along with that, the standards that the studio holds as far as music, costumes, and choreography are ones that I am proud to have my children involved with. As far as the teachers go, I must say that I find it refreshing that all of the teachers are over the age of 18, and have been trained not only in what to teach, but in how to teach. Several of the teachers have themselves been professionals, and know what goes into training a dancer. This is evident when looking at the fact that numerous of their students have gone on to dance careers in professional companies, on Broadway, in movies, at amusement parks, on cruise, and in touring companies. My very own teacher told me years ago that a studio was considered a success if they had one dancer go on to work professionally. If you judge Take Five by this standard, they are an ENORMOUS success, since they have so many of their former students working! more

My family and I saw Take Five dancers at\r Relay for Life (a fundraising event of the American Cancer Society).\r The kids were great, dancing their hearts out and my daughter loved watching them.\r Seeing how excited this got my daughter, we decided to check out the studio.\r \r The building was beautiful and we were greeted with a nice smile and felt\r very welcomed. The front desk person was really nice and patient with me and\r my many questions. \r \r After my daughter took a couple of free trial classes we decided to\r register! The teachers were great, enthusiastic and welcoming.\r One of the instructors came out and greeted me and my husband, which I truly appreciated.\r My daughters is loving dance, her teachers, new friends and is already excited to get to be on stage in the recital!\r \r This dance studio is special not only for their school & instructors, but\r for all their community services. We are very grateful and thankful to have found Take Five. \r more

I spent 2 weeks looking for a studio and observed classes though the doors of the classrooms, This is the only studio that I have heard teachers say negative things to the children, but also have other children demonstate steps, while a teacher sits in a chair at the front of a class. How disappointing is that for the money your child in not being shown proper technique ,but an example from a 10 year old who still does not have the piroutte technique correct herself yet. I check into other studios, Dance Gallerie, Prestige in Surprise and Cutting Edge in Litchfield park. I chose one of those studios and wow what a difference, I could have picked any othe the other 3 and been more impressesed. Moving to the West valley offered challenges in finding good dance instruction, as the top 3 studios are in the east valley and time and gas do not permit me to travel that far. If your looking skip this studio, if you attended take some trial classes elsewhere and make a new choice before your deposits for recital come out paid in full by November (another strange policy) Pros: Beautiful studio facilities Cons: oversized class, tuition taken from your account, poor teacher more

This studio in my opinion is by far not as good as they advertise. Look around, we found something better in the area. You can find better! Pros: nice facility Cons: instruction can use work more

My daughters kept having confrontations with other students and the owner would never do anything to fix the problems. Worst of all, I witnessed on several occasions the owner yelling and cussing out customers in the lobby. The environment is very cold here. We've been at a few studios and I have to say that the other negative reviews posted here are pretty accurate. The owner has her favorites, and it really shows. I was not treated too bad by the owner, but the way her attitude is hot and cold...you never know. Pros: Nice building Cons: expensive, poor student to teacher ratio, favoritism, poor customer service more

My children Channah and Jesse are students at Take Five Dance Academy. We started at Take Five 6 years ago. Channah started out in Miss Jolene?s Creative Dance class that was when the studio was at Van Buren and Dysart Location. My son Jesse joined Take Five 3 years ago with Stacy J?s Boy Hip Hop class. Now both my children are older and currently are taking Jazz, Hip Hop, and Theater. My husband Jay has been in 3 Dad?s Dances. The first time he was in a wheel chair because of an operation done to his ankle. I remember how he really wanted to be in he Dad?s Dance, but was afraid that they would not let him. It was quite on the contrary. Stacy J was EXCITED to have him dance, and he will always be remembered as the ?Dad in the wheel chair?. We are involved with Take Five as a family I have always been back stage for every one of my daughter?s performances, I have never see her perform from the audience, but I don?t care, because I love working back stage. Personally I think I have the best seats in the house! We love Take Five. We love how our children have grown to not only be talented dances but more confident kids. We think the teachers at Take Five are awesome loving people who not only are talented performers themselves but really love working with kids. I also have to commend Maryanne for how smoothly she handles things. When Maryanne says that something is going to happen at a certain time, you can be guaranteed that not only will it happen on time, but it will be completed on time. Maryanne knows how to move people in and out of practices and rehearsals with great efficiency. She should be commended for that. Pros: Loving, Caring Teachers more

They do not have floating floors at this studio. What they have is damaging for your child's joints. The teachers are just ok. I've seen so much better at other studios, which is why I take my daughter elsewhere now! The people here are rude and only seem interested in your money. They require your bank account information here. I'm sorry but that's personal information, and no other studio does this in the valley. They charge outrageous fees for choreography if your child wants to compete. No other studios charge this much. The company dancers at this studio do not do well at competitions either. Once I moved my daughter, I saw a world of difference! The ones from this studio do not score very high. They used to a very long time ago, but the quality here is terrible compared to other studios. The owner yells and swears at people in front of everybody. I even heard her telling a small child that she is a waste of her time. I wish the child's mom was around to hear that! That was the last straw for me, so I left! My child is now an outstanding dancer at an award winning studio. Take Five is a ""has been"" studio. Pros: large studio Cons: everything about the studio is a con more

There are a few instructors who cannot control the class. They are young and do not have the proper training to control a class. My child learned so much more at another west valley studio. I personally heard the owner belittle young children (about 8-9 years). I personally saw the owner yell at her clients in the lobby (yes she even cusses in front of children). I had my child here for several years and saw this studio go downhill. It's a good thing that there are better choices now. The professionalism has gone out the door. Ask around for other opinions. There are several families in the west valley who have experienced the negativity of this studio. Even the families who had company dancers here were not happy. I know because I talk to many of them all the time. There has been a huge turnover of students the last year. Pure sign of bad service. Just ask around and you will see. Pros: huge facility Cons: negative air in the studio; floors are non-floating; money pit more

I have had the honor of having students at this dance studio for a long time. The facility is great, but even better is the training my students received. Many of the dancers from this studio have gone on to professional careers. The office staff is helpful and concerned, while the owner, artistic directors, and teachers can't be beat. I read the other review, and no a little about the situation. Unfortunately sometimes parents cross over the line of what can be allowed at a studio. When a mother doesn't feel that she is getting the best for her child, sometimes she is to close to the situation to be objectives. It is true that some dancers are asked to do specialty numbers. However, the students that are asked have earned this right. Any studio that is concerned with giving students the proper training to enable them to grow has this policy. Unfortuately, just as in sports, some people make varsity teams and some people don't. It would not be fair to penalize dancers that have the ability and have worked hard to develop the technique necessary to do something a little bit harder by refusing to acknowledge this. I personally know that the owner has always tried to accomidate those students who are only looking at a recreational dance experience as well as providing opportunites for those students who want more and may one day make dance a career. Unfortunately sometimes adults act in such ways that they have had to be asked to leave the studio due to the negativety they brought to all other students and parents. When this happens there is sometimes the ""sour grapes"" syndrome. My best advice is to go and observe the classes, talk to the the office staff and owner, and then form your own opinion. I think you will find out, just as I did, that this is a wonderful place for your child to be. Pros: Wonderful, knowledgable staff, great atmosphere more

The instructors are ok, but the office personnel and owner are rude. There is a high standard of favoritism amongst the company members. The girls are competitive amongst each other which creates a negative atmosphere. Students are picked and chose for specialty numbers, which may hurt the feelings of others. There is a self-esteem issue in the studio.\r \r The studio itself is a nice building. Pros: nice facility size Cons: Rude personnel, students aren't treated fairly more