Peridance Center — Local services in New York

tldr; toddler class wildly inappropriate - do not sign up

Do NOT bring your toddler to classes at Peridance! I signed my kid up for two semesters of Saturday morning classes so that she could move and groove indoors on the weekends in the winter once the weather is gross. Having had good past experiences as a pre-professional and professional dancer, I expected Peridance to provide an age-appropriate movement class that my toddler would love. We attended the first class last Saturday, and it was a nightmare. 18m olds shouldn't be asked to sit down and do butterfly stretches (!!). My kiddo is a super happy kid who loves attending classes, dances around happily at Little Maestros to their live music, and jams with her Dad and I at home. I was expecting a pianist or drummer and some fun, free movement for 45 minutes. Maybe an introduction to some basic stuff, Simon-says style, as the kids became familiar with the teacher/routine and the class progressed. Instead, there was bad iPhone music in the hot basement and it's as if the instructor had never met a toddler before in their life. As someone with a BFA Dance and MS ABA who has worked professionally with kids, my expert opinion is that this class is wildly inappropriate for the age rage advertised. The kids were crying and upset, with us parents holding them. Due to their no-refund for any reason policy, I am out $939 because I'm not forcing my toddler through that again. This class is an absolute money grab, clearly a feeder for more classes in the future. What's worse is because I'm a planner and signed up for/paid for these classes in APRIL, it's too late for me to dispute the charge. Peridance is operating with unethical business practices and should be ashamed...

EDIT: I have taken some more classes here and I am going to lower my rating to 1 star. The studios are un-airconditioned. During the summer. Classes have been extremely stuffy and hot, with temperatures at least 90 degrees F in the room (I know this because the outdoor temperature of 85F felt cool in comparison). The floor in studio 4 was disgustingly dirty, and we were doing floorwork. The classes have continued to start up to 10 minutes late, and the front desk workers shoo everyone out of the class immediately after it ends so they can get another class in the room because for some reason they schedule them with literally no buffer period in between. I probably will not be back, and they should manage this place better. The instructors and students deserve better.

I like taking adult classes here, but my complaint is that they schedule the classes to begin right when a previous class is ending. The result is that every class starts at least 5 minutes late and everyone is hustled out of the room immediately after class is over, with no time to talk to the instructor or ask questions. Kind of feels like some sort of dance factory trying to maximize profits. The classes are expensive so I feel like they could manage scheduling a 10 minute buffer window.

Also, as other reviewers have mentioned, the studios can be very...

The first time I attempted to go to a dance class at Peridance I was informed that it had been cancelled and an email 'sent' earlier. Needless to say, neither me nor my friend had received this email. Our money wasn't refunded but we were given a credit to use within two weeks, which is obnoxious as the cancellation had not been within our control. The staff at the front desk was not pleasant.

Once we finally made it to our so-called Beginner's class, the instructor would show the dance moves once, then do them quickly and then it would be students' turn. For someone like me who has not danced in years it seemed more like an intermediate class and the students already knew what to do. The instructor did not acknowledge or slow down to help the students who were visibly confused and lost but kept hyping up the students who already knew her routine.

Another complaint - the studio was so overcrowded for this type of routine with floor-work and air kicking after a turn. We kept having to be split into three groups and still were a little short on space. However, the lady at the front desk had a big attitude about it and claimed that the capacity of the studio is 60 people (lol). And let's not talk about the state of the floor of the ventilation.

Safe to say, will never be back or recommend. Staff & studio are both unpleasant and...