Finding the right studio for you, your dancer and your family
No two dance studios will be the same and that is a good thing! Each studio is run and owned by different people with different personalities with different opinions as to what makes great dance training. Studios will also have a very large pool of clients and students and therefore there will be a unique culture associated with each school. Not all environments are good for each student. Kids learn so differently from each other and that’s why its good we have options when it comes to dance education!
I'm Andi and I am a dancer, choreographer and dance teacher in Rural Utah and I love spreading the joy of dance! Here's what I think you ought to know as a parent of a dance student! If you missed the previous blog in this series about where to start when putting your child in dance, you can read that here!
Types of Dance Studios
Recreational studios or even just programs that are offered at a community center or something like that are great for kids who tend to jump from one interest to another that won't likely be committed to dance for long. Or kids that have a bunch of energy to get out in a fun class with popular music but aren't in a mood to follow a lot of disciplinary or technical exercises. Recreational programs are a great place for kids to learn motor and rhythm skills that they can use in other sports and things later.
My recommendation, if you are planning on sticking with dance and are going to need good technical instruction, don’t go somewhere that doesn’t have ballet. Thats the biggest sign that a program is cutting corners in education. Even if you don’t like ballet, any dancer in their right mind will tell you that you need it in order to be a strong dancer in any style or field.
A Competition studio will likely offer as many styles as are relevant to teach students to be well rounded dancers. Their goal is to make dancers proficient in all styles and excellent in the big styles which will be Jazz and Contemporary for competition culture. Personalities that thrive at competition studios are be B type personalities who love being center stage and are incentive driven workers. Students that want the trophy or prize for winning the most tickets at the end of the month. If your child has a hard time cleaning their room without the promise of a reward, a competition studio might be something that fuels their passion really well. Competition studios will have teams set up for each age group that students will try out for at the beginning of the year. Teams will rehearse and prepare for competitions and conventions that typically happen January-May, across the country. There is typically some traveling involved with being on a team.
A Home Studio is a school that does not typically attend competitions but focuses on training for most of the year and includes a recital at the end of the year or each semester. Most studios in general will have a Christmas show, typically Nutcracker for a ballet based studio, and a Spring recital. Home Studios can vary in the amount or style of training they emphasize, and may offer Company participation that give students extra performance opportunities but are not focused on competing. This is probably the most common studio structure you will find. I call it a Home Studio because it would be the studio your child grew up at, in their home town.
Lastly, a Conservatory type school or studio is where you are going to find training for dancers that want to dance professionally in a company. Think of things like School of American Ballet in New York where their students take on an 8-10 year program with the opportunity for an apprenticeship with the professional company when they are ready. Not all conservatories have an adult company that they feed into but are similar in program structure. Conservatories tend to have a more intense schedule for the advanced students - the older students get the more classes they add so that by the time they are 16, they are proficient for a professional company that rehearses full time. If your dancer serious about making a career, I would really look for a studio that offers at least 4 days of ballet for students by the time they are 13 - especially for ballet dancers. Students just need that much class time to learn and master all that there is, and there’s no way to cheat it.
Most of the time, studios won’t classify themselves as one of these categories so you may have to look through their website to find what they really value. Look at things like:
- How many days of ballet a week do they offer for advanced ages?
- How many hours do they expect students to participate in each week for each age group?
- How many performance opportunities do they have scheduled each year?
- Do they offer a pointe prep course before putting students en pointe?
Take a look at the photos they choose to display on their website and social media - business owners will display their best dancers - If you find things like sickled feet, turned in legs, or funny arm positions, they may not have a very strong ballet program yet. You can also check out any reviews online.
Costs
I will be very honest: dance starts expensive and it ends expensive. The cost of tuition may be inexpensive in some scenarios and more expensive in others, but the inescapable cost is that of supplies. Your dancer will need uniforms, shoes, hair supplies, general supplies, then things like pointe shoes and training equipment will come in later as their education gets more advanced. Both uniforms and supplies will be covered in the next blog post of this series.
The cost of tuition ranges somewhat between what type of studio you go to, and what the cost of living is. Recreational programs will be the cheapest and may be somewhere around $40 per month for a once-a-week class. Home studios may hold around the same prices for one class but will add up as you add more classes. Most programs offer an unlimited class plan (usually 8+ classes a week or perhaps based on hours) and a safe range for that (in Southern Utah) is $250-$350 per month. Please keep in mind that where you live has an impact on the cost. For example, I live in Utah where the cost of living is decent, and I expect that studios in New York would cost at least %30 more than they do here. There is even a discrepancy between Northern Utah which is very populated and growing quickly, and Southern Utah where the dance industry is less developed and people are used to paying less for things. Be sure to also calculate inflation rates (they have to go up for the arts too) and bear in mind that this post was written in 2025.
Competition studios and Conservatories will cost the most. Competition studios will typically include tuition fees, team and competition fees, costume fees, choreography fees, and then travel fees will add up outside of what you pay the studio. For reference, entering a solo in a competition may cost you about $100, and a single dancers costume is usually $80 for decent quality. Choreography fees are usually $100 per minute of music whether that is being distributed across the team or for a solo. Travel fees and hotels depend on where you are and where you’re going but each trip is probably $1500 by the end of it.
Conservatories run by people not associated with a large dance company such as New York City Ballet will try to function as Home studios and will cost about the same. Programs under such renowned companies can cost you as much as college tuition each semester, especially if they are housing your students. The do a good job of running other supplies fees through the school so you aren’t going out of pocket for things like pointe shoes. Perhaps by the end of the year when out-of-tuition costs are added up, it may be the same as a home studio.
For starting costs of taking your child to their first dance class, expect to pay a registration fee of $15-$30, and be prepared with the appropriate clothing and shoes. For a ballet class, a leotard for young girls can be around $15, tights should be $5-10 and shoes may be $10-20. Those costs will increase as dancers grow in size or need better quality materials to last longer. Expect to purchase clothing often as kids grow like crazy!
Do some research for your local area
Ask around. Check with your own moms network of anyone has their kids in dance classes and ask what they usually pay for everything. Call every studio and ask for their prices for a 1x/week classes. This can help you find the most affordable studio at least to start out with.
However, the cheapest studio does not mean it's the studio with the best quality training and teachers (though it might be great, too). So take the cost in consideration with everything stated above!
If you have more specific questions on the topic, I would LOVE to connect with you and answer what I can with my experience. Reach out with your questions to info@andiballerina.com or DM me on Instagram @adorn.ballet
In the next part of this series, we'll talk ALL about what students are expected to wear and what students are expected to do when they go to a dance class!