South Side Dance Force

We were apart of this dance family for 8 years, but sadly the final curtain was Saturday night as Mr. Joselito pursues new artistic adventures!

Let me start by saying that I do not have an extensive dance background and I never thought about taking any sort of choreographed dance until I was an adult. For most studios I have messaged around the area, my emails were either ignored or they only catered to experienced dancers with a background or only worked with kids programs.
I messaged the owner of the studio and initially asked him for a private to see if he thinks the studio would be a great fit for me. He was very welcoming and greeted me with open arms… regardless of my age or my background. I told him that I never took ballet or jazz classes before and I definitely question whether or not I can follow an 8-​count. I do have other fields of fitness training under my belt, but nothing related to modern dance. But Joselito mentioned to me that as long as I wanted to move, I will move and he definitely worked with my level.
I have been taking Intermediate Modern and this class was definitely what I was looking for. I noticed that there isn’t any Beginner Modern classes, but this Intermediate Modern class is basically open to beginners and beginner/​intermediate students. From my very first class, he was already catching me up with dance technique and we would learn a little bit of a choreo in each class. He was quickly able to analyze my strengths and what my body typically wants to default to as far as movement goes and he tries to encourage me to «think outside the box».
It is physically (and mentally!) challenging and frustrating, but also feels so rewarding at the end of class. I have always walked out thinking about how fun these classes are!

I’ve danced at South Side for years. Joselito is the best teacher around, and the rest of the staff is great, too. As an adult it’s hard to find classes that are actually FOR adults — especially advanced Jazz. It’s a great group of adult dancers and fun choreography. You’ll never get bored, and it’s a lot better work out than those fitness classes you get at the gym. Trust me.
Even if you’ve never danced before, try one of the beginner classes! Everyone is accepted, and everyone is welcomed with open arms. No one is snobby, so if you’ve always just wanted to try a dance class, this is the place to go. Stop by any time and Joselito will be happy to meet you! He always is ;)

My son has been dancing at South Side Dance Force for the last 3 years. He started out in one class and then fell in love with dance and is now a part of the junior performing group. Joselito (the owner and director) and his staff are absolutely top notch. This studio is a place of positivity and love. There is no pressure to fit into a certain body type or size. There are no competitions to worry about. The focus is to learn and love dance. Each child or adult is met exactly where they are and accepted with open arms. South Side Dance Force has multiple children and adults with special needs in their classes. They are treated just like anyone else but the studio makes accommodations for whatever they need. My son is High Functioning on the Autism Spectrum and he has made more progress in the last 3 years of dance with South Side Dance Force than he has in all of the other years of therapy combined. They just put a new computer program in place that allows you to register and pay for your classes online, so if you want to pay with a credit card you can.

So far I’ve tried lyrical, modern and hip hop. I like that this studio focuses on adults, which is hard to find. Common among the classes is that about two-​thirds of the time is spent on stretching/​warm-​ups/​core and one third is choreography. Also, everyone pretty much dances barefoot no matter what the genre (even hip hop).
Pros:
–Friendly and energetic teachers. The office manager was also very responsive via email when I had questions. She even talked to the owner about opening a class that was originally closed (due to low attendance) if I could confirm 3+ dancers would be coming.
–Nice cushy floors and air conditioning.
–No registration fee and you can drop in any time.
Cons:
–They do not take debit or credit cards; cash or check only. They do not offer punch cards.
–Somewhat sketch-​ball part of Kent. It’s off of Central Ave.
–Floors are pretty dirty (which gives me the HEEBIES if I have to be barefoot!!).