Steps On Broadway

The dance Compan d has several studios — beautiful. The place was huge and welcoming! I felt like I was in a movie. Everyone was friendly and focused to improve on their dance skills (but not competitive). There’s a café on the same floor! So you can grab a snack (salad, cereal, etc). I took the «Bollywood class» — so good! 5 mins stretch + 5 mins Bhangra + 20 mins bootcamp + 1 hour on a routine. Loved every moment! The instructor was kind, encouraging, and passionate.

After just my first class, I can say that this is my favorite studio in the city. Everything was very professional, but also very inviting. As a dancer who hadn’t taken class in more months than I want to admit, I felt very comfortable, although I will admit that the Intermediate level might have been a little ambitious (I read on their website afterwards that they consider Intermediate to be a professional level, so good to know). Prices are about on-​par with any other studio ($ 19 for a single class), but they are on ClassPass, which I’m intending to use from now on. Their online system is a little funny, but the people working at the front desk are nice enough that you don’t feel like a fool for not knowing what’s going on. Overall, a very positive experience, and I’ll definitely be coming back for more ballet classes.

When in New York, do as the performers? Or maybe not! I thought it’d be fun to take a class at the infamous «Steps on Broadway». The class was for «All levels» but since this is where the juliard kids go (or so I’ve been told) perhaps it was for all levels of dancers (and unless you’re talking about clubbing in my twenties or getting down Gangnam style in my living room, I am no level of dancer). The class was difficult and exactly what television portrays; high-​pressure and critical, yet helpful and elegant.
Although a great experience, my aspiring ballerina days are over and therefore this was a one-​time, cross it off the bucket list activity. However, if you are serious about becoming a dancer, this is definitely the place as they will ensure you’re the best possible dancer you can be!

Taking a class after work sometimes means slow transportation by subway so when I arrived two minutes late, I expected a quick check in. Not the case at Steps. It took an excruciating 12 minutes to hand over $ 20 and get $ 1 in return. The apologetic manager explained that the internet system is very slow and they are in need of new computers to expedite the check in process. Well at ten classes per hour with 30 people in my class at $ 19, let’s say average $ 5000 income per hour seven days per week. How much money does it take to buy new computers and get the latest in internet speed Carol Paumgarten? Never will I subject myself to such frustrating nonsense.

I want to start by saying some positive things.
The location is is right off the subway and next to Fairway.
Some of the teachers are pretty good, but they also teach at other dance studios in NYC.
Kathy Sullivan will spend a lot of time giving people individual corrections and making sure that most of the class is doing it «right» and improving. The one thing that she does that takes time to get used to is the way she gives out combinations. However, the combinations are interesting and fun. Her pointe class is also good, but it was at an inconvenient time.
I took 1 class with Lisa Lockwood who was also good about giving adjustments and explaining things to me. The class was kind of hard, but I didn’t do the stuff that seemed to be beyond me and I still think I got a lot out of it. I really appreciate the fact that someone who danced at her level would make the effort to help some one who is attending her class for the first time.
Most of the classes have live music.
The bad
The check in staff-​they seem to screw up things like answering the phone, checking people in, being polite. It seems like these are things that other places like Mark Morris, BDC, BAE, or Ailey can do well/​alright. Quite often there was a long line of people waiting to check in and the staff will ignore them while having having a loud conversation about management being terrible or some diet fad.
Changing areas were often dirty and crowded.
Some of the teachers kind of suck, in my opinion.
Cynthia Vallone-​I don’t think she has a solid grasp of ballet technique and the anatomy and physics behind that technique. I started to have knee pain after taking her class that went away after not taking class with her. I think I improved a lot with other teachers, but not her. She tries to convince you to take privates or small group classes at other places with her, but this seems like a waste of time and money to me. I would suggest basic with another teacher, as I find it easier to progress when I am not taught wrong things that I have to fix later.
1) The guy in the white shoes appears to be balancing on a sickled ankle – do you want to sprain your ankle?
2) People look to be hyperextending and sitting on their knee joints without enough engagement/​tension in the muscles of their standing leg
3) No one has a turned out working leg in arabesque-​not bad for you, but you should have a turned out working leg in arabesque
4) Many people seem to have a death grip on barre – how are you going to balance if you are not on your leg enough to not hang onto the barre?
5) 2^nd arabesque-​in most techniques, the arm should be shoulder level.
Emelietta Ettlin-​tries really hard to sell you on the idea of a private lesson with her. I think that some of the things she teaches might work for men’s technique (starting en dehor pirouettes from large fourth position) but not on pointe unless you are an under 4 foot tall dwarf with shoes that have a large toebox with a high coefficient of friction. I think she does certain things sloppily and they can’t be fixed later on. I think she is way better than Cynthia Vallone, but I wouldn’t recommend a private with her.

After my first experience last night, this will be my new home for dance training.
Unlike other companies I’ve tried in NYC, Steps was welcoming from the beginning. I found the majority of my fellow students to be friendly, be it waiting for the elevator, waiting in the hall for a class to begin, making eye contact while observing their class, or making conversation while in class.
The front desk staff were all very nice, both for check in, and answering all of my newbie questions. Another staffer was very kind in helping me find something after changing.
Small but ample dressing room, with large stall in the bathroom, and private shower.
Loved the studio itself. Really didn’t mind the pillars. I actually found them helpful when doing diagonal across the floor exercises.
Really loved my instructor! Personable, charming, caring, high expectations, though encouraging, and understanding. Very knowledgeable, good level of challenge to calisthenic, technique exercises, and combinations. I observed two other instructors in very different practices, and they both seemed to possess the same qualities.
Lastly, I really love the old school charm of this space. Not corporate, no pretension, and you really feel like you’re stepping back in time — in a very good way — through an environment not about the commercial, but about community and excellence.
I’m very excited to pick a class package, and get into my next class!

Great variety of classes and instructors. This is for the front desk and management team. It’s 2015! Get a computer system that works. There is absolutely no excuse for how slowly the check in/​payment system is here. Nor the amount of times I’ve been told «our computer system is down right now.» I’ve been given the «it’s an old building excuse» and others, and none of it holds water any longer. For a studio claiming to be top notch in NYC, it pails in comparison to Ailey, BDC, Gibney, Peridance, etc due to the check in/​payment process. Stop wasting so much of my time.

I took my first class this morning and let me say – I was intimidated! I know a lot of professionals go here as well as the future stars of Lincoln Center. So I was very nervous when I registered to take Atwood’s beginning ballet class. I do have about 2 years of training, but I haven’t taken a class in months and I’m a little bit out of shape. I was worried that the class would be too difficult for me (beginning ballet in new york city is much different than a beginning ballet class in any other state, as i have learned by taking classes at other nyc studios). However, the class was the perfect level for me, if not slightly easy. Atwood was very slow and patient, and he really took the time to explain the purpose of each exercise and demonstrate until we understood. He taught a really great class.
Also, I was surprised that the atmosphere was so welcoming and friendly. I was expecting some snobby attitudes and judgments that I was taking a beginning class at the age of 23, but I didn’t come across anything like that. I’m definitely coming back next week!

I recently moved back to the city, and the only sad part about ending my temp stay in the burbs was having to say goodbye to my regular ballet school and all my great friends. I initially wanted to go to BAE as my regular school (I really love the attention at the school and that the classes are not overly crowded), but logistically, it was a nightmare from Central Harlem with the 456. Steps is an easy 15 minute ride on the ²⁄₃ for me, so this is now my regular ballet school.
My goal is to get on pointe, and I can easily see that Steps will make me advance very quickly. The teachers in the smaller classes are attentive and come around making corrections. The classes are challenging and they are focused on making sure that you are doing everything right to prevent bad habits from forming.
I go to class 3 – 4 times a week and, although I have my favorite teachers, they all have they own style and will push you beyond any artistic/​physical wall that you may have in your dance form.
I wish they had the A/​C on a bit more in the classes — it gets incredibly hot and sweaty in a very short time — say the first 20 minutes for 90 minute class. I’ve gotten accustomed to the poles in the center. I like that there are showers in the dressing rooms and it’s kept clean. I wish the classes were a bit cheaper.

This is a review of the Adult Ballet classes.
This beautiful old studio perfectly reflects what takes place in it. Dedicated students of all ages directing their energies to honing an age-​old craft steeped in tradition. Well, the ballet classes anyway.
The studios are not my favorite — the floor can be uneven and there are inconveniently located columns in the studios. Beware the description of the class may not match up with your expectation. For example a Basic class may not be all that basic.
However there are some really terrific ballet classes here — I really enjoy the ballet classes taught by Dore Manasevit, Cindy Bernier, and Robert Atwood. For the beginner or returning dancer, they are solid classes with a great barre, with a keen focus on technique and alignment.
The classes can get crowded, so get there early to find a spot at the barre.

I’ve only been to the hip hop classes on Friday nights at 8pm with Matt Lopez, and he’s the best! The class is listed as «beginner» but it’s really more intermediate or advanced beginner in my opinion. If you have zero dance experience you will find the pace and choreography quite challenging, so be prepared!
I used to frequent BDC (Broadway Dance Center) before Steps, and found that while the teachers are talented and the choreography fun and challenging, the classes are packed to the max with less than friendly and snobby dancers all hoping to make it as professionals in the dance world. Steps has a much more welcoming and casual vibe, which I appreciated, and you’ll actually be able to see the mirror during class!
Matt has a great style and is a patient and thorough teacher. Come out for a great time, as well as a great workout (the warm-​up includes push-​ups, crunches, you name it!), you won’t be disappointed!

I’ve only taken their hip hop classes. I’ve been told the ballet classes are awesome, so maybe I’ll try that one day. To give a little background into my experience level, I’ve done ballet, tap, and jazz since I was 5 and hip hop since I was 17. I’m not an aspiring professional, but I want to find a class that adequately challenges me.
So I finally found a hip hop class I love! I really enjoy Matt Lopez’s class Adv. Beginning Hip Hop class. It’s the perfect pace and difficulty. I like his style/​choreography and he’s a great teacher. He takes the time to break down the moves clearly and he’s also patient with people’s questions. His class is always a lot of fun.
On the contrary, I’ve also taken my worst hip hop class ever here with Millz. Maybe it was an off night but he barely spoke, aka didn’t teach and the music was so loud that my ears hurt. This has never happened in a class for me before.
*sigh* Hip hop classes are strange in NYC. Most are directed towards aspiring professionals so perhaps Millz’s class is better for people who are trying to learn quickly with little direction.
Besides that, the space is great!

First of all, I love the energy and beauty of the space; it is what I imagined a dance studio would look like in a little rustic, basic, sparsely decorated space. I have only taken the Beginner Hip Hop class with Robin but would recommend it if you are a real beginner who would appreciates a teacher who is all about the energy and spirit of hip hop as well as the moves. There is about 30 minutes of warm up stretching and exercises. She is really open to answering questions in and after class which is also really helpful. It is a low pressure environment — we are here to have fun while getting our groove on!

Steps is that quintessential New York dance studio. It’s not new or modern. It’s hot in the summer. There are poles in the middle of the classrooms. It’s creaky. The dressing room is no frills. And you’ll love it.
I’m almost 40 and have danced my whole life (ballet, modern). I’m not as flexible or quick as I used to be — but I’m grateful that my body still moves and there are teachers willing to teach me how to move it. At Steps, I’m usually one of the older people in class, but who cares? In the Contemporary/​Modern world, I have found the instructors to be very welcoming. And I forgive the 20 year olds in class who can’t stop looking at their flat stomaches in the mirror for long enough to say Hello.
So classes to try: Eliasberg is my favorite for contemporary. She has a set warm up (they all do), but hers is the easiest to pick up after a couple classes. Her combinations are very expressive and natural. She is also friendly and encouraging. THUMBS UP! Other standouts are: Max Stone and Jana Hicks (more advanced). Mindy Upin also has a great adv. beginner contemporary class.
For ballet, I can recommend Robert Atwood. He actually instructs you and makes dance EASIER not harder to learn. He has a knack for breaking down the body mechanics of ballet in a way that sticks with you and enhances any other dance you might do. His classes get packed, so come early!
Other studios to try: Ailey Extension, Peridance, Ballet Arts and Dance New Amsterdam.
Hope this helps! See you in class.

There are poles in the middle of some of the rooms, the dressing rooms are on the small side, and the whole building becomes hot and stuffy in the summer. I suppose the no frills atmosphere means that Steps concentrates on the one thing it should: dance.
Prices are pretty comparable to other dance studios in NYC. They also have a special Class of the Week promotion in which one class a week is offered at a 40% discount! Classes are selected randomly and are revealed on their Twitter account 2 days before said class.
I’ve tried a handful of the beginner and open hip hop classes and found them to be challenging and fun, but I mainly come to Steps for their tap classes. Their tap classes have been consistently good no matter the instructor and I like how they are very rhythm tap based, a form that I’m not all too familiar with but one that really makes me use my brain and work up a sweat!
Likelihood of another visit:
Very likely, of course! I would love to try more of their hip hop classes and their jazz classes. Also, bonus points for being located near a Fairway and Trader Joe’s for those times I need a quick snack or drink after a dance session!

Today was my first (but not my last) time at Steps so my 5 star rating is based on a single experience. A friend, Joey Doucette, I met at Luigi where I did the 5 –hour a day intensive this last summer and whose style I danced (modified by Hama and Tracey Durbin) in the 1980s in LA was guest teacher.
Joey’s class is AMAZING. Such energy though there is no way in hell I can do a backbend with one arm behind me and end up on the floor (maybe when I was studying Iyengar yoga intensely in the 1990s). The combination was spectacular but it would take me two or three passes to look halfway decent.
It was fun to dance to new music as I’ve been studying exclusively at Luigi in NYC and I get to Risa and Jerry Evans occasionally but not as often as I’d like in LA (Hama Dance Center in Studio City but traffic in LA is ridiculous and it’s closer to get to class when I’m in NYC than in LA).
I have never been to Steps and had NO idea how enormous it is. It’s slightly uptight – tons of 8 by 11 posters about not taking pictures in the studios (of which there are many on multiple floors). They seem a bit fussy in the observation rooms but as a non-​professional dancer who just loves to take class and trained in a field (literary criticism) entirely remote from the world of performance, I really don’t care if someone thinks I am a moron on the dance floor. Actually, when I signed in at the desk, the woman asked if I had a union card (for a discount) so I guess I didn’t stick out like a sore thumb.
But there are ballerinas with ropes doing splits or past-​splits so it’s an intense place. The young man and woman who man the dance boutique – not enclosed, just in the main lobby hallway – are clearly professionals or gunning for a career in dance but again, the snottiness other Unilocalers review is to me amusing and not at all threatening. It’s like going into a professional space as a non-​professional and just enjoying the experience.
I had a BLAST and I am nowhere near able to do all that Joey does in his class. Jazz has been of course overtaken by hip hop in so much of America, even in LA where at Hollywood IDA 35% of classes I think are hip hop.
The jazz of the 1980s, as I understand it, is now called «musical theater» jazz. Joey does combinations which work on all levels – including the floor – and I was drenched with sweat, my second class of the day.
It’s a great vibe and I cannot speak for the ballet as I always studied lyrical jazz (other than as a little girl).
Classes are 18 for one or 36 for two. A series which lasts 2 months or more (for the larger series) drop I think to 16. So it’s a bit more than Luigi but it’s a total experience. In LA, I never studied at a studio with more than two or three (one big and two small) studios so for me it was kind of the country bumpkin in the big city phenomenon
It’s well worth the money and I will be back. I am considering the summer intensive. One week at Luigi and one week at Steps. There is a great energy there and it’s in a very convenient area if you live either on the Upper East or Upper West sides.
There’s a little café with soup, coffee, tea (but no booze which was imperative after 3 hours of class, the second half of which was a notch above the energy level and technique to which I am accustomed).
I do agree with Mar L (4 star review) re the «snotty leg warmer factor» haha. Very true. But it’s cool to see the headshots, black and white, of current teachers and you do feel part of something larger, something historic.
I am walking on air after my first class. (Of course, a fair amount of wine and whiskey as I know I will be sore and am taking generous doses of prophylactic alcohol to forestall this in anticipation of at least 5 more classes this week.)

This place is historical, yes. And there’s a certain charm to taking a dance class in NYC. Who knows what NYCB or ABT stars have walked through the halls.
But, but those poles in the middle of the studios are horrible, and my overall experience here was lacking. Over the half a dozen classes that I’ve taken, I haven’t had a class that I left thinking — that was an amazing class. It may be that even though they have multiple levels and classes throughout the day, my vacation schedule hasn’t allowed me to find the right class for me here. I’m not sure, but I only take ballet classes and they seem to be geared towards broadway aspiring dancers who are learning ballet, or very advanced broadway dancers who didn’t become professional ballet dancers, or are taking ballet to improve their other dancing technique.
One of the classes I took was a little higher level (Adv-​Int) than I would normally take (a timing issue), and while the barre was great, the center was a little complicated for me. No problem, if that’s the case, I know to stay in the back of a group and not interfere with the other dancers, but I wasn’t expecting horrible looks from the teacher. :(Don’t worry dude, I’ll never take your class again.
Another class I took was a little lower level than normal (a Beg-​Int), and it was okay, except the teacher gave us 8 counts of improv. Eh… I’m taking ballet, not modern or jazz where improv is part of the class. I can’t improv… possibly the reason I take ballet. Made me feel like I stood out like a sore thumb, and left an ‘ick’ feeling on an otherwise decent class.
At the very least, my experience here qualified as a work-​out, but was missing some elements of the dancing experience. Pretty expensive for a work-​out… Next time I may just arrange my schedule around Alvin Ailey’s open classes.

If you took the building and planted it anywhere else in the country, it’d get a lower rating because of the poles and the age. But here in New York, we call it «character» and «history.» Because this place is legend.
Yes, it’s expensive. (I have no idea how people without jobs can afford to go to class every day here.) But you’re immediately inspired and dance a little bit better, stand a little bit taller, and try a little bit harder just because you’re at Steps.

Pretty good.
Serious environment but friendly enough.
Classes pretty difficult but if you ask questions they are cool.
Old school vibe.

Was visiting NYC and dropped in on Moretton’s Beg-​Intermediate class. It was July and the Tuesday 11:30 class was pretty packed. The general vibe of the whole place was friendly if a little intimidating but hey it’s NYC — the best of the best are here, right? The class was true to the level, if a little challenging but then a new class is always a little more challenging until you get used to the teacher and their combinations.
Something you may want to note: there are a couple of studios on the main floor but 2 studios on the floor below called Annex 1 & 2 which are considerably hotter than upstairs! This is where my class was. I got there early and went downstairs to hang outside the classroom and warm up like I usually would do but went right back upstairs because I thought I was gonna suffocate. So sign in and warm up upstairs and wait to go down until the last minute! Once inside the classroom make a b-​line for the spots by the windows!
Upstairs there is a cool old wooden bar with a mirror in the hallway and I had no problem eeking out a place for myself to stretch. Remember, in NYC everything is way more compact, so expect some closeness. I uploaded a picture if you’re curious.
The locker room is big and nice. I found the people to be friendly and helpful and the instructor had a lot of personality.
I also dropped in at a class at Peridance this same trip. I will write that review separately.