East Bay Dance Center

Archived Q&A and Reviews

April 2009

Re: Summer camp for daughter just finishing kindergarten
My daughter has attended the following camps - I am including her ideas and ours: East Bay Dance Center, similarly priced as Adventure Time about $50-$55 per day with before and after care. Don't worry about tap, ballet or jazz shoes - your daughter can borrow them. My daughter loves this camp, her friend does not.

Oct 2007

Re: Thanksgiving week camp for 7 year old
East Bay Dance Center in Oakland's Glenview District is perfect. It's about $40 day a little more for before and after care. The before and care is a little like ''child care'' to be fair - however the majority of the day is hip-hop, ballet, jazz, tap and tumbling / acrobatics. And it's FUN. My 8 year old has been going for three years and loves it. Begs to go. Donmt worry if you donmt have the tap or ballet shoes, Bonniems got kem for kids to use. Bonnie is the owner and main instructor - classes fill up fast. East Bay Dance Center Fan

April 2007

I am considering the east bay dance center for 2007 summer camp because of location and affordability. Does anyone have any experience with the center near Park Blvd in Oakland and a recommendation for or against? karen

I don't have personal experience with the Dance Camps, but my fourth grade daughter has taken East Bay Dance Center dance lessons since she was three with Bonnie Sita who runs the Summer Camp Program. (We've always had busy summers so didn't do the camps. But other kids have really seemed to enjoy themselves.) Here is our experience with EBDC. Bonnie Sita has been a great teacher for my daughter and the other girls and boys who have taken dance over the years. She's utilized play and imagination to progressively teach dance technique and skills. It's a method that certainly has worked for my daughter. The atmosphere is relaxed without pressure however Bonnie is not a push-over and does maintain class order. She wants the children to love dance and as she puts it ''not cringe when they hear music from the Nutcracker Suite.'' She adjusts her teaching to the personalities and age levels of the students in her classes. I was impressed with the way she managed to make dance fun and motivating both for girls (at times very princessy) and boys (leaps over snake pits). I think the facility would make a good site for a summer camp program since it has a spacious dance studio with a stage and an enclosed out door area. The center offers hip-hop, ballet, jazz and tap. Satisfied Dance Mom

Re: Only need camp for 2 days of the week (March 2007)
Try East Bay Dance Center in the Glenview District of Oakland. The director, Bonnie Sita, is great with kids and offers camp on a ''per day'' basis. I believe camp is $40 per day from 9 - 3 and before and after care is available at $5 per hour. No need to worry about ballet, tap or jazz shoes, Bonnie has them available for use (free). No dance experience is necessary and the chidlren (both boys and girls) are grouped by age/ability. My daughter has been attending since she was 5 1/2 and loves it.
Mom of a dancing girl

Re: Informal dance/movement class for 3-year-old (March 2004)
Try East Bay Dance, located at Mandana and Grand Ave (near the Grand Lake theater). Bonnie Sika offers a preschool ''beginning ballet'' class, which the little ones seem to really enjoy (at least, my daughter did - she's been going there for almost 3 years now). It's not ''formal'' ballet, in that the kids can wear almost anything (w/ ballet slippers) - my daughter used to wear her ballet leo under her favorite tie-dye dress, and Bonnie was totally okay w/ it. You can try it over the summer (short sessions) and see if it ''fits'' for you. Mom to twirling ballerina wannabe

Re: Ballet for 2-year-old (June 2002)
East Bay Dance Ctr on Grand Ave in Oakland - Ms. Bonnie Sita - starts at 3 yrs old. Maria

Re: hip hop/jazz/modern dance classes for 13-year-old (2001)
The East Bay Dance Center located at 3501 Grand Ave in Oakland, phone 465-6678, offers Child and Teen Hip Hop, Jazz, Tap, and Ballet. We haven't attended yet, but I've spoken to several parenst with kids there and they all say positive things about the program. Cathy (2001)

Re: ballet for 5-year-old

East Bay Dance Center has wonderful preballet, pretap/jazz, and ballet, hip hop, and jazz/tap for kids, most taught by the Center's loving, patient director Bonnie Sita. Bonnie makes it really fun, with princesstime (running around with long scarves as capes and skirts, pretending to be princesses and fairies), great music (Nutcracker and other familiar classical music, as well as some showtunes), and a break midclass for water and bathroom use. My 6 year old daughter has been going to the ballet class for 1 year, and adores it. Plus, she is really learning classical technique (and the french names of the steps) and graceful movement, bit by bit, though she doesn't ever feel pressured or stressed. The learning environment is entirely funbased, developmentally appropriate, and encouraging. There is no correction at this stage, just showing the kids how to do the movement, and repetition. Whoever doesn't quite get it just approximates what they can do, and I always hear positive encouragement from the teacher. This is not a strict ballet regimen, but for a future dancer, it's also a good starting place. Also a big plus is the small classes on weekdays (6 or so kids). There's a recital on June 9 at Piedmont High if you want to see the results and get your little one interested. Classes are all year, in 2 semesters and a shorter summer program. 3501 Grand Ave (near Mandana) 4656678 Suzanne