Berkeley Ballet Theater

I took Intro to Ballet 1 with Alexis -- what a FANTASTIC experience for my first ballet class! As someone who has never done ballet before, I was nervous that I'd feel out of place. Alexis did a terrific job of making sure everyone could follow along, and helped me with some of the basics that all of the other students already knew. The class was a blast and I also got a great workout in. I look forward to taking more classes with Alexis, and highly recommend!!!

Greer is a sublime teacher."Adult Open Introduction to Ballet 1" is perfect for absolute beginners, and it's definitely more than a ballet-themed, drop-in pilates class. You get a lot of one-on-one attention, guidance, and theory...pretty impressive since that class *is* run as a drop-in, and there are usually upwards of 10 people.There are a LOT of different body types in class, I'm sure that's important to someone.I don't know, I keep showing up and he keeps telling us what to do and I keep getting better! I've been to 20-some intro classes so far.Here's a story I want to tell: there's a bicycle dismount where you start by swinging your leg behind you. I'd never been able to do it before, but I suddenly could after a few classes (both sides) because I'd essentially practiced the movement in class. Gains like that have been very noticeable in everyday life. I like that Robert teaches the philosophy of "learning by trying to do". I first encountered that philosophy when learning pull-ups (for example, you're better off hanging from a bar and struggling for a few weeks, versus using weight machines to make the involved muscles capable of more brute force). It is a woefully difficult concept to communicate because understanding only comes by way of direct experience, but Robert's perspective is fantastic, his explanations are always fresh and in-the-moment.

You can get excellent, quality education here as an adult learner. My favorite teachers are Robert Greer, Robert Dekkers, and Kaori. I also love taking rhythm and motion here. The classes themselves are great, however, the culture here can be somewhat cliquey and competitive. This is absolutely not an issue in the rhythm and motion classes. However, the AOD for ballet specifically has this issue (for lack of a better term)--especially at the higher level classes.

Our daughter, now entering 6th-grade, started dancing at BBT when she was 4 and wearing huge tutu's was the purpose in going to dance class. She progressed up through the levels and has come to love ballet. It is a pleasure to see her excited about learning a new move or gain control over her leg placement. Shy, she has coming to love being on stage - twice a year, Nutcracker in December and a Spring show in May or June. Most important for me, as someone who was not a ballet fan before our daughter started dancing, are the friendships and commitment we see her developing. I have watched "the big (high school) kids" doing homework while waiting for class and being incredibly supportive of each other, both on the dance floor and as they talk about the rest of their lives. Now I see our daughter developing strong friendships with other budding dancers and it is a pleasure to see. This year she will be in class 10 hours a week and as pleased as she is to get to dance that much, we can see that she is learning to manage her time so that ballet supports, rather than overshadows her school work. We are happy we wandered into BBT 8 years ago and look forward to continuing to watch our daughter experience the joy of dance in such a supportive environment.

Whether you're a retired pro, an absolute beginner, or a teenage has-been (that's me!), BBT is hands down the best place to take adult ballet classes in the East Bay. The new studios at Tenth street are luxuriously spacious (almost as big as SFB's studios) with sprung floors, new Marley, and live accompanists. There are multiple classes on the schedule every day and the prices are noticeably more affordable than you'll find elsewhere. Special shout out to Ms. Xiao, an incredible teacher who has a devoted following. Plus her lines are eternally perfect so it's a joy even to watch her mark combinations!! I don't know a ton about the children's and youth program at the moment but the instruction at BBT has been well respected for decades and it seems like the new school director Robert Dekkers has a strong vision and high expectations for continued growth and rigor of the program. They have a strong boys program and are pro-active about providing that little extra boost of social support than helps boys stay in ballet. I can't wait until my son is old enough for pre-ballet!

I was a professional ballet/theater dancer for most of my life. I've had some amazing trainings with the Westside School of Ballet and later with San Francisco Ballet School. I moved to Berkeley about 11 years ago after leaving NYC and since been taking BBT's Adult Open Classes with Sally Street, Robert Dekkers, Kaori Ogasawara, Sandra Chinn...which to ALL the faculties...I can't say enough about how amazing the ballet training is here. Fast forward this year, I'm enrolling my daughter and son into the ballet program which, gives me so much happiness knowing that BBT will be their second home for years to come.With that said, the school was good then, but with the brand new studio located on Tenth Street, the school has really taken on a whole new professional level. I am beyond excited for the new artistic direction led by Robert Dekkers who I believe will breathe new life, love, community into BBT!!

My daughter does the "we dance together" program for beginning dancers (little kids) and she just loves it.On my first visit, seeing my daughter not following instructions, goofing off and exasperating teacher Denise was really stressful for me. I was convinced it was a waste of money, and wanted to yank her from the program and offer that long-suffering teacher some reprieve. Yes, somewhere lurking in me is an obnoxious Tiger mother who wants nothing but success--and that is not a side of myself I want my kids to see. My husband does not share the stage mother neurosis, so he takes her, and they have a bonding experience. I think he'd secretly like to dance alongside her as the class name suggests. After I witnessed a class and started bitching, my husband grudgingly admitted he did not see a Merce Cunningham emerging from our family, and agreed to yank her after summer classes. When the class was over, our daughter kept asking to return. Because she professed to enjoy it and wanted to be there, he enrolled her again. I said, "Okay, but you have to take her."I spaced my second visit to the school about a year after the first, and only went because my husband had the flu. In that time, my daughter's ability to focus and follow instructions grew so much. She was actually dancing! Sure, she was still too chatty, and by no means the star of the class....but I was elated by the change.I'm satisfied with the progress however slow, grateful for the patience of teacher Denise who makes it possible. ...and for the side lesson this taught me as a parent about expectations.

I started ballet as an absolute beginner at age 39 in Robert Greer's Fundamentals class. I'm now a few levels up, still dancing with Robert, because he's AMAZING. I have tried other ballet schools and other teachers (both in the Bay and around the world), and few give the same dedicated attention and energy to their classes. I call myself a dancer now, and know I will only get better with practice :)

Robert's classes are the best! And the studio space is lovely. Used to trek across the Bay to take classes at Lines until I discovered BBT, now I just go to BBT

Have been taking adult classes in here for two years from zero experience (I only have one-year dance learning at ten-year-old, but cannot remember anything other than the pain and boredom from repetitive exercises). BBT has a very encouraging environment for anyone, and the adult schedule works pretty well for people who only have time on weekday nights and weekends.I mostly take Robert Greer's intro 1, intro 2 and beginner 1 classes, and a few intro 1 from Kaori Ogasawara and a few beginner 1 from Deborah Moss.Robert is working really hard to help everyone learn about ballet. I fell in love with this art in the first class. He gives a lot of information for understanding how does ballet works on the body, and keeps correcting the muscle usage, body position, musicality and everything. He also focuses on many small details, which can make a big difference when doing them right. But he is also very encouraging, so students are not afraid of making mistakes and are confident to keep trying and be themselves. Whoever asks questions after class, he will always spend time answering them thoroughly. In his classes I not only understand more about how to use the body for this art, but also how and what to watch ballet performance. I start to understand that ballet can be more than about looking at a perceived perfect standard body, it's about keep doing things right, to present the beauty of human.Although Kaori's class is intro 1 as well, but I think the level is between Robert's intro 1 and 2. She always demonstrates with artistic expression, and always teaches with lots of enthusiasm and love, which can give a lot of confidence to students who are not familiar with ballet, or using/presenting the body.Deborah's class has a more classical music list. It might seem overwhelming at first for how to combine it with the steps, but after a while it helps understand the classical side of ballet more. Her demonstration shows a lot of refined details and how quality can embody into movement.