Shawl-Anderson Dance Center

Berkeley, 2704 Alcatraz Ave, Berkeley, CA 94705 | β˜… 4.9 (57 Review)

πŸ“ž +1 510-654-5921

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Dance school Non-profit organization

About the Club

Established in 1958, Shawl-Anderson Dance Center is a Berkeley non-profit fostering a love of dance for all ages. Classes, workshops, camps, and intensives explore various dance styles in a supportive community.

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 Shawl-Anderson Dance Center
 Shawl-Anderson Dance Center
 Shawl-Anderson Dance Center
 Shawl-Anderson Dance Center

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Reviews

Barry Hashimoto

β˜… 5

Source: Google

Evelyn Renee

β˜… 5

This is a great studio! Staff is very friendly, classes are wonderful and it is close to bart. It's in an old craftsman so that does limit accessibility in the way of stairs and small restrooms but over all a wonderful dance school!

Source: Google

Rita Marks

β˜… 5

Source: Google

Susu

β˜… 5

Suhaila has the best class. I love her. She’s a very friendly and funny instructor. I can tell she loves teaching. Online class was great too.

Source: Google

Michelle H

β˜… 5

Source: Google

Benjamin Levy

β˜… 1

I enjoy Chris Lam’s wonderful ballet classes, I would have loved to continue taking his class. However, I have recently discovered that SADC posted a statement of solidarity with the Palestinian, while calling for the destruction of Israel. I find it very inappropriate to post a political statement inside a website of a dance company.
Any one that cares about Israel should boycott SADS, like I did!

Source: Google

Meghana Ravikumar

β˜… 5

Love it here!

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Kahyela Racinet Schmalle

β˜… 5

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Karina Mudd

β˜… 5

I am so grateful to have this studio as part of my life-- welcoming, inclusive atmosphere, great people, and awesome teachers. Thank you!

Source: Google

Claudia Reet

β˜… 5

Source: Google

Zoe

β˜… 5

SADC is an incredibly welcoming and safe space. It is where I have reignited my love for movement and have found a wonderful community of dancers and artists. All of the teachers and staff are supportive, friendly, and make the space feel like home. Extra love for Suzanne's Beginning Modern class!

Source: Google

Sally Picciotto

β˜… 5

This dance studio is my second home, and I would give it 10 stars if I could.
Shawl-Anderson has a unique combination of excellent teachers in every style, a completely non-competitive vibe, a supportive community, and a commitment to the credo that Everyone Can Dance. Although it was founded with a focus on modern dance, there are offerings in many dance genres for all ages (you are never too old!) at all skill levels from absolute beginner to professional. All body shapes are welcome. The emphasis is not on looking a certain way but on learning and growing as a mover. I have made so many friends there, as well as getting to explore dance under the guidance of many incredible teachers. SADC does what every dance studio should aspire to do: bring together and support a community of artists, audiences, and students at every stage.

Source: Google

Colin Epstein

β˜… 5

A bay area institution and legend, SADC is a great hub for dance community and high quality classes

Source: Google

Holly Fernandez

β˜… 5

Shawl Anderson has been a third space for me since before I understood what that meant, when I came to take classes during the holidays and summers I was home from college. Fast forward more than 20 years and now it is one of my most cherished spaces where I fill my cup each week. How I look forward to class. It is exactly what I need always. I’m so grateful for this space and time with this community where we feel safe and are among kindred spirits. Where we can connect inward and outward with each other, and move together. A third space, it is also home.

Now, my youngest daughter takes classes here each week and is finding her own embodiment and joy in dance.

β™₯️

Source: Google

Julian Pham

β˜… 5

Shawl-Anderson is the best! I've been coming here for more than 16 years and have met many important people in my life here. The center creates a very welcoming and encouraging community environment. The space is intimate, which is nice and offers a lot of different types of classes with great teachers.

Source: Google

Kathy S

β˜… 5

Shawl Anderson is a wonderful dance studio. I danced here in high school and returned in my 60s. My daughter danced here too, in high school. The Beginning and Intermediate Modern Classes for Older Movers are amazing and joyous. They are geared towards a wide audience, from those who have lots of experience and are returning to dance after a career break or injury to those newer to the practice, but want a class that is caring to their body and mind. Neela Reed's beginning ballet class is fantastic. We have a live pianist which is beautiful and rare. Neela breaks down movements to the simplest form, enabling us to really appreciate ballet technique. Antoine Hunter's jazz class is lots of fun and high energy.The teachers and students at Shawl Anderson create a warm, supportive community! The BEST!

Source: Google

Haley Rowland

β˜… 5

SADC is a very special, inclusive, supportive community that I’ve come to call my dance home. The dancing instruction is top notch and the people who you get to dance alongside are just spectacular people. This place is so dear to me!

Source: Google

Elizabeth Du Val

β˜… 5

Shawl Anderson is one of those rare dance studios that manages to be community driven, friendly, and provide good classes in a wide variety of dance styles. As a retired dancer, dance is vital to my well being, and i choose the location of my home in part by what dance studio is available to attend. These days, it is hard to find good ballet classes with live accompaniment, but Shawl's has them. As well as modern, belly dancing and other forms. In all honesty, attending class at Shawl's is one of the main things that keeps me in the East Bay! It is a local treasure.

Source: Google

Allison Narlock

β˜… 5

SADC has a great selection of classes for both youth and adults. I personally have been taking adult classes for over 2 years. SADC offers a wide array of dance genres and levels. There are classes for those who are professional dancers to those that have never danced before. I am beyond grateful for the community that SADC has to offer!

Source: Google

Mary Ruth Hammond

β˜… 5

Robin Nasatir's classes for older and returning students are exquisite. She is such a talented, encouraging teacher. I've studied with her since pre-Covid times and keep learning as I go. Shawl-Anderson is such a welcoming place! The teachers who occasionally substitute are also first-class. Community, respect, kindness are what we experience here. Such fun too!

Source: Google

Louise Music

β˜… 5

Dancing at Shawl Anderson has brought so much joy and energy to my life! Great teachers that meet each dancer at their level and provide challenge in a comfortable setting.

Source: Google

Patricia Banchik

β˜… 5

The modern dance teachers at Shawl Anderson Dance Center are outstanding! Classes are fun and it is a very welcoming environment.

Source: Google

Oliver Mills

β˜… 5

This space is immediately invitingβ€”a perfect place to start my dance journey! Queer and trans friendly in much more than name, SADC is a place where I feel accepted as a mover and celebrated for my unique body and all the history it carries. Love the variety of classes and class times to fit so many different movement styles and life schedules. It’s a beautiful, thriving community!

Source: Google

Andrew Merrell

β˜… 5

My favorite!!!

Source: Google

leah gillman

β˜… 5

Source: Google

Sandy Malloy

β˜… 5

SADC is a wonderful studio. The teachers are first rate in their knowledge, creativity and ability to accommodate all levels of student, from tiny children to people like me who hadn't danced in years. I love both Robin Nasatir's and Dana Lawton's classes and I love the spirit of community I always feel when I go there.

Source: Google

Dianne Jones

β˜… 5

I wholeheartedly recommend the dance classes at SADC! After being away from dance for 25 years, returning has been such a rewarding experience. The community is welcoming, and the teachers are fantastic. I’m incredibly grateful to be dancing again, reconnecting with my body, and finding so much joy in sharing the experience with others.

Source: Google

Jessica Waggoner

β˜… 5

SADC has been a home-away-from-home for me for nearly 15 years. The ethos and approach for teaching dance strikes a beautiful balance of rigor and technique with heart, creativity, and radical acceptance for all folks. In my best days, I want to be in the studio with my community. In my worst days, I want to be in the studio with my community. I can't speak highly enough of this important institution!

Source: Google

Steve Siegelman

β˜… 5

Shawl-Anderson has been my dance home for decades! The teachers are outstanding, the live accompaniment is superb, and the school and administration are warm, welcoming, kind, inclusive and excellent! This is a great place for adults to dance all through their lives.

Source: Google

Jeanne Pfeffer

β˜… 5

SADC gives me life! Such an amazing community of dancers to be a part of.

Source: Google

Jessica S Brown

β˜… 5

Source: Google

L

β˜… 5

SADC is by far the most welcoming dance studio I have ever been to! I started classes here back in 2016, taking intro to ballet and modern. This past year I've started taking advanced level classes and it has been a joyous experience to learn dance from the ground up! The teachers are incredibly supportive and the students cheer each other on.

Another bonus: this place is super queer! Students, teachers, the community as a whole--if you are a queer person looking for a safe place to move your body and soul exactly as they are, dance here!

Source: Google

Sima Belmar

β˜… 5

Shawl-Anderson Dance Center has been my dance home since the mid 1990s. There is no other place like it on earth: supportive, creative, rigorous, joyful. If you are looking to start dancing, get back into dancing, or enrich your current dance practice, look no further!

Source: Google

Bibi Tiphane

β˜… 5

Robin Nasatir’s Intro to Modern is the class to take for any adult who wants to give dance a try! For me, it was life-changing as she made me feel welcome on day one when I could barely put one foot in front of the other, and her encouraging style made me want to come back every week. I have been taking it almost 2 years now and it never gets boring because the choreography and the music changes every month! Hint: the Intro to Modern is hidden in the registration as β€œCourses” – call them if you can’t find it!

Source: Google

Janney Lockman

β˜… 5

As an adult learner, Shawl-Anderson has been a wonderful and welcoming place to begin taking dance classes. The Intro to Modern and Intro to Ballet series have been life-changing. The instructors are incredibly skilled teachers and dancers, warm and willing to answer questions and meet students where they are at. It's amazing having the opportunity to dance in a diverse and intergenerational environment, and I am continually inspired by the other students in my class. Even though I started taking dance less than a year ago, I already feel like a member of the Shawl-Anderson community, and am excited to nurture what I hope will become a lifelong dance practice in this space.

Source: Google

a hart

β˜… 5

I’ve been dancing at Shawl-Anderson for over a decade. The technique combined with artistry combined with community building is why I keep coming back! This is truly a place to receive some dance medicine, to reset, to heal, to get in a joy state of mind!
Thank you Shawl Anderson!

Source: Google

Sabrina Gaber

β˜… 5

Fantastic studio! Great, encouraging, welcoming, and kind staff. Extremely high-quality instruction, with positive feedback and in-depth explanation. And an absolutely amazing pianist. A truly beautiful and inclusive place, so glad I discovered this gem!

Source: Google

Sophia Huey

β˜… 5

Great school

Source: Google

Robin Greenspan

β˜… 5

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Mitch Petrie

β˜… 5

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Laura

β˜… 5

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Brianna Moore-Trieu

β˜… 5

Source: Google

Katie DeFriez

β˜… 5

My daughter loves the ballet program.

Source: Google

Marcia Breslin-Cantillana

β˜… 5

Source: Google

Jocelyn Stewart

β˜… 5

I loved learning ballet here

Source: Google

Kim Hutchinson Williams

β˜… 5

Excellent Pre-Ballet classes! My daughter LOVES Mrs. Julie.

Source: Google

Leticia Bugarin

β˜… 5

My three daughters have had the opportunity to participate in a dance class this past fall 2018 semester and will continue to participate next semester. Not only is Shawl-Anderson Dance Center welcoming, it is encouraging. The teachers are fantastic. The staff is very professional and helpful.
Families in who need support with tuition can apply for a scholarship. I highly recommend Shawl-Anderson to anyone thinking about a dance class for their children or themselves.
Thank you!

Source: Google

Loretta McFarland

β˜… 5

Source: Google

Fireberrytech

β˜… 5

Really great Dance studio, great events and wonderful people.

Source: Google

Drea Lanette

β˜… 5

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Sara Vincent

β˜… 4

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Alvin Chan

β˜… 5

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Maxisbored af

β˜… 5

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Adrienne Mermin

β˜… 5

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Bryce Breslin

β˜… 5

Great classes for kids

Source: Google

luby lu

β˜… 5

Source: Google

cambria anderson

β˜… 5

Its really fun i really like the ballet classes with Kate Jordan for (int. to ballet) and i love the class with Antnonie for jazz class but I personally love it go check it out!!!!!! I would perfer this dance studio but i would like if it had more classes like tap, contemporary, lyrical, salsa, african dance and ect. but i wished they had all those classes but it's a small building so i understand but it's a really cool dnce center i love it their so yeah like i said go check it out it's really fun jazz classes are wonderful and just teaches you a lot of things

Source: Google