Kristina Pulcini Ballet Academy

Our two daughters have been attending this Ballet academy for 3+ years now. The academy continues to grow, moving into a larger building with multiple studios. We found the academy like many other parents, after having had our kids in other local dance schools. The other schools offer non-​ballet dance, which, if you are happy to see your daughters dressing provocatively and dancing as if they should be in a Vegas show, you will be fine with. For those of us looking for more modest styles of dance and dancing outfits, in a family-​friendly environment, I suggest stopping by to check out this academy.
I grew up in a family of ballet dancers (combined 48 years of dance school, pre-​college), and the general lack of ‘prima donna-​ness’ and ‘snarkiness’ at this academy is refreshing. If you are one of those parents who thinks your little princess should be the star of each recital, this is probably not the place for you.
Another plus is they save families money by renting costumes (which are always clean and neat), instead of making you buy multiple costumes like Radomille, etc. One area they could change, which is irksome, is to allow people to take non-​flash photography/​video at the recital. In my attendance at 20+ years of recitals, I have never seen an accident with non-​flash. Let’s face it, parents want to video their kids dancing, and usually zoom up on their child. Buying an expensive DVD that doesn’t do that is frustrating, leading a number of parents to cheat and take video anyway.
But overall, a nice demure place to have a daughter learn ballet.

Black Swan Natalie Portman style best sums up this dance studio. If that is what you are looking for, then this is the place for you. It is a mother/​daughter operation and has the potential to be such a terrific local studio. It’s unfortunate that the duo are wound so tight, with such poor people and communication skills, that it is not a friendly environment. I would not recommend this place for your small child. Kristina may have been a professional dancer, but that does not make her a great teacher of small children. And I’m not sure what medication the mother is on (or what medication she should be on) but it makes for an uncomfortable vibe all around. Go elsewhere. Life’s too short to subject your child and yourself to this place.