Dance with Alison

My fiancé and I took private lessons with Alison for our wedding first dance. We had already picked out a song — which was a little… unusual (unusually awesome AND nerdy) and Alison not only worked with us to make an amazing dance, but each lesson was comfortable and fun. We had never taken dance lessons before, but we enjoyed every minute.
Thanks Alison!

I took semi-​private swing lessons with Alison in 2015. It was so much fun! We were a group of six with mixed levels of experience and she found a way to both challenge the more advanced dancers, while also helping beginners learn the basics. Alison was very open to adjusting the lessons depending on what we were interested in learning or how fast/​slow we were able to pick things up.
I’ve been dancing for 10+ years, but I benefitted a lot from having semi-​private instruction and having an Alison help identify problems that I’ve never realized before. I think working with her helped correct some long-​standing issues I was having but couldn’t pin-​point
I especially appreciate the humor and positive attitude she brings to her lessons. Even when we were struggling to learn a combination, it was nothing but laughs. I highly recommend her!

So, it was like a dating game…
We was taking ballroom dance classes at the new Ah-​Lan Dance Studio and were trying to «match» the right dance instructor to the studio. After a parade of instructors, we hit the jackpot! Alison was the one!
We had suffered many mediocre instructors at other dance studios, so we knew she was the real deal.
Passionate, compassionate, enthusiastic, funny and patient– she can teach anyone to dance. She has a knack for really explaining how a leader in partner dancing can make the experience for the follower divine and fabulous (even for a beginner who is not following too well), and tactfully shares her wisdom on musicality and dance etiquette, including how to make your dancing look «cool» and not desperate to look cool.
Alison used to teach mainly in SF, so we feel SO fortunate that she is now in our local East Bay neighbourhood!
Come learn to dance and experience the Alison magic!

I convinced my husband to take dance classes with me knowing that there was a slim chance that he would keep it up. We signed up at Ah-​Lan Dance Studio in El Cerrito. Alison is a delight!!! She is amazing, not only a great dancer but a fantastic teacher! She is patient, pleasant and funny. We have already learned so much. Although my husband is having a tough time following the steps, he is happy to continue because he is enjoying himself. We are having fun as we are learning to dance. The atmosphere at Ah-​Lan dance studio is friendly and warm. Great people, fabulous teacher! I would definitely recommend it to anyone.

I first saw Alison when she was social dancing at a Cocomos one night a few years back. I was totally blown away by her sexy theatrical style of dance. At that time I wasn’t aware that she was an instructor or I would have signed up in a flash.
Now I am extremely fortunate to her as a choreographer for a Batacha dance troupe that I am in. Not only is Allison a great instructor and choreographer, she is also lots of fun to work with. She has a great sense of humor that will keep you laughing no matter
what else is happening on the dance floor.
I strongly recommend Alison for private or group lessons no matter what level you are. She will teach you to dance and make it lots of fun too.

Let me start by saying the last time I danced in front of people (except at a wedding) was in high school. I don’t dance, I don’t know how to dance, I have never wanted to subject people to my bad dancing.
That all changed a few months ago when I started taking lessons from Alison and then decided to join her performance dance group at Metronome. It has been such a revelation and so much FUN! She is a great teacher! Her classes are fun, engaging and not at all intimidating. Even if you have never danced before in your life (but always wanted to) Alison can help you learn to dance and look good doing it!

This is one of the few Unilocal reviews I have bothered to submit-​even though it is against my own self interest to give her a huge rave as it will only make it harder for me to get a lesson slot. But. have to say Alison is one of the best teachers i have had for anything – and would definitely recommend her as a dance teacher. After several mediocre dance instructor experience – Alison is the real deal. Lots of positive energy – focused on helping you learn based on your starting point, making sure you get the most of your lesson, and you leave having laughed and learned a lot.

Alison is a miracle worker. She turned me and my husband (who’s idea of «dancing» is throwing a fist pump) into a modern Fred and Ginger. Before we even started, she asked to hear our ideas about how we wanted the first dance to be. Then she taught us moves that didn’t look or feel choreographed. In just 4 lessons, she led us from the basics of swing dancing to complicated steps that were true crowd-​pleasers at the main event. She gave us hilarious tips that were easy to remember, so that we were able to focus on having fun during the actual dance.
I loved Alison so much that I even brought my father in for a lesson (much to his surprise). She was extremely patient with him and made him feel at ease. Despite his initial misgivings, he ended up have a great time. I highly recommend Alison as a dance instructor. She gave us the skills, confidence and grace to pull of a fabulous first dance that our friends/​family are still talking about. Plus to boot … she is a really fun person to be around!

Do you suffer from 2 left feet? I love dancing, but was just really bad at it. I had a goal to become comfortable with social dancing out at the clubs (Salsa) and I can proudly say I’ve accomplished this goal with Alison’s help.
Alison has been my amazing dance instructor for almost a year now. We always have such a great time dancing together. Not only is she extremely patient and fun, but she is a great listener as well– she always makes sure that the lesson is tailored to my specifications and ensures that I am getting the most of my lesson.

I know Alison can teach anyone to dance.
How do I know? Imagine, if you will, a birthday party. Where everyone has a glass of wine or two, and then one of the more engaging guests calls everyone into the living room for a dance lesson. With a little timidity they approach the circle, but a few light-​hearted jokes and references to shared experiences warms up the room. Soon the dance instructor, yes the birthday boy’s dance instructor, has everyone practicing a salsa step. Then after a few minutes, everyone is dancing.
Seriously. No, count them zero, no wallflowers.
And from the look in My Lady’s face, vibrating with excitement, I know it is time for us to go back to dance school. Communication, coordination, cooperation. There is nothing like it.
Thank you for reawakening us, Alison!

Dumbs down the technical to make it doable and understandable even for those with zero formal dance training. She’s funny, personable, dedicated, a brilliant dancer and, most of all, a fantastic teacher.

When I thought about our «First Dance» for the wedding, I wanted it all — I wanted to look smooth, confident, and interesting, and I wanted to do it all in as little practice time as possible (hubby and I are both very busy). Also, neither of us has ever danced before.
I contacted Alison and she said we could get away with just 3 lessons! So we signed up, and I’m very happy we did. From the first moment we met Alison had helpful hints about my shoes and cute sayings to help us remember the various dance tips. We really felt like we got a lot of value out of each of the lessons.
We practiced a lot between lessons, and when we came back, Alison was great at phrasing our mistakes in very positive ways, and so we had a lot of fun the whole time.
My brother-​in-​law taped our first dance and I was amazed to see how non-​embarrassing we looked. We were able to not worry about the details and have fun dancing. Success!

My husband and I took private lessons from Alison to prepare for our wedding dance, and she was fantastic! She made us feel very comfortable, which was good because my husband was REALLY nervous at first because he’s a real spazz and had never done any sort of dance, ever. In 5 or 6 lessons, Alison taught us some very simple moves and showed us how to combine and polish those moves to create a really slick looking first dance.
Alison is a very good teacher and a very talented dancer… and she is FUN and will make you feel comfortable. We looked forward to each lesson :)
We caught her right as she was returning to teaching after having her first baby, so she was very hard to get a hold of. If you experience this, keep trying until you catch her, because she is totally worth it!

I absolutely love Alison. She helped my husband and I work on our first dance for our wedding. She really understood our style — we didn’t want anything fussy or overly choreographed. We spent 5 sessions learning how to swing dance with a little extra attention on a dip for the end and a cute entrance.
Alison has an outstanding personality and is such a positive teacher. «I love _​_​_​» and tons of hilarious sci fi references from death laser on an elbow (to keep it in place) one second to a catholic grandma horrified that I showed my arm pit in another.
Very organized, if a lesson needed to be moved it was. Also, she was able to work in my dad and I at the very last second to learn a quick fox trot.
I highly recommend Alison and will post photos soon!

Not only a great class but fun fun fun. The combination of Alison and Jesus is amazing. I guese the difference could be compared to taking a boring driving school to a comedy driving school. These two know how to teach and make you laugh the whole time. Five stars.

Alison demands more than just a second glance, she’s absolutely captivating! I’ve had the pleasure of working with Alison over the past 4 years both as a dancer and as a producer.
I’ve seen her mesmerize stage audiences with sizzling routines. I’ve watched her transform her private students from beginners into competitive level performers. I’ve directed her in week-​long tapings of instructional videos where she’s nailed her performances in consistent single takes. I’ve seen her teach groups of teenagers, groups of professionals, groups at parties… I’ve seen Alison teach anyone and everyone in person and in front of the camera and she is nothing short of a true professional.
The most inspiring aspect of this professional, however, is her unbridled ability to have fun. No matter what the scenario, Alison is the life of the party, the lesson, or the event. Every single time I see Alison, she is radiating smiles, laughter, and jokes. She is completely comfortable in her professional skin and simply makes you want to be around her.
I highly recommend Alison to anyone, man, woman, novice, pro, student, or talent agent. You’ll find yourself staring not glancing at this amazing dancer, instructor, and performer. You won’t be able to take your eyes off her.
Josh Hoover
Blank Tape Productions

Dance lessons were so much fun with Alison. She took two total klutzes and turned us into samba-​dancing fools! We dazzled the crowd at our wedding last month — we still can’t believe it! Not only did we learn difficult choreography, we had an absolute blast doing it! Alison made the process a lot of fun. The added bonus of the whole deal is that we got to go to Glen Park once a week and get burritos after dance class at La Corneta. I can’t think of a better package deal!
Thanks Alison!

In the rush of wedding prep, we realize about 2 weeks before that we don’t know what we’re doing for a first dance. Sure, we go dancing all the time, but usually to the goth club or something where you dance near someone more than you dance with someone.
So we pay a little more than I wanted to and take two classes here. We sent her an MP3 of the VNV Nation song we wanted and I expected to be taught, i don’t know, the foxtrot or something. But it was this whole choreographed thing. I was a little overwhelmed but I figured if we pulled it off it would be cool. But since I actually managed to do the steps without having to look at my feet shows how good a teacher Alison is.
So the day comes and we get many compliments on our dancing. The beginning got a few laughs (I thought the beginning was a little strange too, but the song is slow at that point so there aren’t many options). Overall people really liked it and I feel we have set the bar high for my sister’s wedding later this year.
The only minus i have is that at the end of each lesson was some upsell. Like either for tickets to a tango event, or a firm suggestion to go check out the local businesses. It was a little strong for me.

Wow! Alison is absolutely amazing. I thought for sure that I’d be two left feet and that I wouldn’t enjoy learning dancing, since I’ve always been told that I have no rhythm. But when I got engaged and decided to learn to dance, I was referred to Alison and it was the absolute best choice!
Alison is super fun, energetic, and full of praise at all the right times — and funny comments when I’m a little (or a way bit) off! She knows exactly what to say to fix any problem that I might throw into a dance step.
I was never nervous. In fact, she’s made dancing so much fun, I might even continue taking lessons after the wedding!
I highly recommend her.

Jesus and Alison,
You guys totally rock. Never have i been to a salsa class that is as fun as yours.

My husband and I took lessons with Alison for our first dance at our wedding recption. We had a wonderful time learning and practicing. It was one of the best things about wedding planning (frankly probably the only thing my dear husband actually enjoyed about the whole process).
But we could not have imagined how much our guests would enjoy it. We really wanted something fun and upbeat, something other than the usual dancing-​slowly-​in-​a-​circle first dances we’ve witnessed at way too many weddings. Alison really created a number that was entertaining, complemented our music (More by Bobby Darin) perfectly, and was simple enough for us «non-​dancers» to learn in just a few lessons. And it really felt like us.
Though I thought Alison was exaggerating when she said the «crowd will go wild» at certain points, she was so right. They were wowed and amazed, and the whimsical spirit of the dance was totally contagious. She gave us the perfect way to kick off our reception.
I just discovered that she also co-​owns a dance entertainment company
. They provide quality dance
performances, instruction and hosting at a wide range of corporate
events and parties. So make your next party a dance party and they’ll teach your guests to salsa and swing!

I took swing dance lessons from Alison with a six person group. It was great! I consider myself really uncoordinated, and I didn’t have any relevant experience. She had great teaching techniques that made me feel comfortable and got me to a place where I really enjoy east coast swing social dances. I think the more experienced folks also befitted from things that were going on over my head.
And Alison is super fun! Class was hilarious and energetic and wonderfully lighthearted.