Hinsdale Dance Academy: Elite Dance Education in Westmont, IL

Hinsdale Dance Academy Introduce

For aspiring dancers and dedicated students throughout Illinois, Hinsdale Dance Academy (HDA) in Westmont stands as a prominent institution for elite dance education. Opened in 2012, and expanding significantly since, HDA has established itself as the largest dance facility in the western suburbs, offering over 16,000 square feet of dedicated dance space. This academy is committed to providing comprehensive, high-quality training across a wide spectrum of dance styles, aiming to develop not just exceptional dancers but also confident and successful young adults.

Hinsdale Dance Academy's philosophy centers on the belief that dance education offers invaluable life lessons. While acknowledging that not every student will pursue a professional dance career, HDA believes that everyone benefits immensely from quality instruction. The academy emphasizes commitment, dedication, responsibility, and accountability, teaching students that hard work truly pays off. This holistic approach helps students develop discipline and resilience, qualities that are beneficial in all aspects of life.

The academy prides itself on exposing its students to the highest caliber of training and performance opportunities. HDA's faculty includes highly experienced instructors, and through their extensive connections in the dance industry, the academy regularly welcomes guest master instructors from prestigious companies such as Alvin Ailey, American Ballet Theatre, Boston Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, and New York City Ballet. This exposure to top-tier professionals enriches the learning experience and provides students with diverse perspectives and advanced techniques. HDA's impressive track record, including numerous students qualifying for or attending the Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) New York City Finals and receiving the prestigious Outstanding School Award from YAGP in 2018, speaks volumes about the quality of its classical dance training.

Hinsdale Dance Academy is strategically located at 645 Blackhawk Dr, Westmont, IL 60559, USA, making it a highly accessible destination for families throughout the western suburbs of Chicago and the broader Illinois region. Westmont is a well-situated community that benefits from excellent road networks, placing HDA within convenient driving distance from Hinsdale, Downers Grove, Naperville, Wheaton, and Glen Ellyn, among other towns.

The academy's facility is designed with ease of access in mind. It boasts ample parking, a significant advantage for a busy dance school, ensuring that drop-offs and pickups are smooth and stress-free for parents. For those utilizing public transportation, while direct public transit to this specific address might require transfers depending on the starting point, Westmont is generally well-connected by local bus routes that link to wider regional transit options. The large, purpose-built facility with six spacious studios, viewing windows, and comfortable waiting areas further enhances the overall accessibility and positive experience for students and their families. This thoughtful location contributes significantly to HDA's ability to serve a wide and dedicated community of aspiring dancers.

Services Offered:

Classical Ballet Training: Comprehensive ballet syllabus that forms the foundation for all dance styles, focusing on proper placement, alignment, balance, technique, and control. This includes pointe work when appropriate.
Jazz Dance: Stylized, fast-paced classes employing ballet concepts with technical variations, focusing on leaps, turns, strength, and flexibility to upbeat music.
Contemporary Dance: Incorporates elements from classical, modern, and jazz styles, emphasizing fluidity, expression, and emotional depth. (Open to dancers placed in Ballet 3 & above).
Hip Hop: Fast, bouncy, sharp, and fun movements often seen in music videos, focusing on swag, attitude, groove, and body isolations.
Tap Dance: Rhythmic classes using tap shoes as percussion, an excellent way to learn musicality and timing.
Lyrical Dance: Merges ballet and jazz styles to express emotion through beautiful, fluid movement and storytelling. (Open to dancers placed in Jazz 4 or above).
Musical Theatre Dance: Combines dance, acting, and performance quality, emphasizing connection with the audience and facial expressions, utilizing jazz and tap styles. (Placement based on Jazz placement).
Acrobatic Dance ("Acro"): Fusion of classic dance technique with acrobatic elements, taught by Acrobatic Arts certified instructors using their curriculum.
Progressing Ballet Technique (PBT): An innovative body-conditioning and strengthening program that uses muscle memory to improve core stability, weight placement, and alignment. All HDA ballet instructors are PBT certified.
Performance Opportunities: Students have opportunities to participate in full-length ballet productions (e.g., The Nutcracker, Cinderella), and competitive events like Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP).
Guest Master Classes: Regular opportunities to learn from guest instructors from prestigious dance companies.
Pre-Professional Programs: Designed for serious students aspiring to dance professionally or pursue higher education in dance.

Features / Highlights:

Largest Dance Facility in Western Suburbs: Spanning over 16,000 square feet, featuring six spacious studios with viewing windows, a large dressing room, study and teacher lounges, and ample waiting areas.
Elite Classical Dance Education: Dedicated to providing the highest quality training, evidenced by student success in prestigious competitions like YAGP.
Award-Winning Recognition: Received the "Outstanding School Award" from Youth America Grand Prix in 2018, and its founder/director won the "Outstanding Teacher Award" in 2021.
Experienced and Connected Faculty: Instructors have strong connections in the dance industry, bringing in guest master instructors from world-renowned companies.
Comprehensive Dance Styles: Offers a wide array of dance disciplines, from foundational ballet and jazz to contemporary, hip hop, tap, acro, and musical theatre, catering to diverse interests and skill levels.
Holistic Student Development: Emphasizes life lessons through dance, teaching commitment, responsibility, accountability, and the value of hard work, aiming to create successful, confident young adults.
State-of-the-Art Rehearsal Space: Includes a 59x65 feet studio dedicated as a state-of-the-art rehearsal space.
Full-Length Ballet Productions: Regularly presents professional-level ballets like The Nutcracker and Cinderella, featuring both students and professional dancers.

Contact Information:

Address: 645 Blackhawk Dr, Westmont, IL 60559, USA

Phone: (630) 484-3241

Mobile Phone: +1 630-484-3241

For families in Westmont and across the Illinois region seeking a serious and comprehensive dance education, Hinsdale Dance Academy offers a compelling option. Its suitability for locals stems from its commitment to providing elite training within a large, modern facility, making it a convenient and high-quality choice for dedicated dance students.

The academy's extensive curriculum, covering everything from foundational ballet to contemporary and hip-hop, ensures that students receive a well-rounded dance education. The opportunity to learn from and be inspired by master guest instructors from prestigious companies is a significant draw, providing unparalleled exposure and networking for aspiring dancers. Furthermore, HDA's strong track record in competitions like YAGP, with numerous students achieving high honors, demonstrates the effectiveness of their training methodology and the caliber of talent they cultivate.

Beyond the technical training, HDA's philosophy of imparting "life lessons through dance lessons" resonates strongly with parents who seek to instill discipline, responsibility, and confidence in their children. While individual experiences can vary, the academy's stated mission to develop successful, confident young adults through dance, combined with its impressive facility and strong performance opportunities, makes it a notable choice for those in Illinois prioritizing serious dance development in a professional environment.

Hinsdale Dance Academy Photos

Hinsdale Dance Academy Location

Hinsdale Dance Academy

Illinois DuPage County Westmont Blackhawk Drive

645 Blackhawk Dr, Westmont, IL 60559, USA

Hinsdale Dance Academy Reviews

I waited almost eight months before posting this review.l so that could give a fair, non emotional review. Late last year we were treated horribly by HDA and the owner of this business treated my family very poorly. Her communication, the way she treats her business and how she treats “certain” families is terrible. We moved to another dance studio and i wanted to see what the experience at other places would be before posting this review. I can say our new dance studio treated everyone wonderfully, the environment is kind and nurturing and the academy truly values the kids more than just being a dancer that can perform. While the way we exited the academy was very upsetting I am thrilled we left and we are much happier now. I will also say many of the reviews below are from instructors at HDA.
Jun 19, 2023 · Mansi Patel
I would caution anyone from sending their child here. The training is sound but you and your child will be treated horribly. This business threatens their members with fines and they also charge you for everything ($75 fine to parents for not volunteering, significant costume and ticket expenses, etc). I would advise anyone to seek opinions and references before sending your child here.Before you read my character being attacked by the owner, you all should know the facts:1. We did not bully or berate anyone, the staff member apologized to us for how she spoke to us. My character has never been questioned in my life until the owner decided to both privately and publicly do so.2. The Academy refused to communicate with us about the situation and sent one line emails and texts, happy to provide to anyone interested. They also said they would call us after the first show but did not initiate a call or respond to our calls other than the above.3. Our child suffers from anxiety and vomited before the show. We did not have an issue removing her from that show but she was scheduled to perform in 3 other shows and we wanted to know if she could perform later that evening (first show was at 10am and second at 6pm). The Academy refused to communicate with us (see above) and we as well as other family members were not able to see any of the performances.4. The owner demanded we apologize to the staff member (who had already apologized to us for her behavior) and refused to hear our side of the situation. She also sent us an extremely condescending email without speaking to us at all.5. All I asked was for the Academy to have empathy towards our child who again suffers from anxiety.The owners response validates my points about the Academy. I was not going to go into our personal situation but felt it was important to share the truth.
Dec 10, 2022 · Sunil Mehta
Since Miss Jenn started this company, I have watched in amazement the education, growth, experiences of both staff and other dancers and feel the care with which Miss Jenn has taken to provide highly skilled instruction, creativity & ingenuity beyond what most others did during covid & the fact that every detail for anyone wanting to join this academy is outlined to a T in the contracts they/the parents sign. Everything in this academy is above and beyond and the parents assistance with productions is always amazing.For those that take their trash to the internet & make bad reviews because your child didn’t get the part wanted or because you feel you’re being nickled and dimed- you chose HDA because of their reputation & you signed the contract. Are you aware of the costs for special made costumes-not WalMart costumes. Or the cost to have some of the best talent come teach at the school? In the past 2 years of covid, HDA has taken great precaution to keep everyone safe. I would not like my child or anyone else’s to get sick because of your selfishness. I’m guessing if someone else’s child was sick and got yours sick you’d be throwing a fit and again bashing HDA.Miss Jenn and her staff are very professional & caring. That’s why they are so highly regarded in the ballet community & received so many awards!
Jan 11, 2023 · Angela Bryant
My two girls have been dancing here since they were two (in Mommy & Me class). I was careful about choosing a studio, as I come from a performance background and I know how cutthroat the dance world can be. I was looking for a few things in particular and have been extremely pleased with HDA. Specifically, I was looking for:1) Choreography and costumes that are age-appropriate. I have a huge problem with the sexualization of young children and I'm happy to say that I have never seen a child at HDA in anything that made me uncomfortable. (So, no five-year-olds twerking in bikinis.)2) Promoting healthy body image. The dance world (ballet in particular) notoriously pushes dancers to be unhealthily thin. I have never heard of a dancer at HDA being told that they needed to look a certain way in order to dance and I've been happy to see dancers of all sizes and shapes in lead roles over the past several years.3) Camaraderie among dancers. I have no patience for petty, backstabbing meanness. Dance does have a competitive element to it when it comes to coveted roles and I know how ugly behavior can stem from jealousy. I'm not quite sure how she's done it, but Jennifer has managed to create an environment where the students all genuinely cheer for each other, the older students nurture the younger students, and the younger students admire their leaders.4) Performance opportunities. I think that publicly putting yourself out there — in any way, on stage or in a business presentation — is one of the most terrifyingly vulnerable things someone can do, which is why it's a skill that is good to develop at a young age. HDA finds a way to include even their youngest dancers in their productions (e.g., Reindeer in "The Nutcracker," mice in "Cinderella," guppies in "The Little Mermaid," etc.), which is not true of some other studios in the area.5) Excellent training. Finding a studio that emphasizes good technique is extremely important, as ballet is the foundation for so many other kinds of dance. My oldest daughter (11) started en pointe this year and I will say that the evaluation to see if she was physically ready was excellent. The studio also encouraged us to see a doctor if we were hesitant, who also gave the green light. And quick note: starting en pointe doesn't mean immediately doing pirouettes in the center. The class moves slowly to properly develop the technique. On the other side of this, both of my girls have repeated dance levels in the past because the instructors didn't feel that they were physically ready to move up. I appreciated that they were looking out for their development and, while my daughters were disappointed, it gave them extra incentive to work toward improving in certain areas so that they would be ready to move up the following year.6) Nurturing teachers. The fastest way to burn out is to hate going to class. That's never been the case for my daughters at HDA. Starting in the Young Children's Program, the classes are so much fun and so joyful. It really did instill a love of dance early on. Moving into the upper level classes, I see the instructors correcting and challenging the dancers, but never with a hardened rigidity that I've observed elsewhere. Each instructor has their own style, but the constant is the care that they show each dancer as a human being — and how much they love to teach.I found one studio that had everything on my list: Hinsdale Dance Academy. I haven't been disappointed. Dance at HDA has given my girls confidence, a strong work ethic, opportunities for leadership, and a spirit of sisterhood. They have learned to overcome obstacles, to deal with disappointment gracefully, and the exhilaration that comes with obtaining a long-term goal. I highly recommend it.
Jan 11, 2023 · Allison Peters
My daughter has been here for years. We love the faculty and we definitely appreciate their expertise on educating dancers from ages 2 and above. I drive 40 mins for my daughter to attend this specific dance studio. Highly recommend and worth every penny. The teachers treat my daughter with compassion, truly love her and always look out for her best interest.
Feb 20, 2018 · Nicole Dean