Latin Rhythms Dance Studio

I started taking lessons here as a straight-​up beginner with no dancing experience AT ALL. When I came for my first class, I didn’t know what to expect and was a little nervous, but that soon went away within the first few minutes of class. I took my first class with Maricza who is the owner of the studio. Everyone in that class was a beginner with a variety of dance experiences (a lot to none), but Mariza broke it down and got everyone relaxed and moving. Over the next few months, lessons at Latin Rhythms was something I looked forward to on a daily basis and I learned a lot. The atmosphere there is very welcoming to beginners. There are different teachers and they’re all great teachers with plenty of dance experience. There’s also a wide variety of dance styles you can take, with salsa and bachata being the most popular. Take a class and you will not regret it!

I’ve been to a few salsa clubs before as a beginner, but for the most part I didn’t know what I was doing. I’ve been taking the four basic classes and I’ve learned so much in 4 months! Each class breaks down every dance move into easily digestible steps. I didn’t even realize how much I learned. It’s not just me either. Many of the other students improve significantly. I went to a salsa club last night, and there were some missteps, but for the most part I was able to follow the lead with relative ease. I had a blast! Plus the instructors are great. Hector at the front always remembers my name. It’s a wonderful community

I’ve been taking classes here for 6 months and I think this studio is pretty awesome. I like that they have a consistent curriculum and really emphasize technique. I’ve taken classes at other studios before (but not in Chicago) and found that what you would be taught in each class was not very consistent. I’ve taken classes with 3 of the instructors and and have enjoyed them across the board. If you get a membership (which by the way there is absolutely no pressure to obtain), you also get discounts on your classes and at Alhambra (social dancing on Tuesday nights). If I end up moving to another city, this dance studio is one of the things I would miss the most.

I have been taking classes at this studio for almost a year now. And while many hobbyists come and go, the core group of individuals who regularly attend this studio are true artists, with an inconceivable passion for dance arts & Latin culture, which can be witnessed at one of their socials or scheduled performances.
Artistry is nurtured at Latin Rhythms. Kudos to the instructors and the supportive community they have fostered at the studio.

Year after year, their instruction keeps getting better and the social parties are the friendlies and best for dancing I’ve experienced. This studio is simply the best in the City.
Love, love. LOVE this place. My wife and I’ve been dancing here for the past 6 years and have taken just about every class they offer. It’s a super fun environment — from the instructors, to the other students, to the parties, and the culture. This is THE place to learn salsa and Latin dance. I’ve been to other Latin dance studios, but Latin Rhythms has the most attention to detail and proper technique while still making it lots of fun. They focus on timing and technique above all else. It’s not just a good time, it’s a good time while learning proper dance technique. Their prices are reasonable and their studio is beautiful. I can’t say enough great things about Latin Rhythms. It’s just perfect for someone who wants to have fun learning to social dance. You get to switch partners every few minutes, meet lots of people, and really learn how to get out there and dance in a social setting.

Great place to learn! The classes are more rigorous then other studios I tried. Teachers and students seem younger, so teachers may not be as knowledgeable or helpful for those with joint issues. Membership is a great deal for the first year of dancing.

The best studio in Chicago. Period.
It’s a home away from home, it prepares you on the right path to becoming a successful dancer. Hands down the best.

What made me check out Latin Rhythms was its reputation. I had heard from people at the clubs that Latin Rhythms has the reputation of proceeding some very good social dancers. So I had to check it out and I was pleasantly surprised to find the instruction to be very high quality and perhaps I’d say the most organized dance curriculum I had seen for Latin dance. While the price point is higher compared to other dance studios, you do get your money’s worth in that you get a lot of corrections and they will get you dancing confidently quickly. They will show you how to properly lead and follow. As both of a pro and con, they take dancing here fairly seriously which is good if you are someone who learns quickly and doesn’t mind the criticism but may not be the best if you are a particularly slow learner.

I have taken classes at other dance studios and my extensive experience through the Latin Rhythms curriculum has been nothing but positive. The classes are developed around a learning pathway that seems natural to develop solid dancer techniques. There’s a heavy emphasis on rhythm and timing. Students are taught to ‘find the 1′ in salsa first before rediscovering the intricate depth of latin music when rediscovering ‘the 2′ for mambo.
Styling classes are available for more advanced students who have mastered basic technique and of course there are ample opportunities for dancer performance and individual study.
Student dance teams are audition required intense experiences into working as a team and strategy building to rigorous practice and culminating into a performance on stage in front of the school or even more so — a dance congress. I highly recommend dance teams for confidence and technique building.
From yoga to body movement, spin classes and advanced level performance and dancing… My 6 years invested at LR have been some of my finest and most joyful. The friendships I have developed have been life changing.
It’s the kind of dance school, where it is nearly impossible to leave without a smile on your face and new dance moves in your heart. LR is a ‘family’ of dancers and I am proud to be one of them.
Some of the toughest classes I’ve had — have taught me the most and kept me coming back year after year. I highly recommend this school.
All dancers at one point were the people who stare at the shuffling feet wondering if they are doing it right. We all begin the same — it’s devotion and passion of commitment that create a dancer. The best time to start is now and LR is the best place to begin.

I have never taken classes from any other dance studio, but so far I am very pleased with my beginning salsa class. I like that you can try out the first class before committing to the four week class, but I think you will want to. I am learning at a good pace which the first two weeks really focus on the fundamentals and the next two weeks we will focus on more fancy options. I had the experience during the last class that I felt like I could dance, which is not something I have experienced before so it gives me hope by the end I will feel more confident than I expected to. I was able to witness an advanced bachata class which has me very interested in getting up to that level as it was very sexy.
The other thing that seems nice is it seems like more than a class, as it seems like more of a community. With a lot of gatherings during the week and studio nights, and yoga offered, there is always something going on.

The instruction is excellent. Period. I’ve tried classes with just about every instructor there and always learn something new. They really take into consideration reviews and suggestions from their students to improve your dancing experience.
The receptionist is new and very friendly :)
The owners are warm and greet their students by name.
Customer Service and happy students are important to them.
They have weekly mixers where the students can come and apply what they’re learning in class. These mixers are fun and often showcase beautiful performances from fellow students, LR company dancers, or other professional guest.
I started dancing there as a hobby… just to try something new. Now, nearly 2 years later, my children take classes, and my husband does too.
I would recommend Latin Rhythms to anyone.

This is where I started salsa my very first lessons. And even though I don’t attend anymore (I live in the suburbs And my schedule interferes) I will never forget where I started. BEST SCHOOL EVER! Thanks to latin rhythms im better at dancing! I love it and can’t wait to go back again soon for the socials !

I think LR is a great place to take classes. Each teacher has their own style of teaching and you will definitely hit the Latin Clubs knowing what to do on your feet in any style. They challenge you and have a variety of classes.
I did not give it a 5 for only one reason. I think those that work at the front desk can have more consistent customer service. Dont get me wrong I love my people at LR. They are great and I get what I pay for. But as a business, promoting and convincing people to attend a class, and making them feel welcome to a class, there are one or two at the front desk who unfortunately do not fulfill that role as much as others.
So I definitely give LR a thumbs up for taking classes and I will give a sideways thumb for the few personal at the front desk who can use more work in customer service.

If you want to learn to dance muy caliente, go to Latin Rhythms.
I don’t speak spanish and I didn’t know the first thing about salsa before I started going here. Now, after a couple years of classes, I’m a little disappointed that I’m still not a professional dancer. I kid. What matters is that I love doing it and Latin Rhythms taught me how.
I’ll admit that maybe they’re not the best at returning emails (call instead). I almost didn’t sign up because of that, but don’t let that turn you away! You can meet some really cool people in your class and you’ll fall in love with all the instructors. Try out different instructors, each of them have a different style.
The location is perfect because it’s close to the city, yet free street parking is still a possibility. It’s probably a bit difficult to get there without a car however.

I am one of those people who has terrible rhythm and timing. Though I have unsuccessfully taken dance classes at many other studios, Latin Rhythms (LR) is by far my favorite, and where I have evolved the most. The biggest complaints people have are that the rooms are divided by curtains, which make it difficult to drown out the sound of the music in the class next to you. This can be very distracting for those people who have to have correct rhythm and timing when they dance. For me, this wasn’t much of a problem, since I use to never be able to get the rhythm and timing anyway. The other major complaint is the front desk staff. I have to concur that some of the front desk staff aren’t that friendly and make the studio look really bad. This is the one reason why I am giving them 4 stars and not 5. As an example, I asked about fill-​in opportunities to one front desk staff member, and was told that the front desk no longer handles these inquires and I have to ask the instructor directly if they have any fill-​in opportunities. I thought this was ridiculous and asked another front desk staff member the very next day and got someone who not only answered my question, but did it in a friendly manner. Many other students have mentioned this problem to me. I honestly think it is a big problem which the studio doesn’t realize how bad it makes them look, which is tragic, because it is one of the best, if not the best studios to learn Latin style dancing in the entire City.
What I like the most about the studio is their class structure and instructors. The curriculum is very well thought out and planned, with 10 different levels of Salsa and separate classes that can be taken outside the regular curriculum, like styling classes and Rhythm and Timing (which drastically helped me to get at least a basic grasp of how to both find and try to stay on beat). I had to learn the very hard way that though there are 10 levels, that you should not be in a hurry to progress to the next level if you have not fully mastered the material, and in-​fact, you will be a better student if you do not rush. One of the owners helped me to realize this after she saw how badly I was struggling at keeping up with one of her classes. She pulled me aside, had me schedule a 1 on 1 session with her and then convinced me to do a fill-​in class at a lower level. Fill-​in opportunities are available for classes which you have already taken and are levels below your current level. These are free opportunities to help balance out the classes, as Latin Style dances require an even balance of both leads and follows. They are a great opportunity to both review and practice material that you have already taken, and they were the key for me to finally put all the pieces together as I didn’t have to worry about keeping up in the class, since I already know most of the material (though I needed to polish it up a lot). I see fill-​ins and an opportunity for a buy one get one free class. Even though fill-​ins are a level or levels below what you know, every instructor is different and teaches in their own style, so you still get to both learn new combinations and get more practice.
The thing I like most about LR are the instructors. I have been to many studios, trying in vain to find one that would be a good match for me since I thought I was virtually unteachable. After an exhaustive search, LR was the one that I realize had the best instructors. Some are more «forgiving» than others when students make some mistakes, and I am sure this works well for some students, but they also have instructors that can be very tough and ridged. It took me a while to realize this, but it was the ridged instructors who taught me the most. As an example, one of my biggest problems has, and still is at times, using the correct tension when I turn someone. Zek, who will tell you up front, he is a strict instructor, will force the leads to use a lot of tension to turn him, when he evaluates the leads. This forced me to properly practice correct tension and as he will simply stay still and look at you if you expect that simply very lightly signaling him that you want him to turn will get him turn. In the end, that strict instruction, made me a better lead.
I have read the other reviews and understand some of the complaints that others have, and having been to many other studios before, I testify that their some of their concerns are common among all studios. The biggest piece of advice I can give someone if they start taking classes at LR is take fill-​in classes. Also, if you don’t like the instructor or the culture in your class, try a different one. They are all different. Finally, go out and practice socially. Ask good friends to practice, and once I locked in a solid yes, I invited my other classmates (both leads and follows). If no one else in your class show up, at least you brought one dance partner.

This place is great! I’ve been going for about 6 years since it was located on Western and 25^th. The instructors are wonderful! It feels like a family there. I stopped taking lessons after Intermediate 2 salsa. That was kind of hard so I went back to Intermediate 1 for a few months. I love dancing! The other students are cool to hang out with. The age group is also younger I noticed than places like Latin Street (here they’re in their 20s or 30s mostly). Maricza and Sol are great and really good dancers. I’ve taken class with both. The studio is movIng soon to a new place close by. I can’t wait!

After completing basic 4 bachata and intermediate 1, I can definitely say I have noticed a noticable change in my skill level since starting classes here at LRDS. I had to stop taking classes because of other things going on right now, but I really want to go back for more. Im actually considering going back for salsa this time around. Anyway you look at it, LRDS is definitely the place to go to for some latin dance instruction. Hats off to LRDS!

Just had to update my review and give Amir props. He is such a great instructor. He is a very nice guy, and is very patient. He will take as much time as necessary to explain the moves. I also love his song selections. Every instructor plays whatever song they desire during class and his songs are great. I have, on numerous occasions, added songs he plays to my music collection. Mostly, he has such a smooth rhythm. He dances effortlessly. I took a couple of cha cha classes with him and now I’m taking salsa and I could not be more pleased.

I was interested in this studio because it’s not far from where I live and the parking is convenient. It was also recommended by a friend.
I called the studio and asked for a return call about which class to sign up for and they never called me back.
So, on a very snowy and incredibly cold evening I stopped in because the website states that you can come in any time for a free evaluation. The girl at the front desk was really distracted by whatever she was doing on the computer and barely addressed me. I asked her about what class to sign up for and told her I’d taken a beginning class at another studio and she said, «Well, I’d get you and evaluation but…» she looked around for a minute «no one is available right now. So, I’d recommend you sign up for the beginner class.» She went back to the computer.
I went to Latin Street instead.

By far the BEST studio for latin dance instruction in Chicago; the crème de la crème of salsa dancing, if you will. I can only speak regarding salsa, since that’s the only dance I’ve seen them doing/​teaching. I’ve only taken a styling class from Maricza, but I’ve not seen anyone in Chicago that can touch her or the other instructors.
Love the new studio and the idea of making it an atmosphere for learning and socializing (ie, café).
The thing I like about them is that they’re humble, friendly and have their own distinct style. Although a lot less commercialized and «under the radar» than other studios in Chicago, their performances speak loud and clear.