Chic Spotlight: You & Me Dance Studio

Cincy Chic: What is You & Me Dance Studio?
Larissa Lombardo, Owner of You & Me Dance Studio: You & Me Dance studio is a non-profit studio in Morrow that focuses on social ballroom and latin dance instruction. Group classes and private lessons are available for people of all ages – adults and children.

Cincy Chic: What’s the inspiration behind it?
Lombardo: The inspiration behind You & Me Dance Studio is to provide reasonably priced instruction to people of all ages. Our goal is to provide the youth with all the necessities to follow their dance dreams. This includes offering a tuition-free dance workshop program, supplying the children with dance shoes, providing coaching opportunities and paying for performances and competitions. All instructors and staff members are volunteers and everyone strives to give back to the community and spread the love of dance!

Cincy Chic: Who’s behind it?
Lombardo: My husband and I are professional dancers and manage the studio. We’re a husband and wife team that has experience teaching at popular franchised studios. Our nonprofit has a strong Board of Directors that includes teachers, CPAs and successful entrepreneurs.

Cincy Chic: When did You & Me Dance Studio open?
Lombardo: You & Me Dance Studio was formed in 2014 but officially opened in July 2015.

Cincy Chic: What types of classes do you offer?
Lombardo: You & Me Dance Studio focuses primarily on ballroom and latin dancing which includes some of the popular dances seen on Dancing with the Stars, such as swing, salsa, cha cha, waltz, rumba, tango, and foxtrot.
Group classes are held throughout the week and private lessons are available by appointment. Some classes are geared towards beginners while offers are focused on intermediate to advanced dancers.
You & Me Dance Studio also has a specialized wedding dance program which offers couples several options based on their needs and vision of their first dance. Choreography can be designed specifically for the couple to make their dance truly special.
The youth workshop program which will begin in 2016 will teach children the foundation of ballroom and latin dancing. These classes will be held in a group class setting (grouped by age) and will be held on Saturdays. In addition to learning how to dance, this program helps promote etiquette /manners, discipline, and a healthy active lifestyle.

Cincy Chic: Can you give us price points for some of your classes?
Lombardo: Adult group classes are priced at just $12 per couple and private lessons are $35 a couple. All classes are an hour long. There are no contracts – students can pay for lessons as they take them. The youth dance workshop program will be completely free of charge when it launches in 2016.

Cincy Chic: What makes You & Me Dance Studio unique?
Lombardo: You & Me Dance Studio is unique because it is a completely volunteer-based non-profit. All funds go toward operational costs of the studio and the youth dance program. Due to the unique structure of the studio, prices for lessons (private and group classes) are extremely reasonably priced. Also, there are no contacts which are very rare since many studios require lessons to be purchased in bulk and private lessons and group classes to be purchased together in a package. You & Me Dance Studio believe group classes and private lessons should be purchased individually and at the frequency of the student which allows for students to have complete control of their dance learning experience!

Cincy Chic: Is there anything new on the horizon?
Lombardo: A tuition-free dance workshop program will be offered for children starting in 2016! This is made possible through the funds of lessons, generous donations, and fundraising efforts.

Cincy Chic: Where can readers go more?
Lombardo: To learn more about You & Me Dance Studio, visit our website or contact us at 513-970-0020. We’re also on Facebook.