The History of Our Company:
Since 99% of our clientele are wedding couples and our packages are specifically designed with the wedding couple in mind our Wedding Dance Specialists help more engaged couples each week than any other dance studio in the area. We have literally taught several thousand engaged couples. That means our staff have an in-depth knowledge of the intricacies of the vital components of a wedding dance and the unique goals and needs of wedding couples. Our instructors are not just great dancers, they are well versed in the art of instruction and genuinely enjoy working with beginners and especially wedding couples. Unlike many studios which bring in non-dancers and train them from scratch and send them out to teach after a few weeks of training, we only hire top notch instructors with years of training, teaching, performing, competing and sometimes even adjudication experience. Many of them have university degrees in Dance, have recieved coaching from World Champions, planned their own weddings and all of them are bilingual college graduates.
We are proud to be the most popular wedding dance company in the nation and we promise to continue to earn your support and referrals! Our couples say that their First Dance was the higlight of their reception.That's why we believe that dance adds romance to a wedding and learning how to dance should be fun and easy!
Our Wedding Dance Coordinators:
Deborah Joy
As an instructor with 10 years of teaching and performing experience, my goal is to empower students with confidence and communication skills. My  teaching philosophy is the non-verbal communication involved in partner dancing is a powerful tool for enhancing these skills because it encourages patience, teamwork, trust, respect and cooperation - - all the same assets that contribute toward a happy marriage!
My teaching style enables students to look polished and smooth using my expertise in teaching the female and male dance roles, styling, and technique As a wedding dance expert, my lessons deliver a unique dance experience including valuable insights into the wedding planning process. My students' feedback indicates they appreciate my ability to tailor the lessons according to the individual interests of each student.
Deborah and Brian's First Dance:
Argentine Tango |
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Deborah and Brian's Last Dance:
Fox Trot |
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Testimonial: "Deborah's personality lights up a room like sunshine! She is a real positive force that has made a difference in our lifes and we are eager to tell others about her." --Frank and Michelle Schults
Dinah
 Dinah is a graduate of Johns Hopkins University and the Peabody Conservatory of Music. In addition to beign a ballroom dance instructor and West Coast Swing competitor, Dinah has previously taught violin, writing and Kung Fu.
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There is nothing I love as much as dancing. It brings a euphoric peace that I cannot get from anything else. The outside world ceases to exist when I am dancing. Being able to pass that joy on to my students is one of th emost rewarding feelings I have ever experienced.
All Students take something away from dance lessons. They are enriched in some way, and every way is unique. Wheter they discover a new passion, a fun pasttime, a stress-relieving hobby or a confidence builder that extends to allareas of their life, it changes them even if they do not realize it. Whenever they go to a wedding, a cruise or a formal event, the dance floor - that foreign, intimidating sport in the middle of the room-is no longer closed off to them. Most of the couples I have taught have always sat out for dances, not because they wished to, but because they felt they were not capable of dancing, and they wer too scared of looking foolish. The most common comment I get with new couples (usually from the man) is: "I'm the most uncoordinated person ever."
Being able to help that person realize that he is not, by any means, hopeless is very rewarding. Often times those are the students that come in grudgingly and reluctantly (usually dragged in by their fiancees) because they feel like failures before they even give it a chance. Watching their attitude change to one of eagerness, fun and pride is the greatest feeling a teacher can get. Rarely after a hard and exhausting day, I go to the studio unexited to teach. Without fail, however, within the first few minutes of teaching, I will forget my exhaustion, put all my energy into teaching and get as excited as my students. And just love it!"
Testimonial: "We have taken lessons with previous instructors at other studios in the past and Dinah is our favorite. That is why we have chosen to continue using her services for private lessons prior to our wedding. Dinah has a wonderful way of making dance fun and being upbeat and posiitve while still being a stickler for technique. She has really helped us improve into two fairly competent Fox Trotters. We look forward to showing off at our friends' weddings and our own in September, and we would not be able to do that if it werern't for Dinah. We give her our highest recommendation!" -- Dan, August 2008
Derek
 Derek has been competing and teaching for several years. "The instant I was introduced to ballroom dancing I fell in love—and Ive tried to  share that love with others ever since. It is my belief that most people, once introduced to it, will discover many new things about the sport and about themselves. It is partially for this reason that I enjoy teaching beginners to dance. Not only am I getting to work in a field that I love, but I am creating an opportunity for someone else to experience it as well.
Teaching wedding couples is a step above teaching any other beginner. The day is uniquely special to begin with, but add to it a chance for the couple to showcase grace and passion with all eyes on them and it has the potential to become so much more."
Testimonial: Derek went through the whole dance with us several times. He was very patient. We rate him all 10's for his professionalism, quality of instruction and our enjoyment! --Amy Lutz and Andrew Ford, October 13, 2007
Testimonial: Derek gave us good advice and truly wanted us to learn the dance. We enjoyed learning Fox trot and the instruction he provided helped us put our first dance together.
We were very satisfied with our lesson and would definitely consider taking more in the future..--
Nancy Maxa & Chris Kneisler, September 22, 2007
Kevin
 Kevin comes to the TWDS team with an MBA, Marketing Research and Trends Analysis background plus First place and Finalist titles in most of his ballroom dance competitions.
"What I especially like about teaching wedding couples is that I love to share my learning experience with them and help them enjoy the entire learning process. After all it is my passion of ballroom dancing that has brought me this far and being able to share this positive experience enlightens me. In their preparation for their special day, wedding couples have a lot to handle. A good instructor's job is not to choreograph complex routines. Instend, easy yet presentable choreography should be taught so that the couple can dance together as a unit in front of their family, relatives and friends on their wedding day and have an overall enjoyable experience."
Testimonial:
We chose a group lesson package and invited our parents to make a group of 6. Our instructor was Kevin Wang and he was fantastic! He had such a natural talent to listen to the selected songs, and then design the dances right from the top of his head. With only three 2-hour lessons, our first dance was flawless, and we even nailed the dip at the end! Our father/daughter dance and mother/son dance that we had practiced in our group lessons were fantastic too. Kevin was patient, kind, flexible and an overall pleasure to work with. I would recommend him to all couples that need to brush up or learn how to dance for their wedding! Thank you Kevin and thank you Wedding Dance Specialists! -- Eric and Casey Hansen, June 16, 2007
Testimonial: My husband I wanted to send a message to say thanks for the great dance lessons! Our instructor was Kevin Wang who was with us for all six of our lessons. Kevin explained things clearly and was able to instruct us in a way that we could easily understand. He was funny and patient and we can't imagine learning from anyone else. It was truly a great experience. We will strongly recommend The Wedding Dance Specialists and Kevin to our friends and family. Thanks again for a fun and exciting dance experience.--Katie and Michael Horvat, September 15, 2007
Testimonial: "Kevin was a wonderful wedding dance teacher. We were on a very tight schedule and he was able to teach us a lot in a short amount of time.The best were the low difficulty high impact tricks like the promenade. Our dance was a huge hit! Put it this way all of our guests were on the floor cheering the entire time. We are so indebted to Kevin." -- Elizabeth and Kenneth Vorrasi, September 15, 2007
Migle
 Migle has a Bachelors in Dance and has been performing and teaching for years. She has also competed, judged and recieved coaching from world champions. "The wedding dance and the time spent learning it has a symbolic meaning to me. It can be challenging yet fun, exciting, and deeply rewarding. Learning a wedding dance is like a metaphor of a mini journey of two people through life. When the two have to face the challenges of learning new things, it is important to be understanding, helpful and patient with one another. When I teach wedding couples, I love helping them to learn together to overcome the little challenges in dance, even if those challenges are as simple as taking two steps in the same direction. Conquering those challenges always lights up the brightest smiles in couples’ faces and this is what I find undoubtedly exciting and fun, and so rewarding in the end."
"Couples usually start uncertain and shy at the beginning; however by the time they are ready to step onto the dance floor, they certainly look confident, elegant and proud of themselves. It makes me happy knowing that I am able in some way to make one’s wedding day more spectacular and memorable forever."
Testimonial: "We would like to say Thanks to you and Migle. Our party went great, and our first dance was a big hit! We would like to purchase additional lessons (I understand that we may be able to do so under the same price structure we originally had). We had a great time with the lessons and want to learn more, additional dances, etc Thanks again!" --Derek Mason
Testimonial: The lessons were absolutely worthwhile! If it weren’t for our dance classes, we would be doing the “prom sway” at our wedding. My fiancé may have been fine with that, but I certainly wasn’t – and people that know Gordon are going to be blown away, because they know that he doesn’t dance.Migle was wonderful with my fiancé, who has had no dance experience at all and was very nervous. (He has frequently referred to dancing as “public humiliation”.) Migle’s demeanor helped Gordon to relax, and she expressed great understanding and sympathy towards his nervousness and helped him work through it – and by the end of his lessons, he was much more comfortable and confident. Her explanations of the movements and execution was good for novice dancers – she kept everything clear and simple. Between our 3rd and 4th lessons, we were having problems transitioning into the promenade (Gordon wasn’t leading clearly) – Migle identified the problem right away and within minutes she had helped Gordon to fix the problem, and now he does it perfectly.--
Erin Skelly & Gordon Cameron, Sept 22, 2007
Testimonial: If you live in the DC metro area, the grand champion of wedding dance teachers is definitely Migle from The Wedding Dance Specialists. At least that's what the trophy says that we gave her at the end of our series of 6 lessons. That's right, she was that good that we got her a TROPHY! She took my fiance from not knowing a single step of formal dance to looking like my own personal Fred Astaire. -- Matt and Vail Fucci, Sept 12, 2009
Upendra
 There are two skills that I find very attractive about teaching dance to wedding couples. The first one, of course, being the dance itself, and the second – the social intelligence needed to effectively communicate with the couples. It is the second skill that makes this job unique and interesting for me.
What I find special about working with wedding couples is the challenge and pleasure of being able to speak to them and customizing the classes according to their personalities and capabilities. The language, techniques, styles and steps that are suitable to one couple might not work well for another. Therefore, I have learned that understanding the couples with respect, professionalism and humor is imperative. This is both the challenge and the beauty I find in teaching wedding couples.
Since I discovered the art of Ballroom and Latin dancing in my sophomore year in college, I have always pursued it with great passion. While I have enjoyed learning and competing, I have found that teaching wedding couples is a fulfilling experience. The best moment perhaps is when they send me the pictures of their wedding dance and call me to say how memorable their wedding dance was.
Valery
 Valery has been teaching for The Wedding Dance Specialists for s everal years. She has a degree in Dance and Choreography. She was recently married to Peter, her professional dance partner and understands the pressures of planning a wedding. (The photo on the right is of her wedding dance!)
Testimonial: Kasey and I had our wedding on April 26th, and our first dance was a huge hit. The guests absolutely loved it. I can't tell you how many complements we got. Thank you Valery and TWDS! -- Matt and Kasey Reber
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