Author Murray or Fred Astaire?

Question

which is a better ballroom studio/has a better program?

Answer 1

Fred Astaire for sure!  It has a better step list after the bronze level.  (In bronze level both are pretty much equal)  

While Arthur Murray offers a few more variations, Fred Astaire step list is far more beautiful.  Fred Astaire is more theatrical due to the movies, while Arthur Murray is more social and less flamboyant.

I have listed below what it will take to reach each level.  

Bronze:  approx 400 private hours

Silver:    approx 600 private hours

Gold:     approx 500 private hours

In order to reach each level, you will need to devote time and money to a skill you will have for a lifetime!  You will gain a whole new group of friends and a social group through dancing.

My husband and I met through dancing.  Over the years, we have both taught dance and it is something we will share until we are too old and crippled to dance!

Answer 2

They are both the same... just different terms used.  You are better off with a private instructor.

Answer 3

Arthur Murray is the only one we have here and my daughter loved it. It's more a matter of the people who are doing the teaching than the name of the studio.

Answer 4

They're franchises, so each studio has pretty wide lattitude in its operation, and the quality of instruction varies to extremes.  I wouldn't want to leap suddenly from the general to the specific.

In terms of reputation, AM studios TEND more to the hard-sell of "packages" that may not fit your individual needs or preferences. I also give a slight edge to the structure of the FADS instructional system. But again, those are only generalities. In any given studio you may be given an instructor who's learning a figure at noon to teach it to you at 3 p.m., or you may have a world champion. And please do not leave out the independents, many of whom spent years in one of the franchise systems (or both!). Though it's hard for beginners to judge the quality of instructors, the independents almost all are most flexible and willing to tailor for you a plan that really is individualized.

If you're new to ballroom, I'm afraid there's no foolproof way to judge which will be best for you. Just be prepared to run if you feel you're being "sold" something that isn't for you. Once you've found a studio you're happy with, you'll learn to dance, and after a few years' experience, you'll be able to judge who's optimal for your needs.