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John Werner
SHE`S VERY PASSIONATE ABOUT THE BALLET,EVEN THE DETAILS SHE`S INCREDIBLE.
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Rion Kikuchi
I had Ms.Olga’s ballet class and character dance class since I was 13 years old through 15 years old, was taught Russian Vaganova techniques, and I really learned a lot of great techniques to show gracefully on the stage. Ms.Olga’s class was pretty tough but at the same time it was really fun to get knowledge of the body and Russian ballet. Ms.Olga also taught me to become more flexible so that I can do more great techniques to show the audience and that made my life now I think. Ms.Olga is not only a wonderful person as my teacher but also in her personality. I love her teaching me and other students.
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Tammy Lynn
Olga loves her students and she loves to teach. She truly cares about them learning proper technique, form and vocabulary. She cares about them as people. She doesn’t care only about those who have natural facilities and turn out, she wants them to enjoy and have fun. My daughter started with her at age 3, she is now a professional ballet dancer with a company. She always takes a class with her when she can even if it is a beginning class.
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Matthew Reynolds
Her passion for dancing - just take one or two classes with her, and her passion for dance, emanates from her. It's contagious.
Her passion for improving skill sets and framing this as it applies to life - To know bits of information is one thing, to be wise is another. She doesn't just glaze over skill sets, she focuses on principle, and drills it until it is internalized. As with any principle, this is applicable to all facets of life.
Her caring spirit for her students - she genuinely cares about her students, and seeing them improve. She cares about building their confidence, their self-esteem, and their outlook on life. She helps to nurture respect for each other as partners, as teammates, and how integral it is to encourage others and to help build them up.
Her sense of humor and optimistic outlook on life in general - She always made time to have fun, and showed up with a great attitude.
Her professionalism - she always was flexible and made time for lessons and appointments. She was always quick to respond. If something needed to be changed she communicated in a timely manner and accommodated.
I began my dance journey at the young age of 32. I'm an adult male, who has never had any dance experience prior to this. She had a lot of patience with me in the beginning, and encouraged my improvement. Over a two year period, i had three different partners, but the single, stable variable was Olga. She continued to work with me during transitions, and encouraged me coming to a technique class. I eventually came to her Pilates and ballet class as well to help improve. I only ended up at one competition, as a student/teacher category, but it was a great learning experience. I had never imagined i would ever dance in a competition. I was devastated when her family had to move to Tampa. I enjoyed working with her family, and they became very dear to me in my everyday life.
Huntsville's loss is Tampa's gain. I think anyone that chooses to work with OlgaDNZ will receive a wonderful growing experience.
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Afura T
Ms. Olga taught me Vaganova style ballet when I was younger. She was extremely efficient in creating analogies that physicalized the movements that she wanted us to do. I found that she was able to teach classes that caused all the dancers to grow each time because she insisted that we do our best and showed us how the technique worked. I also took a couple of ballroom classes with her and she was able to provide the same physicalized advice that allowed me to quickly adopt some elements of the technique. She is an amazing teacher.
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Meghan Lyman
Olga is an incredibly talented dancer and teacher who pushes her students to be the best they can be. I attribute much of my ballet technique, strength and work ethic to her classes. I am a different dancer because of her.
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Marie Burns
Both of my daughters studied and trained with Mrs Olga at Huntsville Ballet for several years. She is passionate about dance and her dance students. She is professionally trained in the Vaganova technique and fully utilized each class to teach and train our daughters. We love her!
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Emma Burns
I was a student of Mrs. Olga’s for almost 10 years. Her knowledge of and passion for Russian Vaganova technique greatly influenced me as a ballet dancer! Even after officially quitting dance, I continued to take lessons and learn from her. You can tell that she is very passionate about dance, she pushes her students because she sees their potential & wants them to succeed!!
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Steven Burkett
Olga’s attention to detail is superior she sees things others don’t and offers encouragement, praise and corrections. But most of all she takes the time to explain the why behind each correction. My daughter Hannah trained with Olga privately for just over a year and her growth in dance and her knowledge of dance grew so much!! We would still be with her if she hadn’t moved to Florida but believe me when I say I have thought many times about making trips down just for Hannah to work with her. She really is the BEST and we are so thankful to have worked with her!
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Abby Callahan
She’s a wonderful teacher, with great knowledge of Vaganova technique. She’s very detailed oriented, and helped me be the ballerina I am today!
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Lorna Foster
She is amazing !!!! her knowledge of Dance is tremendous and she is always eager to Share, Teach and Mentor her students. Olga teaches her Students how to make their bodies work for them but also to treat their bodies with kindness. She considers the whole dancer, the Mind, the Body and understands the drive that makes a dancer who she is. My daughter learned so many valuable lessons from Olga and she is now dancing professionally in New York. She often says she still hears Olga's voice in her head when facing a challenge in the studio. Time spent with Olga was invaluable for Morgan and we will be forever grateful for the time and attention given to her from Olga.
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Elizabeth Hayes
Olga trained my oldest daughter in Russian Vaganova ballet for 7 years. She is an excellent teacher. Because of Olga's instruction, my daughter was successful in her ballet auditions. She was able to attend the summer program at Pacific Northwest Ballet, Harid Conservatory, and the Academie of Ballet in Paris. Olga worked with her in class and private lessons until my daughter became an apprentice in a professional ballet company. I attribute my daughter's success to Olga's teaching!
She also trained my younger daughter in ballroom dancing. She is a wonderful all-around dance instructor!!!
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Claire Sheppard
Olga has been the most special coach I have ever had. She encourages work hard and achieve your goals and is a very passionate teacher. Olga was the first ballroom teacher that I had and she has truly given me the foundation to succeed not just in dance but in life as well. I would not be the dancer I am today without Olga! She a fantastic teacher!
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Dena Blossey
Learning Vaganova ballet technique was fairly new for my daughter and the care and charisma that Ms. Olga taught with was outstanding! I was trained in a myriad of ballet styles as a young student, so it was inspiring to know the dedication that was given to teach fully the detailed technique of Vaganova ballet... this gave opportunity for my daughter to grow as a ballet dancer and allowed her acceptance to dance at some of the biggest ballet schools’ summer programs. The versatility of being trained in multiple ballet techniques is extremely important. My daughter was very fortunate to have Ms. Olga as her teacher!
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Laura C.
Olga is a true professional! My daughter was under her dance tutelage from age 4 to 14, and she considers her the best dance instructor she has had. Olga is truly outstanding! We were so sad when she moved to Florida.
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Natassja Tidball
Olga Jacobs was my teacher from the ages of 4 to 18. She taught me in group classes at my local ballet school until eventually in my early teens I sought out private ballet lessons, ballroom lessons and group Pilates classes from her. She helped me for many years with my struggles in dancing having to do with my body alignment and cohesiveness seeing as I never seemed to stop growing! After I graduated from high school I was scouted from a local modeling agency in Alabama. Soon after I signed contracts with elite agencies worldwide, and moved to New York where I was signed with New York Models. I shot campaigns for Marc Jacobs and walked on the catwalk for everyone from Tory Burch to Vivienne Westwood. I wholeheartedly believe that my success in modeling had to do with the people around me growing up. Mrs Olga’s strict, hardworking, yet caring style of teaching through the Vaganova technique creates not just a successful dancer, but a successful individual. My numerous years of training helped me as a model in posing, body awareness, elegance, and my walk for all of the fashion weeks around the world.
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Shannon Satterfield
Miss Olga was my daughter’s teacher for several years in character style dancing and ballet. I must say that Olga was one of our favorites. Though she had high standards and expected hard work, she only wanted to see her students grow and succeed to their full potential. I can always be thankful that Miss Olga was part of our dance journey!
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Sarah Satterfield
Miss Olga has contributed so much to the dancer I am today. She was my ballet instructor for about 7 years. Miss Olga is very professional and educated in ballet and many other forms of dance. She pushes you to work harder in a hands on and safe environment. I would highly recommend her to anyone who is interested in serious training. I wouldn’t be half the dancer I am today without all I have learned from her!
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Gretta Wright
Olga helped me so much when i was first starting out as a young dancer. She was tough on me and other students but always kept it light hearted in the classroom. Shes great at giving corrections and I always remembered leaving the class like i had accomplished something. I love her classes to this day and wish i could take it again sometime!
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Melanie Scott
I have a lot of experience with Olga as a ballet and ballroom dance teacher. My younger daughter began training with Olga first in conjunction with a ballet studio, but then for many years (beginning at age 10) in private instruction. Olga was absolutely instrumental in developing her ballet technique, specifically Vaganova technique, so that she is a standout on stage. She has been cast in many coveted roles and was one of the talent winners in the Alabama Distinguished Young Women program last year for her classical ballet variation from Don Quixote. My daughter has been encouraged by her subsequent coaches (after Olga moved away) to pursue ballet professionally. I believe these accolades are all a result of Olga's instruction. She recognized my daughter's strengths and weaknesses from the very beginning. For example, my daughter does not have natural turn out. Olga developed her turn out carefully so that most people now believe she was born with amazing turn out (nope! All from learning properly how to develop it.). My daughter has never had an injury despite rigorous ballet training (20+ hours per week) because Olga taught her how to work hard safely. I have never been disappointed in Olga dedication to proper technique and safe training. But above this Olga gives so much more. It's all the beautiful finishing touches that make my daughter look like a legit serious Russian ballerina. The Vaganova method is instilled in each student from the very beginning. Yes, the feet and legs are gorgeous, but add to that the head and shoulders, the flexible back, the tips of the fingers, everything else you need to be a real ballerina, and Olga delivers it in gorgeous Vaganova style. Olga will push your dancer hard, but never too hard, and the results come quickly. You will see a difference even after the first lesson.
My daughter also trained with Olga in ballroom dance. Olga is also excellent in this style, and after only 6 lessons, my daughter competed in her first ballroom dance competition and won 5 of 6 events she entered.
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Taylor
I studied under the direction of Olga for 7 years for both Vaganova ballet and ballroom. I learned so much from her and she helped shape me into who I am today. She focuses heavily on technique, which is essential for anyone to become a great dancer. I will forever be grateful for the work that she does, for the lives that she changes, and for her passion and love that she pours into teaching dance. Anyone would be lucky to study under her!
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Jackie
The best teacher ever, great experience to have her in my children’s life
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Morgan George
I’ve worked with Olga since I was age 9. She was the first teacher to put me in pre-point shoes at age 10 because she knew I was strong enough. She shaped my entire dance career because she pushed me and believed in me. The Russian-Vaganova curriculum she instilled in me helped me to have an edge in auditions for roles, summer intensives, and arts schools. I owe my entire ballet career to Olga! Without her, I would have not been the dancer I am today. Through Clara in The Nutcracker, auditioning for major competitive summer intensives, getting a full scholarship to Atlanta Ballets Conservatory Program, all the way to my final curtain call as Sugar Plum — everything she taught me molded me to be a better dancer, company member, team
player, and young woman!
