Your Romantic First Dance

I wish I could give more stars -- Rae is an absolute pro and she made this process very fun and easy. My fiancée (now my wife) and I were terrible dancers when we began this process, but Rae made us look great. Her lessons were very informative and helpful but also a lot of fun. She was able to give us a few dance style options to choose from and helped tie everything in with our first dance song. We got a lot of compliments on the day of our wedding and lots of cheers during our first dance - 100% worth every penny!

RAE IS EVERYTHING YOU WANT IN A DANCE INSTRUCTOR. She is kind, patient, skillful, and encouraging and went the extra mile for us, tailoring a perfect first dance that our guests said was the best and most flawless first dance they’d ever seen! Who knew we had it in us!? (Rae did). Let me break down our experience: Coming in we were as green as you can get with partner dancing. We wanted an up-tempo, fun, non-traditional song in order to start the reception off with strong energy. Obviously, this kind of song requires more and faster choreography because it's a faster song. Our song also didn't pick up until the second minute so we ended up with like a 3 minute song (daunting) but even with the extra length and required choreography to fill 3 minutes, Rae got us there in FOUR LESSONS. She started us off by teaching form and the basic steps and so we could always come back "home" if we got caught up (such a relief to have this and it came into play during the real thing). Then Rae opened things up teaching us spins, turns, steps, and moves that gradually increased in difficulty as we caught on, matching our comfort level/progress and she always met our requests in swapping in/out moves. There’s no question Rae is GREAT at diagnosing a couple’s strengths and pace of progression, and she adapts her teaching and choreography to this. The end of every session where she taught us choreography she videotaped so we could play back and practice at home based off what we learned while it was still fresh our head (this was key). Upon request, Rae choregraphed the entire song for us, broken up into lessons so we could put the parts together by the end in cumulative fashion. This was such a perfect strategy to nailing our dance, which was an unusually long 3 minutes (we had a pretty simple first minute then when the first chorus hit it was go-time). By the end of our lessons, we could do basic steps and easy turns but could also do complicated steps, leans, slides, simultaneous turns, and even a lift that the crowd went nuts for. Rae brought out the inner-dancer in both of us, and my wife and I have different personalities, strength, and weaknesses in physical activities, but Rae knew how to work with us both in a group setting. Practice is definitely required if you want to get your dance down right, no question. But Rae gives you everything you need for the perfect dance – you just have to practice to get it to where it’s simply routine by your big date! Rae has SO much energy and she’s so enthusiastic and committed to making your dance special and getting you ready to go. She’s fun and funny, clear and concise, and fully committed, and dance lessons have the potential to be SO awkward but they just weren’t with Rae. She cut right through that concern fast and made it such a comfortable setting for partnered-activity that you and your significant other are very unlikely to have engaged in before. She was always on time and stayed with us extra time when we needed it. With all the possible dance instructors out there, we feel so lucky to have come across Rae because she was everything we had hoped for in professionalism, kindness, and skill in an instructor and got us results that we will be proud of and watch back for the rest of our lives. THANK YOU RAE.

We did 2 lessons with Rae for our first dance - one in-person and one virtual lesson. She was fantastic for both, super helpful in teaching us and working with us in both settings.

Loved working with Rae!

Rae came recommended through our best friends that worked with her and I have already recommended her to our friends getting married. We wanted a choreographer dance for our first dance and Rae helped us create an amazing routine that we practiced with her and mastered after a few months. All we had to do was tell her the song we wanted, what we had in mind and she did the rest. Her energy and passion really helped as well.

My husband and I have four left feet, zero dancing experience, and desperately needed help with our first dance! Rae was amazing. She had a great way of getting us relaxed and making adjustments. I liked that it wasn't just memorizing steps but learning to dance so we could put moves together in a natural way. She was super fun and great to work with. Would definitely recommend!

Rae is AWESOME. Hiring her to help you learn how to dance and create a first dance routine is one of the best investments you’ll make in your overall wedding experience. She has a wonderful personality, is so helpful, always smiling, and is very patient as you learn how to dance. She makes you feel very confident in your dancing abilities as she is such a great teacher and works so closely with you. My wife and I have a perfected first dance that we will always cherish thanks to Rae. She is amazing!!

Rae was absolutely fantastic! She whipped my husband and I into dancing shape in just a few lessons and choreographed a first dance for us that felt natural and like us, but did not fail to wow our guests! I can't tell you how many compliments we received on our first dance! It was also such a pleasure to take private lessons rather than sharing the room with others and having our music interrupted for other peoples songs. Now we have so many moves in our pockets for whenever we go out dancing, my husband even pulls some of them out in the living room when he is feeling romantic. I can't recommend Rae enough, her energy, upbeat spirit, ideas, and skill are phenomenal. She is worth her weight in gold. If you want to feel confident about your first dance on your wedding day, go to Rae!

Rae is an incredible instructor!! I have no dancing abilities and zero coordination. Rae was somehow able to work her magic and helped my wife and I have an incredible first dance that fit perfectly with our personalities. People were actually impressed with our dance at our wedding. She was patient with me and took her time to help me, but she also made it fun. My wife and I looked forward to dance lessons every Monday night. We highly recommend Rae !!

Rae truely made our wedding dreams come true! She took two people with no ballroom experience and gave us the opportunity to put on a great performance even with a lift! Our friends and family still can’t stop talking about how impressed they were with us! Rae was patient, thoughtful and so very professional. She even came to our apt building which couldn’t have been more convenient for our busy days. I would strongly recommend her to any couple that wants to have a fun dance and impress their guests!

Rae was an awesome instruction. I was very worried about dancing in front of 200 plus guest give my 2 left feet but felt at ease after our sessions with rae and even ended up doing a 2 song dance to elvis and soca!! Highly recommend

Rae was one of the best parts of our wedding planning experience. My (now) husband and I have four left feet and no rhythm, and Rae transformed us in a mere 4 classes with a beautiful choreographed dance. We chose a country ballad and she completely nailed it. Beyond her technical skill, her teaching methods were incredibly fun and we were so excited for each lesson - and couldn’t believe how much we learned so quickly. She is quirky, cool, and kept us laughing the entire time. Our guests were so impressed, and Rae turned the scary thought of dancing in front of an audience to one of our favorite wedding moments. Could not recommend her more.

If you’re considering taking dance lessons as a couple ahead of your wedding…1) Do it! and 2) Look no further! Rae was such a delight to work with, and she got my husband and I ready for our first dance and able to smile and glide through it. Neither of us had much experience. Rae is patient yet pushes your progress every session, breaking down the basic steps and introducing fun flourishes as you advance. By the end it was muscle memory. I was wistful when our classes were ending, as I was having a blast by then. Again, I can’t recommend Rae enough. You will be in such good hands.

Professional and fun, engaging, we had a blast learning, thoroughly prepared my wife and I for our first dance.

Rae was a fabulous dance teacher! My husband and I had never taken a lesson in our lives, but Rae was able to transform us over the course of six lessons. She is so much fun and was great a breaking things down for people who have never danced before. We genuinely looked forward to our lessons, which were always full of laughs and definitely a welcome bonding experience and break from other wedding planning activities. Our friends and family loved our first dance!

We had the best time during our dance lessons with Rae leading up to the wedding, and our dance was exactly what we wanted!! She is amazing. She works with you to create the dance that suits you as a couple, and was able to make two absolutely non dancers feel comfortable throughout the process and on the big night. Thank you Rae!!

Rae was amazing. She's friendly, charismatic, patient, and knows how to get the best out of you to ensure you'll crush your first dance on the big day...and most importantly she's an excellent teacher. Whitney and I like to dance, but were a little nervous going in. Thankfully Rae made us feel comfortable and we had a blast. In just nights we had the steps down pat and were off and running. If you want a fun, easy-going teacher who will make you laugh and get the best out of you - from amateurs to pros - go with Rae.

Rae was absolutely amazing and each session was fun and relaxed. Being a same-sex couple, Rae worked with us to find a dance that matched who we were as a couple. We had zero dance experience before working with Rae and couldn't have been happier with how our first dance turned out!

Rae is awesome! My wife and I have no dance experience at all and Rae helped us nail down a perfect dance for our wedding. Rae is friendly and easy going and we really enjoyed the time we spent learning some moves with her. Rae is great at what she does and we can't recommend her enough!

Rae was fantastic. Her classes were well planned and always went at the right pace - not too challenging, not too easy. After four classes we felt extremely confident and ready for the big day. Most importantly, classes were a blast. Rae has a great sense of humor. I wouldn’t be surprised if we went back for more lessons to really cut rug. Thanks Rae!!

Rae is patient and fun to work with. Best of all she is Effective and has the ‘last minute wedding dance class” down to a science. We took it on the wednesday before our saturday wedding and it saved our first dance. You will not regret taking this class with Rae. In fact, we had so much fun, we are going to schedule more classes with Rae as date nights.

My wife and I had so much fun collaborating with Rae on our first dance. We had zero experience prior to our lessons, but that’s why we were there. Rae started out by teaching us some basics. From there she read our personalities and chemistry with each other to help us determine what moves and styles naturally fit us. As the lessons progressed, we would add to and refine our dance until it was complete. The BEST part of taking lessons with Rae was the preparation, and that made it priceless. By the time our wedding day came around, we were so prepared for our dance that we didn’t have to worry or think about the dance at all. We were able to focus on other details of the day and more thoroughly enjoy our time with family and friends who we’ll probably never have all together again. Take lessons from Rae, and you’ll be sure to walk away with a great experience and wonderful memories.

I contacted Rae from Your Romantic First Dance ONE WEEK before our wedding for some help with our first dance. Rae responded to me within a few minutes and we set up an hour lesson for the next day. My (now) husband absolutely HATES to dance and was dreading having to dance in front of everyone. After just one introductory lesson with Rae, we had learned some fun, easy steps and turns to make our dance look more interesting and coordinated (instead of boring rocking back and forth)! More importantly, she helped my husband feel much more comfortable on the dance floor…I think he was actually excited to practice and have our first dance! Rae made the lesson so positive and fun, I would recommend lessons with her to anyone!

We cannot recommend Rae enough! My now-husband really wanted to take dance lessons so we 1) would not embarrass ourselves at our wedding and 2) could have some semblance of dancing skills for the rest of our lives. Rae was really helpful in not only teaching us some easy moves to keep in our back pockets for future jaunts on the dance floor, but also helping us choreograph an easy to follow routine for our First Dance. She's fun, easy-going, and attentive to your comfort zone. BUT, she can also ~gently~ crack the whip to keep you on track. We loved working with you, Rae!

If you're looking for an amazing, thoughtful dance instructor to help create the dance of your dreams for your wedding day or special occasion, look no further. You are in the best hands with Rae! My husband and I were married this past April. We knew we wanted a beautiful first dance for our wedding day and we're so lucky to have found Rae! Rae's positive energy and encouragement is contagious, and she made our lessons fun and something that we looked forward to each week. Rae is incredibly talented and knowledgeable and she created a dance that represented us and captured our love perfectly, while still managing to put our nerves at ease. We started off as novices without any past professional dance experience, and she turned us into elegant, confident dancers that wowed our guests with our moves! Everyone was so impressed with our dance and everyone is still talking about it! We enjoyed our time with Rae so much that we plan on going back to her in the near future to work on a new dance just for fun! Rae is a true professional who is an expert in her field and working on one of the most important moments of our lives with her was a pleasure and memory that we'll cherish forever.

Rae is incredible. She gave me (groom with zero rhythm) the confidence to lead and gave Rachel (my fiance with a musical theater background) the confidence in me to follow. Our goal going in was to just look like we know what we're doing, and have fun and we definitely pulled it off! We looked forward to meeting with Rae every week and to practicing on our own - a nice break amid the insanity of wedding planning. After our introductory lesson, Rae gave us options for what she could teach us depending on the number of lessons, and recommended only the exact number we needed to get the dance we wanted. I would recommend her to any engaged couple looking to step it up to any level beyond "prom dates swaying back and forth." Thanks again Rae!

Rae was the best find ever. She was truly amazing and we would absolutely recommend her to any couple who wants to prepare for their wedding or any social event. Rae made the experience comfortable, fun and easy. We really looked forward to each lesson with Rae and we are sad that they are over. Rae prepared us well for our first dance as well as provided us with steps that we were able to use throughout the entire evening of our wedding. Rae's prices were very reasonable and there was no pressure to commit to a specific number of lessons. If you have the space in your home, I recommend the in home lessons, they are both convenient and also save you a few dollars. I can't say enough good things about Rae, she is truly a gem.

Rae is incredible! My husband & I did only two lessons and were able to wow people at our wedding (and we both have no dance background). Rae is patient, knows her stuff and is great to work with. I'd highly recommend her!

We reached out to Rae a couple months before the wedding to help us out with coordinating our first dance. With a combined zero formal dance training, my fiancé and I were definitely in need of tutelage. Rae was a pleasure to work with and helped us learn some basic dance moves and build in more complicated flourishes each lesson. We were delighted with how it turned out in the end and having the pressure off (or lessened at least) for that moment of your wedding day is a great feeling. Rae’s energy is impossible to deny and when you’re in the studio with her you can’t help but have a good time.

Rae was an amazing teacher and we were so happy we have chosen her to be our dancing instructor. Usually we are nervous with showing people our dance's step, but we were absolutely comfortable with Rae teaching us how to groove! By the time our wedding day rolled around, we were confident and really wanted to show off the dancing skills we got. We're both pretty terrible dancer but with Rae's help we managed to pull off an amazing dance and the crowd loved it.

About two months before our wedding in September, we reached out to Rae and scheduled our introductory lesson. Having not yet decided on a first dance song from a short list of 3, Rae played each of them during our intro lesson and taught us (mainly me the groom) a few basic steps. Even though it was only an hour, I felt like I had learned a ton. We decided to work with Rae for a few more lessons and couldn't be happier. She was a pleasure to work with and more importantly made each lesson fun. After only three lessons, and a few practice rounds at home, I was confident on the big day. We received compliments from several of our guests after the first dance and can't thank Rae enough. Coming from someone who is not a dancer, I highly recommend Rae to anyone thinking of taking lessons. Thanks Rae!

Rae is just plain fun to be around! She is thoughtful, quick to make a dance learning plan that fits the couple. Patience and positivity are two of her biggest strengths. Her passion for dance and coaching skills make her the perfect go to for wedding dance prep! Thanks Rae! My mother in law gave us a thumbs up on the dance! :-)

I want to start with simply saying that Rea is THE BEST! She is professional and sweet. We came to her class a bit nervure not knowing what to expect and we ended up enjoying every moment. We learned tones of dance moves that were easy and fun to perform. We naturally danced them on our special moment as Rea made it very easy for us to memorize the counting and the movements. Our dance was an unforgettable pure fun. We highly recommend her! Thank you Rea <3 A&B

Rae is extremely fun, patient, and talented. We took 6 lessons (1 intro + the 5-lesson package) and by the end had the choreography down for 2 first dances (1 slow song that then changed to a surprise upbeat song). She taught us basic moves, so we now have the ability to take our skills with us anywhere, but also gave us lots of moves to make our first dance memorable and unique. We had very little experience or natural ability coming into the first lesson, but by the end, I really felt confident in my skill. Not only will you learn to dance and be prepared for your big day, but you will have a great time, since Rae is such a fun person to be around.