You make an excellent point DaDancingPsych. My hometown dance studio focused almost completely on our recital. From the time we stepped into the studio at the beginning of the season (I'm talking very first class) we were learning choreography for the show. Our classes consisted of a short warm-up and then choreography. This is a studio that spent LOTS of money on elaborate costumes, props, and decorations. Obviously, recitals went well. Students had the dances down (we were drilled on performance/stage presence) and the show was entertaining. Every year people raved about what a great show it was and what a great dance studio we had in town. So many people were surprised when my sister and I started taking classes in a neighborhood studio as well beginning in our middle school years. What people didn't understand was that we weren't getting what we wanted from the studio: technique training. We continued to take from both studios throughout the rest of our high school careers. During our senior year at the original studio, it was decided during the last half of the season that more dances were going to be put into the show. For about three months our classes were 20 minutes long, consisting of nothing but running our dances and adding on, just so we could have more time to learn yet another piece for the show! It was ridiculous! I'm not completely putting down my hometown dance studio. I do feel like I learned a lot from my instructor, like performance qualities. However, I did not get good quality technique training until I started taking classes elsewhere. People assumed that because the show was good, the actual dance education was good too, which was not completely the case. The not-so-great technique was masked by flashy decor and costumes, but other dance professionals who came to the show could see right through it. Taking classes at an additional studio was the best decision for me.