Testimonials

In a word, Aris’s instruction is special. Aris has a way of helping you find the story you want to tell as an artist and embrace it. His education with the best of the best figures in West Coast Swing is truly extensive, so he is uniquely poised to help you adopt the technique that works best for you. I often take lessons with pros only to be told exactly what he told me! While he is thoughtful and focused on technique, he also creates a safe space for creation and creativity. What I like most about Aris’s instruction is that he adamantly believes there is no one “right way” to do this dance, but that there are so many ways that work. Simply put, Aris is passionate about helping you find “your way”. Also, his video critiques are straight fire.

--Nick Hoffman--

I’ve now had private lessons with Aris, dolled follower lessons with Aris, and had video review with Aris. He has gone above and beyond with each session. I definitely recommend working with him, particularly as a duo with someone of the opposite role as he has a unique style of teaching in that format I found highly effective. 

Being a good instructor is a separate skill from being a good competitor or a good social dancer. A good instructor pushes for your growth during your lesson, a rare few like Aris are also helpful and invested after your lesson.  

I’ve taken private lessons from a large variety of instructors, from long established Champions down to newly risen All Stars. I generally only see Aris at large events with large Champions and All Star divisions. Even with all those choices available to me in that setting, he is someone that I seek out for lessons.

--Aaron Abramowitz--

Aris is a fantastic dance teacher—knowledgeable, kind, and intuitive. He listens and helps you hone in on what you want from the lessons then observes and gives thoughtful and focused feedback to help you improve quickly. He has a knack for explaining things clearly. His background in athletics and strength training is also incredibly helpful if you're dealing with injury (as I am) to help make the movements safer and more accessible. My partner and I highly recommend Aris as a dance teacher!

–Jordan Godwin–

Take dance lessons with Aris! He is an excellent instructor and human. Whether I need a mindset shift, drills for technique, empowerment for artistic expression, he's there with quality knowledge and a welcoming presence. He's always willing to have a discussion about the "why" behind the movement and his personal experience in the industry. I emphasize quality again because of his observant nature. He notices minute details about my body movement and helps explain/adjust feedback I have received from other instructors. Aris's instruction is digestible and helpful; I find that I can apply it to my dance and practice the concepts outside our lessons. Additionally, Aris is an excellent cheerleader! You can tell he is passionate about his art as well as mine. In the community, he is always up for a dance, a chat, or a quick question. I am fortunate to be able to call him an instructor, a local asset to the Denver community, and a friend.

–Ellen Dudley–

In terms of video critique, the video critiques with Aris DeMarco are absolute fire. No seriously, you can send him one of your worst comp videos that you strongly disliked and he will break down everything you did right, and everything you can improve on..but he will do it in a kind way that makes you dislike your dancing less and appreciate the dance you gave him to critique more. He also gives feedback insanely fast. I was not expecting a response in weeks. He gave me feedback in less than a day (technically in my case – instant feedback like less than an hour) and that’s insane. 

As a dancer, I think it’s very easy to be self-deprecating and dislike your dancing. Aris is very invested in you both as a dancer and person. Aris’s advice is very technical but it’s also again…. very kind, because he does remind you that yeah your dancing isn’t all that bad. You don’t walk away from your critique self loathing all your flaws. If anything, working with him makes you want to incrementally work on your own dance at any given time.

In terms of video critique he dissects all parts of your body movement, so you do get feedback on all parts of your dancing from your upper body to your feet. Moreover, he tells you this area can be improved on and this is one way to approach it, and tells you what that does to your dancing and why. Also he does watch your video not once…not twice… but at least 3 times if not more to give you the best feedback he can give. You can send him a 3 minute video and you may end up with 23 minutes of advice because he’s just that invested. 

So overall, solid 10/10, one of the best video critiques I’ve had and would easily recommend him for video critiques but private lessons too. 

 The TLDR version: Aris is super invested, gives you a lot of advice for your time, and is super kind/ will make you dislike your dancing a lot less.

–Tina Lin–

I started learning West Coast Swing in August 2023 and quickly grasped the basics with practice. However, when I wanted to improve and compete, I struggled to make it to finals in the novice category. That's when I began taking private lessons with Aris, and my dancing completely changed. Aris has a unique teaching style that helps dancers understand their body movements precisely. His teaching is clear and tailored to your learning needs. The instructional content and recap videos Aris provides have been incredibly helpful, even months later. I'm truly grateful for Aris as a teacher and look forward to continuing to learn from him in the future.

--Gabriel Rogers--

Aris is a phenomenal instructor. Aris has a level of attention to detail that is remarkable. He has helped me fine tune my anchor, connection and step mechanics. He breaks a complicated concept into easily digestible steps and then moves at your pace. He will quickly pivot his approach to best help the learner. Aris encouraged me to set what I wanted for level, amount and type of feedback, which helped me to feel empowered to be in control of my dance and get the most out of the lesson. I can't say enough how beneficial his video critiques were while I was at TAP. I went from not making it out of prelims in intermediate to taking 5th place in Stictlys, competing against the finalists of intermediate JnJ.

I'm beyond thrilled and honored to have Aris in our local community, as a friend and instructor. If you've considered taking a lesson stop considering and make the commitment because he is more than worth it!

–Rachel Carlson–

Aris somehow always knows what to say when I am lost in dance angst (dangst ™️) to redirect my spiraling toward optimism, productive critique, focus, sometimes humor. While ALSO reminding me that the dance journey is mine and i can’t look for someone to tell me I should keep going. Idk how this combination works he is a wizard. A caring and compassionate and funny wizard.

–Julia Doody–

I'm lucky to have been working with Aris for the past couple months. He's given me the skills to insert more of my own movement dialogue into my dance <3 As someone who has done quite a few different dance styles it feels freeing to incorporate them into this medium.

--Britt Richardson--

 

 

 

 

 Aris has been an amazing teacher. He has been a huge influence on me over the past 1.5 years, both for dance and in life. I have greatly appreciated his teaching and his ability to explain a concept in many different ways. Additionally his knowledge of the different philosophies of the dance gives him a unique ability to help find what will work best for you. His advice is fine-tuned and made specific for you. I am super happy with the progress I have made and excited for where I am going and I owe a lot of that to Aris. Big Fan!!!

 

--Connor Johnson--

 

 

 

 

 

My private dance lessons with Aris have been indisputably first-rate! He legit understands technique and body movement. Aris is genuine and cares beyond the lesson when it comes to my dance journey. Don't miss out!

--Kelly Robinson--

Starting my dance journey as a complete novice, I was initially overwhelmed by the prospect of couple dancing without any background. The leap from knowing nothing to stepping onto the dance floor felt immense, but Aris transformed that daunting gap into a bridge of confidence and skill for me. Aris embodies the rare blend of expertise and empathy, demonstrating not just a deep understanding of dance but an exceptional ability to impart that knowledge. His approach is rooted in a profound body awareness, a testament to his background as a fitness trainer, enabling him to pinpoint and address the nuances of movement and posture with remarkable precision. What sets Aris apart is his methodical yet flexible teaching style. He has a unique talent for breaking down complex concepts into their foundational elements, presenting them in various ways until finding the one that clicks perfectly with your understanding. This tailored approach ensured that I could grasp the essence of each movement in a way that felt intuitive and personal to me. Aris's ability to distill the intricacies of dance into accessible, overarching principles is nothing short of magical. His guidance to focus on my center of gravity and follow the natural momentum revolutionized my perspective on following in dance. This single piece of advice encapsulated the essence of fluid motion, making the entire learning process feel like a revelation. In Aris, I found not just an instructor but a mentor who celebrates the journey of learning as much as the achievement of mastery. His dedication to being a lifelong student of dance inspires me to embrace each step of my own dance journey with joy and curiosity. I am immensely grateful for his guidance and cannot recommend him highly enough to anyone looking to discover the joy of dance.

--Steiger Bryke--

'Gratz on winning teaching'

–Wingo–

*****

Get in touch if you have questions about private lessons or video critiques :) 

Message me on Facebook or instagram 

Send me an email: arisdemarco@gmail.com 

Or text: ‪(720) 663-1105‬