Stephanie Batista is an incredible dancer. In 2003, Stephanie took second in the Advanced division at the Phoenix Open. By 2006, Stephanie was dancing at Phoenix in the (by invitation only) Champion of Champions division, where she finished second with Arjay Centeno. In 2007, Stephanie took a year off to have a baby (daughter Hazel). In 2008, she returned as an alternate, was lucky to get into the dancing group (one follower in that group could not come) and she WON the Champion of Champions division with John Lindo with an utterly amazing pair of dances.

Stephanie is known for her playfulness, interaction with her partner, and musical interpretation. That’s as a dancer. As a teacher, she is something else. Read what was said by those who took her workshops when she was in Hartford before.

"I was initially concerned about Stephanie teaching - she is so young in her early 20ies! But, I was totally impressed with her professional approach to teaching. She was well organized and clear in her goals for each workshop. While I realize some dancers want new patterns, I particularly liked her ideas for dressing up the traditional basic molds. Stephanie did that by teaching us how to use our bodies, height, excelleration/decelleration, etc. to emphasize the music. We all can use these ideas immediately to improve our musicality. She also showed us simple principles for changing up standard patterns by bending the slot and by trying various changes in "hand holds." Her style of teaching reminds us that dancing is truly supposed to be creative and fun and not just an exercise in going through some standard patterns in an unmoveable slot."

"I thought she was fabulous. Several aspects made her shine. First, she's incredibly well spoken - very rarely did she stumble, pause, say 'ummmm' or lose her train of thought. She had a way of explaining and breaking down the dance that was easy to understand. She had the ability to explain how the dance should 'feel' - that it not an easy task. "

"I would welcome any opportunity to learn from her and would take the exact same workshops over - I think they were great. She shared thoughts, concepts, patterns, etc. - and by breaking down the dance the way she did, she made it so much easier to understand why it looks the way it does and how the dance should feel when you're dancing."

"She was also very pleasant, she had a great sense of humor, she had fun with all of us, and managed to get some dancing in herself. She didn't judge anyone based on their skill level (as many instructors tend to do) - she treated everyone as though they loved the dance as much as she did. It was very apparent that she loves what she does and it came through in her workshops. I was very impressed, she was phenomenal. Stephanie has a gift; the true gift of being able to teach."

"I attended the first class and thought she was fabulous. Her explanations were clear and concise. Her images helped to get very difficult concepts across. She stressed foundation before fancy moves. She stressed giving technique and quality to your moves--it is all about how it looks and feels. Please plan to have her back. Wish I could have stayed for every class she was teaching. She was wonderful."

"I thought Stephanie was fantastic. She was engaging, fun, funny, knowledgeable, and generous with her information. I would take more workshops with her in a heart beat!"