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Marley Mendes
"When I first began working with Kirk and Scott, I was just a young kid who loved to perform but didn’t yet know what that passion could grow into. From the very beginning, they recognized something in me and chose to nurture it rather than contain it. They gave me the rare gift of never asking me to be smaller, but instead encouraging me to step into my light with confidence. Through every lesson, they poured patience, discipline, and dedication into me. These values have shaped who I am both on and off the stage. I always looked forward to my time with them, because it wasn’t just about theatre skills; it was about being seen, supported, and challenged to grow. Because of their guidance, I earned a place at my performing arts school, where I’ve spent the past five years building a future I never would have imagined without their influence. I owe so much of my success to Kirk and Scott, and I carry their lessons with me in everything I do. They believed in me before I knew how to believe in myself, and that’s a gift I’ll treasure forever." -Marley Mendes
Ethan Baker
I’ve been working with Scott and Kirk for the past three years and I cannot emphasize enough the way they have helped shape me as an artist and as an individual. I started with them from scratch and I am now fortunate enough to be a freshman musical theatre student at the Boston Conservatory, a near miracle for which I owe them enormous credit. When working with Scott and Kirk you will develop a strong technique, artistry, and a penetrating knowledge of yourself and your craft. While studying with them, I’ve found they are expert at blending my goals for myself with their goals for me, so that I’m stretching while strengthening each class. When working with Scott and Kirk it’s a class between you and them, not just between a teacher and a student. It’s personal, bespoke, and laser focused on your growth. I say working because that’s what it is with them, good, hard, rewarding work that’s laser focused on your growth. They are fully invested in their students in a way that I’ve only experienced with them. The benefits don’t stop at the studio door. Scott and Kirk greatly informed my character over the last three years. They have given me discipline, professionalism, respect, and resourcefulness, values that are now at my very center. They are always ready to listen and to advise. They are incredibly generous with their resources and knowledge, recommending which teachers to take from, what books to read, music to listen to, summer intensive to enroll in, and colleges to audition for. As teachers, I simply cannot recommend them enough, as mentors they are invaluable, and as friends they are absolutely one-of-a-kind.
Susanne McDonald
The Pfeiffer team taught me so much over several years and have now become loyal colleagues as I have graduated into my professional artistic years. Kirk's ability to teach a range of dance ability is astute, from my one tap class to being able to identify that I was further along in ballet than I even thought. Something I love about the structure of his classes is how hands-on he is but more importantly giving students space to have trial and error on their own; it builds such confidence and their own studio practice for the future. I even had interest in administration skills, which Scott so graciously taught me over the years. If you have a special interest, Kirk and Scott find a way to incorporate it into what they are teaching. I am lucky enough to have gone from a student in Charleston to a student who studied with them in one of their New York trips to then teaching alongside them which shows their trust and confidence in their own work and community that they build.
Ryan Clawson
From the age of 13, Kirk Pfeiffer has been far more than a dance teacher—he has been my mentor, guide, and now one of my closest friends. He shaped not only my training as a performer but also my journey into adulthood and my career in the arts. At 33, I can say without hesitation that I would not be where I am today without his guidance and support.
Kirk’s teaching goes far beyond technique. He prepared me for the realities of a life in the arts—its challenges, its uncertainties, and its rewards. He also taught me how to live with integrity: to respect others, stay humble, and value relationships over accolades. His lessons were as much about character as they were about craft.
He has an extraordinary gift for seeing potential in his students long before they see it in themselves. Because of his influence, I’ve performed with companies including Norwegian Cruise Line, Walt Disney World, and Universal Studios, and in musicals like Rock of Ages and Kinky Boots.
To me, Kirk is family—a man who inspires greatness, leads with heart, and reminds everyone he teaches that success begins with kindness, discipline, and belief in oneself.