Gabriella S Place Dance Studio

Maritza Cruz Salinas is not about to settle for a bad ballerina bun of a hairstyle. "You're not doing it right, Mom," the 10-year-old snaps, reaching for her brown locks and wiggling impatiently in her black leotard and powder-pink tights. "It has to be perfect." Perfect because class is about to begin -- and, for the first time, the fifth-grader will dance on her toes like a real ballerina. And she must look the part.