In Training: Ballet Goes to College
Three top programs to consider
Most college dance programs offer ballet technique classes, and some schools even present classical rep. Few, however, offer the specialization and experience you’d receive as a company trainee. There are, of course, the conservatories like Juilliard or universities like Butler, Indiana and Utah that carry well-deserved reputations as having top-notch ballet offerings. But don’t ignore these strong ballet programs that tend to fly under the radar.
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Located:
Columbia, SC
No. of dance majors:
75–80
No. of applicants per year:
150
No. of studios: 3 (6 when partitions are closed)
Info: artsandsciences.sc.edu/dance
Degrees offered:
BA in dance performance/choreography, ballet emphasis; BA in dance performance/choreography, contemporary emphasis; BA in dance education; dance minor
Ballet classes:
Five times per week; pointe or men’s classes twice per week
Non-ballet courses required:
Contemporary, improvisation and composition, choreography, anatomy/nutrition, Laban Movement Analysis, dance analysis and criticism, history, dance production
Recent repertoire:
Balanchine’s Stars and Stripes, Mozartiana and Apollo; Lynne Taylor-Corbett’s The Great Galloping Gottschalk
Recent guest artists:
Chris Uchida (Twyla Tharp répétiteur), Jeffrey Gribler (Pennsylvania Ballet), Alan Hineline (Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet)
Alumni:
Artistic and administrative positions with companies including Georgia Ballet Theatre, North Carolina Dance Theatre and Carolina Ballet
USC Dance Company in Balanchine’s
Apollo. Photo courtesy USC.
MERCYHURST UNIVERSITY
Located: Erie, PA
No. of dance majors: 60
No. of applicants per year:
75–100
No. of studios:
3
Info:
dance.mercyhurst.edu
Degrees offered:
BFA in dance (beginning fall 2014), BA in dance
Ballet classes:
Five days per week; elective pointe, variations and pas de deux classes
Non-ballet courses required:
Modern, jazz, tap or musical theater, dance history, choreography, music for dancers, biology for dancers, pedagogy, kinesiology, Labanotation, dance conditioning
Recent repertoire:
Balanchine’s Valse Fantaisie, Gerald Arpino’s Viva Vivaldi, full-length Giselle and Bruce Mark’s La Fille mal gardée
Recent guest artists:
Lisa de Ribere (School of American Ballet), Matthew Prescott (freelance dancer), Neta Pulvermacher (Neta Dance Company)
Alumni:
Artistic positions with companies including Ohio Dance Theatre, Lake Erie Ballet, Nashville Ballet, Saint Louis Ballet
Ashley Cook with guest artist Eddy Tovar in
La Fille mal gardée. Photo by Rick Klein, courtesy Mercyhurst.
COLLEGE-CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI
Located:
Cincinnati, OH
No. of dance majors:
59
No. of applicants per year:
approximately 100
No. of studios:
3
Info:
ccm.uc.edu/dance
Degree offered:
BFA in dance, emphasis in ballet
Ballet classes:
Five times per week; pointe once per week, variations once per week; men’s classes and male variations once per week; basic partnering once per week, pas de deux once per week
Non-ballet courses required:
Modern, dance history, choreography, character, somatic practice, jazz, eurythmics for dancers, music for dancers, costume and makeup for stage, theatrical design and production, acting, anatomy
Recent repertoire:
Bournonville’s La Sylphide, Act II, Balanchine’s Serenade, “Kingdom of the Shades” from Petipa’s La Bayadère
Recent guest artists:
Victoria Morgan (Cincinnati Ballet), Edwaard Liang (BalletMet), Devon Carney (Kansas City Ballet)
Alumni:
Artistic positions with companies including Le Ballet du Capitole in France, Smuin Ballet, Louisville Ballet and Sarasota Ballet
CCM students in Balanchine’s
Serenade. Photo by Will Brenner, Courtesy CCM.
