Ballet Help Desk

Join us as we explore Butler University's Department of Dance, with Larry Attaway, who serves as Chair and Executive Artistic Director. Consistently ranked as one of the top five collegiate ballet programs in the U.S., Mr. Attaway fills us in on its diverse study options—including a dedicated teaching track—as well as the exciting performance opportunities that shape aspiring dancers into professionals. We also discussed the audition process, reviewing what prospective students need to do for consideration for the program, as well as the diverse career paths pursued by Butler's graduates, offering a comprehensive look at potential opportunities awaiting aspiring dancers. Links: Butler University School of DanceBallet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

Tune in to our latest episode featuring Phil Chan, co-founder of Final Bow for Yellowface, as we discuss the issue of Orientalism in ballet. Phil talks us through how his organization is actively combating stereotypes and Orientalist tropes within the art form. We also hear how major ballet companies are joining the movement, signing the Final Bow For Yellowface pledge to promote diversity and inclusion on stage. Final Bow For YellowfaceGold Standard Arts FoundationBallet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

In this episode, we sit down with Tim O'Keefe, Artistic Director of Texas Ballet Theater, for an insightful discussion on the company's repertoire and his approach to artistic direction. We also explore the Texas Ballet Theater Studio Training Company, which offers aspiring dancers a platform to hone their skills. Join us for a candid conversation on the artistry and dedication shaping the Texas Ballet Theater's next generation of dancers. LINKS: Texas Ballet TheaterBallet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

Mavis Staines has been described as a visionary dance educator who has revolutionized the way dance is taught, performed, witnessed and shared across Canada and around the world. Over her 30-year tenure as Artistic Director of Canada’s National Ballet School, she has cemented the School’s reputation as the leading champion of programming excellence, access, and inclusion in dance. Join us as we chat with her along with NBS faculty member, Keith Morino, about the school's post-graduate training known as the Company Life Program. This wide ranging conversation covered everything from what they've seen change post-Covid to how dancers enter the program, what a typical day looks like and how dancers work with individual mentors to help launch students into careers. LINKS: Canada's National Ballet SchoolBallet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

Christopher Hird, Director of Education for Sarasota Ballet joins us to discuss post-graduate training programs. Hird brings a wealth of experience and insight to the conversation, having dedicated his career to shaping the next generation of ballet artists. From fostering technical proficiency to encouraging artistic expression, Hird shares the secrets behind cultivating well-rounded dancers who can comfortably move from the studio to the stage. LINKS: Sarasota Ballet SchoolBallet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

Ballet Help Desk sat down with Christopher Ruud, Second Company Manager and Rehearsal Director at Kansas City Ballet. This wide-ranging conversation covered everything from how the post-graduate levels are structured to performance opportunities to how students typically move through the ranks of the school. Chris also touched on the channels through when they recruit students as well as how they help students make that jump to the professional stage. LINKS: Kansas City Ballet SchoolBallet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

We sat down with Sarah Wroth, Chair of the Department of Ballet at Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music, to hear all about IU's ballet program. University ballet programs are becoming an ever more viable means to a professional ballet career and IU is a leader is turning out well-trained and mature, employable dancers. Tune in to hear about the myriad opportunities that exist for IU ballet students including a huge performance schedule, the chance to choreograph on other students and the ability to add a second emphasis of academic study. Be sure to also check out IU's collaboration with Phil Chan, co-founder of Final Bow For Yellowface as the school stages a completely reimagined version of Petitpa's classic yet problematic, La Bayadère. This newly staged version, renamed, Star on the Rise: La Bayadère ... Reimagined, is sure to get people talking! Performances take place March 29 and 30 are available to watch online for free. Links: Star on the Rise Live StreamIU Jacobs School of Music Ballet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

Jean-Yves Esquerre, Founder and Director of European School of Ballet, joins us to talk about his classical and contemporary trainee programs, the current state of the job market in Europe and why he thinks some schools need to rethink their post-graduate programs. Be sure to also listen for information on ESB's inaugural summer intensive taking place in Las Vegas July 8-27, 2024. Applications for ESB's summer school are still being accepted. Learn more here: https://schoolofballet.eu/summer-school/ Links: European School of BalletBallet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

Join us for a wide ranging chat with Racheal Nye, Director of the Yvonne Chouteau School and Studio Company at Oklahoma City Ballet. Ms. Nye covers everything wanted to know about their trainee program and second company, including how they recruit, what they look for and what the path into the main company looks like. Ms. Nye also talks about the importance of not only high achievement, but also "high empathy," recognizing that the latter is sometimes in short supply at rigorous training programs. Tune in to hear more about her plans for evolving the school in the future and how students can join the program! The Yvonne Chouteau SchoolBallet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

Today we are talking with Jennifer Sommers, the Director of the Houston Ballet Academy. Tune in to hear how students can audition to get into the academy, how scholarships work and what traits students need to possess in order to be successful in a residential ballet program. This episode also covers what life is like once dancers arrive for their time at the school. Houston Ballet AcademyBallet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

Ballet Help Desk sat down with Lauren Richter, School Principal for the Tulsa Ballet Center For Dance Education to learn more about the school, its trainee program as well as the second company, known as TBII. She talked about how the programs recruit, the performance opportunities available, the best ways to audition and how students can progress through the school and into the main company. Links: Tulsa Ballet Center For Dance EducationBallet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

Ballet Help Desk sat down with Vanessa Léonard, Director of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet's Anna McCowan-Johnson Aspirant Program. She covered not only how the program is structured, but how dancers work with the main company, where dancers get jobs and also how students can audition to join the program. Ms. Léonard also covers the unique challenges that dancers face when trying to dance in a country that isn't their own, especially when it comes to visa issues. Tune in to hear more about this unique Canadian company! Interested in auditioning for Royal Winnipeg Ballet School? Video auditions being accepted through June 1, 2024: https://www.rwb.org/school/professional-division/audition/video-auditions/ Royal Winnipeg Aspirant ProgramBallet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk Vanessa Léonard Bio Originally from Edmonton, Alberta, Vanessa Léonard has been gracing the studios and stages of the Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet since 1994 as a student, principal dancer, and ballet master. In 2021, Ms. Léonard was honoured to be appointed as Director of the RWB’s Anna McCowan-Johnson Aspirant Program. She received her early training from the Edmonton School of Ballet and the RWB School Professional Division before being hired into the RWB Company in 1997. During a fifteen-year career, Ms. Léonard portrayed the lead female role in many well-known works; the first of such roles was in David Nixon’s Butterfly when Nixon picked her from the corps de ballet to perform the lead. In the 2001/02 season she worked with Sir Peter Wright to dance the dramatic and technical role of Giselle. Other roles that Ms. Léonard enjoyed dancing include Odette/Odile in Galina Yardonova’s staging of Swan Lake, Princess Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty, Lucy in Mark Godden’s Dracula, Pamina in Mark Godden’s The Magic Flute, the tender Cours D’Amour in Mauricio Wainrot’s Carmina Burana and the lead role of Nancy in Val Caniparoli’s A Cinderella Story. Ms. Léonard is known for roles that have been created on her including Tinker Bell in Jorden Morris’ Peter Pan; Destiny in Mauricio Wainrot’s Carmen, The Passion; March Hare in Shawn Hounsell’s Wonderland; and Natalie in Jorden Morris’s Moulin Rouge® – The Ballet. In 2009 Ms. Léonard danced the role of Juliet in Rudi van Dantzig’s Romeo & Juliet for which she was called “simply stunning” by the Winnipeg Free Press. Ms. Léonard has appeared as a guest artist internationally, performing in galas with the Compania Nacional de Danza in Mexico City, the Benios De La Danse in Moscow, the 10th and 13th International Ballet Festivals of Miami, and the Encore International Dance Festival in Quebec. She has also been invited to dance with various companies and schools in full-length productions of Nutcracker, Swan Lake and The Sleeping Beauty in Canada, the USA and Spain. In 2009, Peter Quanz selected Ms. Léonard to perform a new piece called In Tandem at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City and at the 2010 Canada Dance Festival in Ottawa. As part of the Cultural Olympiad for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games she performed the lead in Iztik Galili’s Hikarizatto. Since retiring from dance in 2013, Ms. Léonard has staged and coached many ballets for the RWB Company, Professional Division and Aspirant program. She has also staged full length ballets for Orlando Ballet, Louisville Ballet and the National Ballet of Cuba and has enjoyed guest teaching for schools and companies around the world.

Peter Stark, President and Director of The Rock School For Dance Education, talks with us about the current state of the job market and what he thinks about the growth of post-graduate ballet programs. He also provides valuable advice for any students who are hitting the audition circuit, including what to look for in a post-graduate program, how to approach auditions and how to stand out from the crowd. Links: The Rock SchoolBallet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

We talked with TaKiyah Wallace-McMillian, founder of Brown Girls Do Ballet, to learn about its evolution from a personal photography project to a major philanthropic force. She discussed the organization's impact on diversity in the arts, highlighting their advocacy work, scholarship and grant programs as well as their and their global mentoring program. Tune to hear more on how Brown Girls Do Ballet is driving the conversation around diversity and getting results. Links: Brown Girls Do BalletThe Color of Dance (signed copy)Ballet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

Ballet Help Desk sat down with Maria Torija, Director of the Academy at BalletMet. Tune in to hear all about how the trainee program is structured, how the school recruits and how they work with BalletMet2. Dr. Torija also discusses how the school provides career support for its students as well where trainees and second company dancers ultimately end up. Links: BalletMet TraineesBalletMet2Ballet Help DeskSubmit Year-Round ReviewsSupport Ballet Help DeskInstagram: @BalletHelpDesk

Maria Konrad sat down with Ballet Help Desk to share her experiences working with Nashville Ballet Two's trainees and dancers, preparing them for future ballet careers. Gain insights into the unique blend of training and performance opportunities that shape the dancers' journeys and get the inside scoop on this crucial stage of professional development. Links: Nashville Ballet: https://www.nashvilleballet.com Nashville Ballet 2: https://www.nashvilleballet.com/nb2 Ballet Help Desk: www.ballethelpdesk.com Submit Year-Round Reviews: https://forms.gle/DQXvQbJqtdnREjHQ7 Support Ballet Help Desk: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=JBTG3G2W77EJ8 Instagram: @BalletHelpDesk Subscribe To Our Newsletter: https://ballethelpdesk.com/newsletter/

We sat down with Alan Hineline, Director of the Pre-Professional Division & Resident Choreographer at Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet to get his take on the growing world of post-graduate ballet programs. We asked him why so many programs seem to be popping up, how he helps his students figure out the best fits and the role he sees post-graduate ballet programs playing in the future. For anyone trying to make sense of this new world, this episode is a must-listen! Note that CPYB is currently auditoning students for both summer as well as year-round placement in its school. Information about auditions can be found here: Links: Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet Website: https://cpyb.org/ Ballet Help Desk: www.ballethelpdesk.com Submit Year-Round Reviews: https://forms.gle/DQXvQbJqtdnREjHQ7 Instagram: @BalletHelpDesk Subscribe To Our Newsletter: https://ballethelpdesk.com/newsletter/

Join us as we chat with former San Francisco Ballet Soloist, Julianne Spratlin. Julianne now runs Dance Training Center, San Francisco a pre-professional ballet program. We discussed the current state of ballet training and how she sees the role post-graduate or "bridge-level" training plays in a dancer's journey. Dance Training Center SF: https://www.dtc-sf.com/

"Becoming a professional ballet dancer in the United States requires years of training, dedication, and luck. With only a few thousand full-time jobs available, navigating a ballet career can be challenging and filled with uncertainty." These are the words that open the seminal report, the DataPointes Guide, developed by former dancer, Jason Yeung. We sat down with him to discuss how he crunched publicly available data to develop an insightful guide that illustrates which ballet training programs are producing the greatest number of professional ballet dancers. For any dancers considering serious ballet training and even a career, the DataPointes Guide will serve as a fantastic resource to help in the process. DataPointes Guide: https://datapointesguide.com/

We're rereleasing a podcast we aired back in the late spring. Tune in to hear everything you need to know on how your older teens can maximize success at their summer intensive.