Philosophy
Swarthmore Ballet Theatre is different from the other schools. There are no end of the year recitals. You may come into the studio to see how your child has progressed as a dancer during the last class of the year. You may also observe classes through the window of the waiting room at anytime; so this is just for your dancer to see you watching.
Because there is no recital, your child will not spend nine months learning a dance. Your child will learn technique to be a dancer. We will try to keep your dancer happy, to be light on his/her feet and expressive. Because it is harmful to the soft bones in the feet to turn out while standing before the age of 8, young dancers take creative dance or pre-ballet classes. It is also easier for the older child to properly turn out from the hip avoiding injury to the soft bones of the foot. Pre-ballet and creative students wear no shoes so we can make sure their feet are doing things that are safe.
After attending the age 6 or older classes at Swarthmore Ballet for nine continuous months, your child may dance in six performances of a full length classical ballet in June and December. We provide free costumes and stage makeup. The dancers rehearse on weekends (our classes are Monday through Friday). There is no charge for the two hours a weekend of rehearsals. You may buy tickets to the performances, but students are not asked to sell anything. There is no pressure to perform.
The performance ballet company is a non-profit educational organization.