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OUR STORY

About Us

Founded in 1985 by Noble Barker, New Haven Ballet (NHB) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and the premier classical ballet school serving Greater New Haven, Connecticut. For nearly 40 years, NHB has provided the highest caliber of ballet instruction and dance education to students of all ages and levels—from aspiring professionals to recreational dancers. Each year, NHB engages more than 6,500 children and adults through exceptional training, captivating performances, and impactful community programs.

NHB School

  • New Haven Ballet offers pre-professional and recreational dance training at four convenient studio locations: Audubon, Whitney, and Q House in New Haven, and a satellite studio in Branford. More than 250 children and teens study at NHB annually, progressing through a graded curriculum in classical ballet complemented by contemporary, conditioning, Broadway, and repertory classes.

    Students aged 3 to 8 begin in the Children’s Division with creative, age-appropriate movement classes designed to spark joy and instill musicality. From age 9 onward, students may pursue serious study in the Student Division. Teens and adults aged 12 and older may join the Open Division, which offers drop-in recreational classes in ballet and modern dance.

    NHB students have been accepted to elite summer intensives including The School of American Ballet, Boston Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and the Ailey School, and many go on to enjoy professional careers in dance.

MEET OUR FACULTY

Performances

New Haven Ballet presents several major performance opportunities each year, offering students the chance to appear in professionally produced, fully staged ballets that inspire audiences and foster artistic growth.

    • The Nutcracker
      Held each December at New Haven’s historic Shubert Theatre, The Nutcracker features over 150 NHB students and guest artists from New York City Ballet, including soloists Sara Adams and Harrison Coll. Audiences of more than 4,000 attend four public shows and a special Children’s Matinee performance.

    • Spring Performance
      Also held at the Shubert Theatre, NHB’s Spring Performance showcases approximately 150 dancers across all levels. The 2025 production featured La Bayadère: Kingdom of Shades, Caprice Nos. 4 and 5, Adventures in Wonderland, Shared Ability, and Open Division highlights. These performances celebrate the full breadth of NHB’s training and community programs.

    • DanceAIR Community Performance
      Presented each spring, this free community event features around 60 student dancers from NHB’s outreach initiative, DanceAIR. The performance demonstrates the impact of NHB’s education programs in New Haven public schools and community centers.

    • Fairfield University Summer Residency
      Students participating in NHB’s summer program at Fairfield University conclude the residency with a lecture-demonstration performance, presenting learned technique and repertory to family and friends.

    • Community Performances

      NHB dancers perform at numerous community events each year. Past performances include the Branford Festival, the International Festival of Arts and Ideas, and other public gatherings, expanding access to classical ballet throughout the region.

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

Community Programs

New Haven Ballet plays a vital role in building an inclusive and engaged arts community. Our signature outreach and education programs include:

  • DanceAIR: Offered at five New Haven public schools and Dixwell Q House, DanceAIR provides free ballet classes to approximately 100 students annually. The program has expanded to include three weekly classes for children ages 4–9 and awards scholarships to graduates who continue training at NHB. The total value of DanceAIR support is estimated at $65,000 annually.

  • Shared Ability: A unique, inclusive program bringing together students with physical disabilities and advanced NHB students for a ten-week dance workshop, culminating in a performance at the Shubert Theatre. Classes are led by teaching artist Kerry Kincy and are fully wheelchair accessible.

  • Open Division: Welcoming over 150 teens and adults each year, the Open Division offers recreational drop-in classes for students aged 12 and up.

COMMUNITY IMPACT

TESTIMONIALS:

DANCEAIR PERFORMANCE: "The students who participate in the ballet classes this year look forward to their time to learn new movements and practice their routines. This program has boosted the confidence of the students it serves and has offered these girls an opportunity that they may not have gotten if it wasn’t for this program. I saw the excitement before a performance in a real theater when I chaperoned the students last spring. They were thrilled to have the opportunity to show what they had learned and dance on the same stage with the New Haven Ballet company."

ES / Lincoln-Bassett School

NHB's IMPACT ON THE COMMUNITY: "The classes in your two New Haven studios and the Q House, the DanceAir program, Shared Abilities classes and the scholarships you have made available have truly connected the New Haven Ballet to the entire community in a deep and meaningful way. I have seen several of the Shared Ability performances, and the excitement backstage and in the audience was palpable. The sense of accomplishment, the mutual support and the pride of dancers and parents electrified the very large room. I witnessed the standing room only crowd at the Q House last December and the wonder of young faces seeing excerpts from The Nutcracker for the very first time. The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven is proud to support your work."

JD / Community Foundation of Greater New Haven

TRAINING: "To sit in our car rides to and from NHB over the years makes me realize (even more than I already did) what a profound effect you have made. The laughter to and from Madison to New Haven over the years has truly been some of the best times of her (and my!) life. There are no words to thank you both enough. She has a very large part of her that wants to pursue dance because of all the amazing training and disciplines she has learned from you. But it goes way beyond dancing - and for that, I am forever grateful."

JS / Parent of NHB student

PERFORMANCE: "Yet again, another breathtaking performance and one that we all cannot thank you enough for! It was such an amazing week for N, and all 12 of our family members thoroughly loved it!"

DANCEAIR: "Words can't adequately express the gratitude I have for all of you, the teachers, and the staff at NHB. I have always been very open that I would not financially be able to provide this opportunity for Z. I remember so well when she was awarded her DanceAir Scholarship in second grade. I was so overwhelmed with thanks and so excited for her. The tears just flowed. I wasn't sure what to expect in terms of scholarships for the following years, and I am so grateful for the ongoing support to sustain Z's participation. In all her years at NHB, there has never been a class she didn't want to attend or a day she had a negative experience. She may not say much, but I want you to know she loves class with all of you; she has articulated the unique gifts each of you share with your classes. The fact that such a reserved kid actively works to perform on stage is so puzzling to me- but that's Z! She genuinely loves ballet, always practicing and dancing around. She told me the other day that she feels her instructors help her to do better without pushing or being negative, and it's very different from school. She says she never feels bad about herself. She feels ballet makes her want to do better because it just feels good. I just wanted to let you know how grateful I am for NHB, for each of you, and for your role in loving and supporting Z as she grows up."

LV / Parent of DanceAIR student

SHARED ABILITY: "My daughter who is severely disabled with cerebral palsy and has intellectual disabilities has participated in the dance program for many years. It is something she looks forward to every year. At so many levels it makes a difference in her life. She lives in a protected environment and going to a safe place like dance at New Haven Ballet allows her to get out, meet peers like herself, make friends, move her body and stretch, listen and follow instructions, move and feel music, gain a sense of accomplishment, but most importantly interact with enabled dancers where she and her peers are the focus. For the enabled dancers this may well be the only time they will meet, touch, spend time with, and get to know the personalities of someone who is disabled, in a no judgement zone. This interaction will stick with the enabled dancers throughout their lives and see that the disabled are people to be loved, cherished, and work very hard for each step in life or dance movement they make. The instructor is always fabulous, creative, fun and motivating. The year end performance, though not always perfect, brings cheers and tears from the audience as the shared ability dancers together with their partners show off all that they accomplish and their true beauty. These cheers and tears are beamed right back at the audience by the glow of accomplishment and pride in my daughters face. When she leaves the stage we will give her a hug, tell her how wonderful she did and she will simply answer “no over”.  Please support Shared Ability, it is so important to those that are mostly unseen." 

MP / Parent of a Shared Ability dancer

Photo: ©Thomas Giroir Photography

OUR MISSION

To provide the greater New Haven Community with exceptional classical ballet training, performances, and outreach programs, that nurture appreciation of ballet and foster the joy of dance.

On October 31, 2020, NHB’s Board of Directors adopted the following Diversity and Inclusion Statement:

New Haven Ballet celebrates those who aspire to excellence in classical ballet. A culture of creativity is the core of our work and diversity promotes innovation. The arts can provide powerful life-changing experiences that prepare students and impact audiences to lead more successful, meaningful and culturally rich lives. The arts can also prove to be an important platform for social change. At New Haven Ballet we are passionate about creating an inclusive dance environment and performances that promote and value diversity and inclusion. We will continue to strive to increase diversity in age, gender identity, race, sexual orientation, physical or mental ability, ethnicity, and perspective, which will improve and strengthen our work.

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