ballet instruction Tag

Dear Friends and Families,

With great enthusiasm, I thank you for being part of the New Haven Ballet community. The Ballet is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides excellent dance training by a fantastic faculty, professional-quality performances, and incredible outreach opportunities, all aimed at nurturing the love of dance throughout Greater New Haven.

This year, we are enlisting the help of some wonderful volunteers to strengthen the ties within our community and assist with our Annual Appeal fundraising efforts. We hope you will speak with some of our volunteers to learn how New Haven Ballet impacts the various members of the community. We will be letting you know more soon.

Your inclusion in our family is invaluable. Your support through our fundraising efforts is vital; it’s the lifeblood of our organization. We can only provide exceptional programs with the funding we receive through donations because tuition and ticket sales do not cover our expenses.

Please help us spread the joy of dance throughout the community with our Annual Appeal through November 15th. For your convenience, New Haven Ballet now accepts payment through Venmo

I am deeply grateful for your time, consideration, and, most importantly, your support. Because of your donations, we can continue to bring the joy of dance to Greater New Haven.

Yours sincerely,

Lisa Kim Sanborn, Artistic Director

New Haven Ballet extends a warm welcome and welcome back to new and veteran students. Classes have begun, and students are working hard. Training in the graded curriculum starts in Levels 1 and 2. Teachers provide excellent technical and artistic foundational work, stressing proper alignment and execution. Students in Levels 3 and 4 continue their technical development and acquire knowledge of ballet vocabulary. In Levels 5 and 6, we foster artistic and technical excellence. In Levels 7 and 8, our dancers build on their strong classical technique, clean lines, and artistry. We offer boys and girls the highest caliber of classical ballet training in the region, including pointe, partnering, and repertory.

Training is enhanced by diverse workshops and classes, incorporating classical, Neo-classical, contemporary, lyrical, Broadway, and carefully curated conditioning and stretch classes. Students who wish to pursue professional careers in dance may take advantage of fantastic performance opportunities, including a student company, to facilitate reaching their potential and making maximum progress while engaging in an immersive dance experience shared with others who are as passionate about dance as they are. Intermediate and advanced-level students have the added opportunity to work with incredible guest faculty throughout the year. This fall, we welcome New York City Ballet’s Ruby Lister and Savannah Durham and returning guest faculty member Alejandro Ulloa.

Nutcracker Auditions are open to all students enrolled for the fall semester in Creative Ballet I-Level 8 on September 21-22, 2024.

At New Haven Ballet, our commitment to continuous improvement is unwavering. We understand the importance of a holistic approach to education in our training program, and we strive to provide a nurturing environment for our students. We welcome new students. Please get in touch with us to schedule a placement class.

Photo: (c) 2024 Kelsey Paff Photography

AGES 3-8: ONE MONTH OF BALLET FOR $75

3-8-year-olds may participate in a month of introduction to ballet at New Haven Ballet from August 26-September 28, 2024, for $75.​​

With a legacy of over thirty-five years, the New Haven Ballet sets the standard for classical dance training throughout Greater New Haven. New Haven Ballet provides the best training for young dancers, employing a gentle curriculum that results in dancers known for their excellent technique, clean lines, and beautiful artistry.

This is a fantastic opportunity as there is nothing like the joy experienced while moving to music; having a strong classical technique is essential for all dancers. Moreover, children who engage in the arts tend to perform better in math, reading, and writing. Ballet also helps children develop motor, social-emotional, cognitive, and multisensory skills. Children who continue arts education in elementary school and beyond may demonstrate increased brain development and self-esteem.

​​For those in 3K Pre-Kindergarten, New Haven Ballet’s 1st Steps class allows young dancers to celebrate their creativity as a fundamental movement to music and support of basic motor skills are introduced.

The 1st Steps class meets on Monday from 11:15-12:00 p.m. in Bethany and Saturday mornings from 9:00-9:45 a.m. in New Haven.

​​For those in 4K Pre-Kindergarten, New Haven Ballet’s Creative Ballet I class promotes the growth of young dancers’ natural creativity, focusing on motor skill development and musical awareness.

Choice of classes for Creative Ballet I:

Monday at 3:00-3:45 p.m. in Bethany
Tuesday at 4:45-5:30 p.m. in Branford
Wednesday at 4:00-4:45 p.m. in New Haven

Thursday at 4:30-5:15 p.m. in Hamden
Saturday at 9:45-10:30 a.m. in New Haven

​​For those in Kindergarten, New Haven Ballet’s Creative Ballet II class continues to promote the expansion of natural creativity with an increased focus on motor skill development and musical awareness.

Choice of classes for Creative Ballet II:

Monday at 3:00-3:45 p.m. in Bethany
Tuesday at 4:45-5:30 p.m. in Branford
Wednesday at 4:00-4:45 p.m. in New Haven

Thursday at 4:30-5:15 p.m. in Hamden
Saturday at 10:30-11:15 a.m. in New Haven

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​​For those in 1st Grade, New Haven Ballet’s Pre-Ballet class introduces more formal classical ballet training, using age-appropriate ballet vocabulary and movement.​

Choice of classes for Pre-Ballet:

Monday at 3:45-4:45 p.m. in Bethany
Tuesday at 5:30-6:15 p.m. in Branford
Wednesday at 4:45-5:30 p.m. in New Haven

Thursday at 5:15-6:00 p.m. in Hamden
Saturday at 11:15-12:00 p.m. in New Haven

For those in 2nd Grade, New Haven Ballet’s Primary class introduces more formal classical ballet training, preparing students to enter the student division and a graded curriculum.​

Choice of classes for Primary:

Monday at 3:45-4:45 p.m. in Bethany
Tuesday at 5:30-6:15 p.m. in Branford
Wednesday at 5:30-6:30 p.m. in New Haven

Thursday at 5:15-6:00 p.m. in Hamden
Saturday at 12:00-1:00 p.m. in New Haven

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​​​​The fall is a great time to make new friends and try something new! Space is limited. This offer is available on a first-come, first-served basis for students at least three and under nine years old on or before August 26, 2024. The offer has no monetary value and may not be substituted, revised, exchanged, or extended. For more information, Tel. at 203-782-9038 or email administrator@newhavenballet.org.

New Haven Ballet was founded in 1985 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit community-based ballet school in New Haven, Connecticut.

Photo: (c) 2024 Kelsey Paff Photography

New Haven Ballet announces auditions for The Nutcracker are September 21-22, 2024, at 70 Audubon Street, New Haven, Connecticut. Dancers enrolled in Creative Ballet I, Creative Ballet II, Pre-Ballet, Primary, and Levels 1-8 at New Haven Ballet are encouraged to audition. Everyone who auditions gets a part and an opportunity to perform in one or more performances with New York City Ballet’s Sara Adams and Harrison Coll December 13-15 at the Shubert Theatre New Haven. Click Here for more information.

New Haven Ballet returns for its summer residency at Choate Rosemary Hall in Wallingford, Connecticut, offering a pre-professional ballet intensive for ballet students ages 11+. Twenty-six students from New York, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut were selected through a competitive process to study with New Haven Ballet’s premiere faculty and perform.

“We are excited to provide an elite classical dance summer sleep-away camp in Connecticut at Choate’s state-of-the-art dance facilities and perform in their beautiful theater. This is an opportunity for talented classical ballet students to receive exceptional personalized training close to New Haven,” explains Artistic Director Lisa Kim Sanborn. Students reside in Choate dormitories and participate in a rigorous daily training program.

“This year, we are thrilled to welcome New York City Ballet’s Savannah Durham to our summer faculty,” notes Sanborn.

On Friday, August 9, 2024, at 3:00 p.m., the students will present a free public performance at the Paul Mellon Arts Center. The performance will feature excerpts from Sanborn’s Le Corsaire, which premiered at the Shubert Theatre New Haven in 2016.

Located at 332 Christian Street in Wallingford, the Paul Mellon Arts Center is a beautiful state-of-the-art theater designed by award-winning architect I.M. Pei, who is perhaps best known for the East Wing of the National Gallery, for which the Arts Center at Choate served as a prototype, and for the pyramid-shaped entry to the Louvre Museum in Paris.

Admission to the performance is free.

Photo: © 2024 Thomas Giroir Photography

New Haven Ballet is introducing pointe class to its open division drop-in schedule. The class will be held on Friday mornings following the beginning technique class. Participation in the technique class is required. Click here for more information or contact New Haven Ballet at 203-782-9038 or email: administrator@newhavenballet.org

New Haven Ballet has announced that registration for its 2024 Children’s Division Fall Semester has opened. Classes are offered at studios in New Haven, Hamden, Bethany, and Branford starting on August 26, 2024.

The Gentle Syllabus

The Children’s Division is a special segment of the school that caters to young students ages 3 through 2nd grade. According to Artistic Director Lisa Kim Sanborn, what sets the program apart is that “[w]e begin training by using our gentle approach syllabus, which introduces our youngest dancers to the joys of music and movement through a system that gradually adds structure as students mature.” Sanborn adds, “Classes are filled with laughter and held in spacious, sunny, state-of-the-art studios by the region’s best instructors. Dancers in Creative Ballet and higher are also invited to audition and perform in our large productions at the Shubert Theatre in New Haven.”

Sanborn refers to the carefully constructed syllabus she created, which was later supplemented by Children’s Division Director Timothy Fountain. The syllabus uses age-appropriate exercises and stretches while gently introducing students to classical dance and musical tenets. For example, in First Steps, students in 3-K pre-kindergarten use their creativity to learn the fundamentals of musicality, while in 4-K pre-kindergarten and Kindergarten, students participate in Creative Ballet, focusing on motor skill development and musical awareness. Pre-ballet students are in 1st grade, and Primary students are in 2nd grade. These students begin formalized classical ballet training and learn more advanced vocabulary and movement.

Students who successfully complete New Haven Ballet’s Children’s Division enter the Student Division ready to join Level 1, where they continue building a clean classical foundation. As the standard for classical ballet training for over thirty-five years throughout greater New Haven, the school is known for producing dancers with excellent technique and beautiful artistry.

But the journey doesn’t end with classes. Dancers in Creative Ballet and higher are not just learning; they perform. Dancers in 4-K pre-kindergarten and older are invited to audition and showcase their skills in New Haven Ballet’s large productions at the prestigious Shubert Theatre in New Haven. The next grand performance will be The Nutcracker, starring guest artists from New York City Ballet.

Parents often enroll children to participate in the arts because they wish to support better academic achievement and the gain of critical skills for their children. These skills might include discipline, fine motor skills, physical strength, critical thinking, coordination, and confidence. However, according to Sanborn, the best reason to join is because “New Haven Ballet’s trained instructors teach using our highly sought-after gentle approach, allowing children to build these skills without them knowing. Over time, students acquire the foundation for a beautiful classical technique and embrace discipline, learn to listen and follow instructions, and the rigors ballet presents. And they make friendships and memories that last a lifetime, too.”

New Haven Ballet is at www.newhavenballet.org. For more information about classes, call 203-782-9038 or email administrator@newhavenballet.org.

About New Haven Ballet

New Haven Ballet is led by Artistic Director Lisa Kim Sanborn and Children’s Division Director Timothy Fountain. As a community-based ballet school in New Haven, Connecticut, it offers dance classes in state-of-the-art studios to dancers ages 3 to adult. Regarded as the standard for classical ballet training throughout Greater New Haven, this 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization offers classes to the Children’s Division at studios in New Haven, Bethany, Hamden, and Branford. In addition to performances, New Haven Ballet’s outreach programs, including DanceAIR, which offers free training to New Haven Public School children in traditionally underserved communities, and Shared Ability, which provides weekly dance workshops to disabled artists, are made possible through the generosity of Stonesthrow Fund, Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, City of New Haven Creative Arts Advancement Program, Anna Fitch Ardenghi Trust, State of Connecticut Office of the Arts, the Jordan Fund, NewAlliance Foundation, Ethel & Abe Lapides Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Bank of America, City of New Haven Creative Sector Relief Fund, the Zayas Law Fund, and the Branford Community Foundation.

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Photo: (c) 2024 Kelsey Paff Photography. If you want more information about New Haven Ballet, please call  203-782-9038 or email administrator@newhavenballet.org.

New Haven Ballet returns to ECA ACES Arts Hall on Friday, May 10, at 6:30 p.m. to celebrate young dancers participating in this year’s DanceAIR program.

New Haven Ballet’s DanceAIR program offers free in-school ballet classes to young children at New Haven public elementary schools. Through partnerships established with New Haven public schools and LEAP (Leadership, Education and Athletics in Partnership, Inc.), New Haven Ballet provides high-quality arts education, expands students’ understanding and appreciation of dance and the performing arts, teaches basic dance technique and choreography, and allows children to express themselves artistically by combining musicality and rhythm. Students experience the artistry and musicality of dance, which emphasizes self-discipline, athleticism, coordination, creativity, strength, balance, and flexibility.

The recently established offerings at the Dixwell Community House (Q House) grew out of interest when New Haven Ballet offered a free performance of Nutcracker excerpts at the Q House, which serves families in the Dixwell and Newhallville neighborhoods of New Haven. “The performance attracted a standing-room-only audience, which led New Haven Ballet and Q House to develop a long-term partnership with free weekly dance classes at Q House,” notes Artistic Director Lisa Kim Sanborn.

Sanborn states, “We began last spring, and the program has now expanded to three classes held each Friday evening, with sixty-seven students enrolled.”

A testament to the program’s growing popularity and the joy it brings, twenty-seven DanceAIR and Q House students performed with New Haven Ballet’s student Company last December to showcase their talent in the Q House holiday dance concert, once again attracting a full house. According to Sanborn, “Seven DanceAIR students had the opportunity to perform in our public performances of The Nutcracker on stage at New Haven’s historic Shubert Theatre, where over 4,000 audience members shared in nurturing our young talented dancers, witnessing their excitement and passion for dance. New Haven Ballet is proud of the success of DanceAIR, which is a testament to the support and involvement of our community. This year, we are offering free in-school ballet classes to over forty-five young children at five New Haven public elementary schools,” which Sanborn continues is “a significant increase from last year,” where ninety percent of the students are children of color and approximately seventy percent are eligible for free/reduced-price meals.

New Haven Schools offering DanceAIR training include Fair Haven School, Truman School, Edgewood Creative Thinking through STEAM Magnet School, Lincoln-Bassett Community School, and Barack H. Obama Magnet University School. These students will be joined by Q House students and New Haven Ballet Company dancers for a one-hour performance at ECA ACES Arts Hall, 55 Audubon Street, New Haven, on Friday, May 10, at 6:30 p.m. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. The performance is one hour long and FREE admission.

New Haven Ballet is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. This performance is made possible through the generosity and support of our partners, ECA ACES, the City of New Haven Department of Arts, Culture, and Tourism, the Anna Fitch Ardenghi Trust, the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, and our valued partnership with the Dixwell Community House. We are deeply grateful for their contributions and belief in our mission to provide high-quality arts education to young children in New Haven.

New Haven Ballet offers classes to students ages 3 years to adult and Fall 2023 Class Registration is open. New students to the school should contact NHB School Administrator, Ruth Barker, at Tel. 203-782-9038 or Email: administrator@newhavenballet.org to set up a placement class. Students are encouraged to register early to ensure their preferred class selections are available. Once classes are full waitlists will form.

Click Here for Class Schedule

Click Here for Programs and Tuition

New Haven Ballet Artistic Director, Lisa Kim Sanborn, announced that auditions for the student company will be held on Friday, January 20. Auditions are open to all Level 5-8 students who wish to perform in the Spring Performance on May 27, 2023 at the Shubert Theatre New Haven. Pre-registration is required.

As a thank you to our supporters on #GivingTuesday, New Haven Ballet is pleased to share a video of our students performing Jazz Pizzicato from the ballet, Symphonic Nonsense, with choreography by Tom Gold. This performance was filmed on May 28, 2022 at the Shubert Theatre New Haven. Donor support allows New Haven Ballet to do what we love — provide excellent classes, performances and community programs.

Click Here for Jazz Pizzicato

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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