Advanced Performance and Professional Practice

This capstone unit integrates advanced classical technique, repertoire study, dancer health, and professional workplace skills to prepare students for continued study, performance, and entry-level careers in ballet. Students refine complex steps and variations while analyzing major works, applying injury‑prevention strategies, and practicing backstage and career-ready behaviors.

Learning Objectives

• Demonstrate advanced classical techniques (pirouette en dehors from fourth, grand jeté, rond de jambe à terre, glissade, retiré/relevé balance work, double tour en l’air, and 32 fouettés) with consistent alignment, musicality, and safe landings during class combinations and staged excerpts
• Apply principles of dancer health and safety—including warm-up progression, training modifications for pregnancy or injury, and awareness of long‑term joint care—to create and justify individualized practice plans
• Analyze selected classical and contemporary ballets (e.g., Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, Romeo and Juliet, La Fille Mal Gardée) for narrative structure, choreographic intent, and orchestral support to inform expressive performance choices
• Evaluate professional and cultural aspects of ballet performance—backstage etiquette, casting and touring realities, audience engagement, gender norms, and strategies for community outreach—to prepare for auditioning, company life, and public presentation