Bay Area Ballet Conservatory

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General

Who is Reviewing?

Parent

Program:

Bay Area Ballet Conservatory

Season Attended:

2025-26

# Of Levels In School:

Dancer Age:

Hours of Dance Each Week:

11-15 hours

Was Student Scholarshipped?

Years At School:

2 years

Leveling by Age or Skill?

Skill

Teacher Background:

Both

Parents Required to Volunteer?

Yes

Parent Volunteer Requirement:

Volunteering is very flexible, and includes both in-person and online/remote opportunities. You can opt out for a small fee, but it's expected to do something twice a year (load a truck, sew, usher, help backstage, edit a program, post flyers, etc.)

Date Submitted:

6/13/2026

Curriculum

Days Per Week:

Classes Per Day:

Weekend Classes?

Yes

Weekend Schedule:

Half day

Students Per Class:

10-15

Weekly Repertoire or Variations?

Pointe Classes Per Week:

Live Music in Technique Class?

Dedicated Men's Program?

Unsure

Men Taught by Male Teacher?

Yes

Men Taught Batterie?

Yes

Boys In Level:

Less than 5

Separate Technique Class for Boys:

Yes

Techniques Taught:

General Classical, Vaganova

Technique Teacher Rotation:

The school rotated teachers on a fixed schedule

Did School Director Teach?

Often

Classroom Corrections:

Dancer specific: almost every dancer got specific corrections each day

Attention From Teachers:


Very Little	A Lot

Quality of Instruction:


Poor	Excellent

Did Technique Improve?


Not at all	Tremendously

Curriculum Comments:

Technique is offered six days a week, pointe is offered 4 or 5 days a week, contemporary is offered once weekly. In addition there are pretty constant rehearsals.

Partnering

Frequency of Partnering Class:

No partnering

Other Classes

Other Dance Styles:

Character

Other Class Quality:


Poor	Excellent

Contemporary Offered?

Yes

Types of Contemporary Classes Taught:

Choreography workshops, Technique

Contemporary Quality:


Poor	Excellent

Master Classes?

Yes

Master Classes Description:

Master's classes in technique, point, and contemporary from time to time

Strength & Conditioning

Physical Training Offered?

Injuries/Health/ Mental Health

Are Doctors Available?

How Parents Notified?

Parent was informed same day, in person

How Treatment Obtained?

Parent sought treatment

PT Available?

Was There a Recovery Plan?

Yes

Describe Recovery Plan:

The school communicated with the dancer, the parent, and at times the dance PT the dancer was seeing. Technique classes were modified to follow the restrictions from the orthopedist, and ramped back up thoughtfully and carefully

Mental Health Therapists Available?

Were Students Given Fat Talk?

Staff Made Comments About Bodies?

Were Students Weighed?

Was "Coded Language" Used?

Additional Comments:

The injury rate here is much much lower than at our prior studio. The teachers are trained in injury prevention. The school overall, and the artistic director in particular, are very focused on the well-being of all the students. Certain minimum requirements were waived to accommodate medical issues, and this was done with compassionate conversation and follow up.

Communication

Formal Orientation?

Yes

Handboook & Paperwork:

Comprehensive and complete. I knew what to expect for the year

Quality of Communication?


Poor	Excellent

Who Received Communication?

With parents and students

Exams

Formal Exam?

School Culture

How Supported Did Student Feel By Staff?


Not	Completely

How Supportive Were Students of One Another?


Not	Completely

Describe School Culture:

Joyful, beautiful, accepting

Placement Notification Timing:

June

How Dancer Was Notified:

Written communication via email or regular mail

Dancer Had Mentor?

Yes

Mentoring Details:

The artistic director has personally engaged with my dancer and with me in order to support her goals as well as her well being. The school has been very involved in things like preparing video auditions and writing letters of recommendation and the like.

Overall School Culture:


Lord of the Flies	Warm & Inclusive

Building & Surrounding Area

Security Around Building:

Safety of Area Around School?


Not Safe	Extremely Safe

Studio Space:


Cramped	Lots of space

Studio Cleanliness:


Dirty	Spotless

Performance Opportunities

Company Affiliated?

Programs Performed:

4-5

Shows per Program:

Casting:

Everyone auditions for parts

Peformance Calendar:

There are three mainstage performances a year, Nutcracker, Spring, and End of Year. In addition, there are choreography workshop performances in the studio. BABC is the school of the Bay Area Youth Ballet, and the youth company participates in The Ballet Alliance, a consortium of youth ballet companies. Annually the company members have four new works created on them (two by professional choreographers, two by student choreographers chosen via audition.) These works are performed for TBA staff who select two for performance at the annual TBA convention. The company dancers all attend this four day off-site convention, take master classes every day, and perform the company's selected new works. This also includes an optional audition for summer intensives and college dance programs, with scholarships awarded. The school mainstage performances cover a rotation of full story ballets, and attract a regional audience beyond the school community.

Private Lessons

Private Lessons Available?

Yes

Are Private Lessons Encouraged?


Not at all	Strongly recommended

Who Takes Privates?

Anyone who wants them

Private Lessons equally available to all students?


Strongly disagree	Strongly agree

Summer Intensives

School Holds an SI?

Yes

School's SI Required?

Yes

Outside SI OK?

Yes, it's strongly encouraged

How Did School Help?

The school assists with SI and college audition prep and video creation where needed. All school performances have formal auditions as practice for the audition process. There are SI and college auditions annually at the convention for The Ballet Alliance. Audition requirements are very clearly documented and students are coached on how to present themselves. While the school's SI is required, a student attending a company SI can attend a reduced duration of the school's SI, or substitute other summer training, all at the discretion of the artistic director. My daughter has never had any difficulty negotiating summer availability given her attendance at company and college summer intensives.

Program Grades

Overall Dance Instruction:

A+

Continuing Ballet Placement:

A+

Emotional Support:

A+

Performance Opportunities:

A+

Program Comments

Program's Best Aspect:

The teachers are all trained in pedagogy as well as being retired professional dancers. It's a huge difference from past experiences with retired pros who had no education in how to teach dance. Plus, they're all kind and professional.

Program's Worst Aspect:

There's a lot of time commitments to be a member of the Bay Area Youth Ballet company, including the four day convention for The Ballet Alliance. The students are rehearsing pretty much all year. It's a lot (note that company positions are OPTIONAL, and available only via audition. If you opt out of the company the time commitments are much more flexible.)

Anything Else We Should Know?

The director and teachers are top notch, kind, and professional