BALLET HELP DESK

Full-Time Training Reviews

Programs Reviewed: 87
Total Reviews: 296

Cary Ballet Conservatory

Full-Time Reviews

General

Who is Reviewing?

2
4
2

Program

8

Season Attended

2
3
1
1
1

# Of Levels In School

  • The PTP program had 2 levels and a bridge level at the time. They also have a studio program level for dancers who choose to attend regular high school.
  • 4
  • 3
  • There were two main pre pro levels and some took from both groups
  • Two plus bridging
  • 3 levels in PTP, no bridge levels
  • 2 Levels in the Pre-Professional Program, occasionally 3, depending on the size of the program that year. There are additionally dancers that are selected to bridge between levels.
  • A and B

Dancer Age

2
3
3

Hours of Dance Each Week

1

Gender

7
1

Company Affliated?

8

Was Student Scholarshipped?

7
1

Please Describe Scholarship

  • NA
  • NA
  • Was given after auditioning
  • N/A
  • Not on scholarship, but scholarships come with many specific requirements from the student, different from dancer to dancer. Some students are forbidden to go elsewhere for summer intensives, some need permission, some are encouraged to do at least 1-3 weeks at CBC, others are encouraged to go and get experience elsewhere, so very varied. Scholarships are almost always a contract, typically a 2-year one. They range in percents, tuition and residence alike. Director is usually generous, I have heard of many dancers requesting financial aid and receiving it, or being directed to Dancing Angels. From what I know, all boys are on a 25-100 percent scholarship, tuition and housing.

Years At School

2
2
1

Full time or after school?

1

Curriculum

Days Per Week

3
5

Classes Per Day

7
1

Weekend Classes?

2
6

Weekend Schedule

4
2
2

Students Per Class

2
6

Weekly Repertoire or Variations?

5
3

Pointe Classes Per Week

1
4
1
2

Live Music in Technique Class?

3
5

Dedicated Men's Program?

1
7

Men Taught by Male Teacher?

1

Men Taught Batterie?

1

Boys In Level

4
2
1

Separate Technique Class for Boys

5
1
1

Techniques Taught

4
8
4

Technique Teacher Rotation

7
1

Did School Director Teach?

1
5
2

Classroom Corrections

3
4
1

Attention From Teachers

Very Little
1
2
3
1
1
A Lot

Quality of Instruction

Poor
1
1
1
3
2
Excellent

Did Technique Improve?

Not at all
3
2
1
2
Tremendously

Curriculum Comments

  • Ballet and pointe in the morning, contemporary, pbt, etc in the afternoon. Company rehearsal on the weekends. Pay extra for coaching for competition.
  • Technique and pointe every morning. Partnering, contemporary, pbt, etc in afternoon
  • Schedule M- F starts at 11 am. Technique 11-12-30, pointe 12:30-1:30, Lunch 1:30-2, coaching 2-4, specialty class 4:30-6 (technique, contemporary, Pilates, PDD, Character etc..) Saturdays- company class 10-11:30, then rehearsals 11:30-5 depending on upcoming works, etc. Sundays off unless rehearsals , then Monday off if work on Sunday.
  • It was tech, pointe, and coaching. So if you do not compete you have a very light schedule.
  • Technique, pointe, partnering once/week, stretch, pbt
  • Technique and pointe daily, then coaching if you signed up, followed by an occ PBT, Contemporary, Pas, variations
  • All teachers are VERY coordinated on the syllabus, seemingly with weekly meetings to ensure this. Despite this, all teachers have a unique style and method, which I believe made the dancers well-rounded. Lots of Balanchine repertoire and philosophies, along with elements of Vaganova and Cecchetti styles, but I would say the most prevalent technique at CBC is Cuban. Overall diverse, yet organized.
  • M-F: technique, pointe then lunch then one afternoon class (contemporary or pas or variations, pas cancelled many times) (also add in separately additional payment for coaching for comps if doing) Saturday rehearsals for Nutcracker, Spring Show

Partnering

Frequency of Partnering Class

4
4

Partner Ratio

5
3

Who Taught?

8

How Much Partnering Improved

No
5
3
Tremendously

Quality of Pas Teaching

Poor
4
2
2
Excellent

How Were Corrections Given?

1
2
4
1

Description of Partnering Class

  • Usually taught by a male, mainly for the boys growth. Girls had to share and partnered each other.
  • Not enough boys, girls routinely partnered each other.
  • Once a week for sure +/- cosching for competition PDD, +/- rehersing for upcoming works PDD
  • We sometimes had it. There aren’t many boys.
  • Only boys got corrections, multiple girls paired with each boy
  • Each girl rotated through the male partners.
  • 2 male teachers taught partnering, both fairly different classes. Most boys had 2 girls per class.
  • Cancelled a lot; shared partners

Additional Comments

  • Lots of injuries
  • No
  • No
  • No
  • N/A
  • Level A received the most partnering time. Level B (my dancer's level) often had their pas class canceled. If there was a guest teacher then Level A replaced Level B for all partnering classes. Other than level A most of the other levels were not a priority.
  • We did a good ratio of turns, to lifts, to jumps, to partnered adagio

Other Classes

Other Dance Styles

2
1
4
1
2
1
1

Other Class Quality

Poor
1
2
2
1
1
Excellent

Contemporary Offered?

8

Types of Contemporary Classes Taught

1
3
2
8

Contemporary Quality

Poor
1
3
1
3
Excellent

Master Classes?

5
3

Master Classes Description

  • Occasional guest teachers.
  • Unless it was comp related we had même vers of the staff for class
  • N/A
  • Master teachers came several times. Unless you were in Level A you only saw them once during the duration of their stay.
  • I would estimate about 3-5 guest teachers come per school year
  • Master classes were a way for a teacher that they were interested in working with full-time to come and work with students (obviously used as an interview strategy). They also use the same repetitive Master Class instructors so they can use them to train/choreograph their favorite students for comps

Strength & Conditioning

Physical Training Offered?

8

Physical Training Types

1
4
8
2
1
1

Physical Training Schedule

6
2

Were Trainers Certified?

8

Physical Training Quality

Poor
1
3
2
2
Excellent

Strength & Conditioning Comments

  • No
  • N/A
  • There were two teachers for conditioning. Level A had the more proficient teacher. Level B had a teacher that taught a class with little to no intensity.
  • Twice a week, one PBT other Pilates

Injuries/Health/ Mental Health

Are Doctors Available?

6
2

How Parents Notified?

3
1
4

How Treatment Obtained?

  • Kid took self.
  • House parent took to UC
  • Resident manager coordinated all medical visits, made the appointments and provided transportation
  • By myself
  • Parent took child to Dr
  • Coordinated with residence parents.
  • Carolina Dancer Wellness, a physical therapy-like center, about 10 minutes away from the Conservatory, works closely with directors to create strengthening/rehabilitation plans for students

PT Available?

6
2

Was There a Recovery Plan?

2
4
2

Describe Recovery Plan

  • NA
  • Cary works closely with Carolina dancer Wellness and they outline a program to rehab and ramp up to get dancers back in class.
  • They shamed dancers when they were unable to participate due to injury.
  • Parent worked with Dr and PT on a plan and student communicated that to staff
  • Dancer would be encouraged to go to PT, Injury culture was very "This competition is not worth being forever crippled"

Mental Health Therapists Available?

6
1
1

Were Students Given Fat Talk?

8

Staff Made Comments About Bodies?

4
1
3

Were Students Weighed?

8

Was "Coded Language" Used?

4
4

Additional Comments

  • Dancers actively had ED. Known by students. Those dancers received prime roles, extra attention.
  • Several students threatened or atteself harm. ED among dancers.
  • Cary holds wellness seminars and nutrition counseling and provides resources for individual sessions if needed. Scales are forbidden in the individual apartments, but the resident manager has one if students want to use it once a week,
  • Every dancer from my class of two years has complaints about the environment. We all struggled with the worst mental and physical health. The staff and house parents absolutely contributed to this culture, and when confronted with it, brushed off students. Dancers were put in violating situations in the housing and ignored by the staff when they brought it up with an adult.
  • Very toxic environment for mental health
  • Like all schools, both directors typically chose students that were usually the thinnest for lead roles, nothing abnormal
  • They may not talk about fat, but they certainly REWARD students who lose weight, who are leaner, come back thinner after a summer, etc. and make claims about them being rewarded as though they became amazing dancers overnight miraculously but everyone knows it’s because they got very skinny. They award better roles to skinnier dancers even when they can’t perform the role

Performances: Winter Show/ Nutcracker

Performance Opportunities

7
1

School Winter Show?

8

Company or School Show?

8

Cast in Winter Show?

8

How Chosen

7
1

Winter Show Role

5
3

Were You Paid?

8

If Paid, Please Describe

1
1

Rehearsal Impact on Classes

1

Rehearsal Hours

1

Performance: Ballet Season

Cast in Company Productions?

8

Kind of Part Given?

7
1

How Chosen

7
1

Was Casting Fair?

3
2
3

Did Rehearsals Impact School Schedule?

1
2
5

Rehearsal Hours

1

Perfomance Opportunities

  • Nutcracker, spring show, showcase
  • Nut, spring show, showcase
  • Nutcracker, spring works (mixed contemporary snf story ballet, spring showcase, plus occasional outreach
  • There is nutcracker, a spring show, an end of year recital and many competition related performances.
  • Nutcracker, Spring Show, end of year showcase
  • Nutcracker, Spring show and school showcase
  • Nutcracker + a Spring Show, such as a story ballet or a Balanchine work, along with a recital
  • If you are in PTP you are required to “audition” for the Nutcracker and then for Spring Show. Which notes also more money: you pay for the audition fee and the company fee. They already know who they want casted. Don’t think you are going to be Clara for example.

Were You Paid?

8

If Paid, Please Describe

1
1

Competition

School Does Competitions?

8

Competitions Required?

7
1

How Many Compete?

  • Unknown
  • Unknown
  • All are able to learn solid and be coached for additional fees, but only a percentage are chosen to compete
  • If you are pre pro you are pressured to participate, even if injured!
  • Most of PTP and some studio
  • They initially said students were chosen, but it turned out that anyone who paid for coaching was allowed to compete.
  • They say that they select students, but almost all students were allowed to compete if they paid, with the exception of perhaps 1 or 2 students

% of Students Who Performed

  • 10%
  • 10
  • 75%
  • Everyone in pre pro
  • PTP- 99%
  • The majority of the PTP program students chose to compete in either ADC IBC, YAGP or both
  • 95%
  • 99%? PTP A

How Chosen?

1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1

Competitions Cost Extra?

  • Coaching fees, choreography fees, comp fees. It pretty much doubled the tuition.
  • Yes, coaches, choreography, competition, costumes
  • Yes, coaching fees
  • Yes you are accountable for all registration, travel, and costume fees
  • Yes
  • Coaching, choreography, competition fees and all costumes cost extra
  • Yes, many
  • Yes: coaching fees, comp fees, costume purchase or rental, travel, etc.

Separate Competition Rehearsals?

2
6

Competition Interfered With Training?

  • Both. Extra classes, performance opportunities. Extra stress, overuse injuries were common.
  • Add
  • Add, it was a wonderful experience!
  • It definitely did, I hardly improved because the world revolved around competing. Even then, the coaching sessions were taught with little to no effort.
  • Add since there is no variations class
  • Detract. There was a lot of focus on the coaching time every day, but it involved 3 students sharing a 30 minute time slot. If you chose not to participate in coaching you ended up with only technique and pointe on some days. Your day could be as short as 11:00 am-1:30 pm.
  • I believe it added, some say otherwise
  • Coaching is built into the afternoon M-Sometimes Saturday. If you aren’t coaching for a comp, you sit around more.

Communication

Formal Orientation?

5
3

Handboook & Paperwork

1
1
3
1
2

Quality of Communication?

Poor
3
1
2
1
1
Excellent

Who Received Communication?

2
6

Exams

Formal Exam?

8

School Culture

How Supported Did Student Feel By Staff?

Not
2
2
2
2
Completely

How Supportive Were Students of One Another?

Not
1
1
2
4
Completely

Describe School Culture

  • Competitive, favoritism, money-focused, thinner is better
  • Favoritism, unhealthy, body shaming
  • Supportive, nurturing, strong team family
  • Abhorrent, inappropriate, abusive, neglectful
  • Toxic, bullying, lots of talk about weight and eating
  • Warm, slightly disorganized, competition obsessed
  • Most dancers are very supportive
  • Fake nice. Obviously some real true connections present.

Placement Notification Timing

  • At the start of the next year
  • At the start of the next year
  • When new season begins. Placement classes first few days
  • Will not be returning
  • No
  • Beginning of the next school year at a placement class
  • There is placement audition at the beginning of each year
  • No they don’tTell you until you show up and do a placement class on day one. Good luck!

How Dancer Was Notified

1

Dancer Had Mentor?

1

Mentoring Details

  • None. They refuse to write recommendation letters unless a school or company directly asks them for it. Dancers were told to stop asking For recommendations because it was getting too overwhelming for them to write so many. Zero resume building. Zero input. Limited to six hours of studio rental to film auditions for colleges/companies. They have helped when asked by certain favorite students. Good luck to everyone else trying to graduate and find a place to go. You are definitely on your own (besides a select few that they hand hold throughout the process). Just be ready to do it alone.

Overall School Culture

Lord of the Flies
2
2
1
3
Warm & Inclusive

School Outcomes

Is Student In Upper Levels?

7

Highest Levels of School?

1
6
1

How Many Promoted Internally to Bridge Level

  • NA
  • Na
  • No bridge level
  • NA
  • N/A
  • NA
  • N/A

How Many Come From Outside to Bridge Level?

  • NA
  • Na
  • No bridge
  • Not sure
  • N/A
  • NA
  • N/A

Where Graduates Who Do Not Get Bridge Level Go

2
1
4

How Many Left and Went to College?

1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1

Career Support

3
5

Describe How School Helped

  • They did not assist in any way.
  • No help
  • On your own unless you are one of the chosen few favorites
  • Wasn't looking for placement, but ended up leaving to go to a bridge program. My dancer was encouraged to consider staying for another year. She was wished well when she left.
  • Directors help those graduating very minimally.
  • Absolutely zero help. See previous comment about telling students to stop asking for recommendations.

Building & Surrounding Area

Security Around Building

7
1

Safety of Area Around School?

Not Safe
1
4
3
Extremely Safe

Studio Space

Cramped
1
2
3
2
Lots of space

Studio Cleanliness

Dirty
1
2
4
1
Spotless

Housing

Was Housing Provided?

6

Did Dancer Stay in Provided Housing?

2
6

Where Did Dancer Live?

1

Type of Housing Provided:

5
2

Housing Minimum Age

1
1
1
1
1
1

# of Roommates:

1
4
1

Adequate # of RA's?

Not at all
2
1
3
Absolutely

Type of Bathrooms:

1
1
2
2

Curfew?

6

Curfew Reasonable?

6

Nightly Room Check?

5
1

Dorm Strictness

Extremely Lax
5
1
Extremely Strict

How Infractions Handled?

1
2
3
1

How Roommate Issues Handled?

  • One student moved out.
  • Mediate, try to resolve, resident manager assisting
  • Ignored
  • Encouraged to talk to each other. Advice offered when there was conflict. Didn't need to go to the next level, but felt there was support if it needed to be handled by an adult.
  • Students were allowed to switch around to other apartments if agreed.
  • Hard to answer this.

Housing Cleanliness

Dirty
1
2
3
Spotless

Students Required to Clean Room?

6

Laundry Available?

6

Laundry Free?

2
4

Evening Activities?

1
5

A/C In Room?

6

Weekend Outings?

3
3

Transportation Between Housing and Studios?

1
5

Safety Around Housing

Not Safe
1
5
Very Safe

Overall Rating of Housing

Poor
2
1
2
1
Excellent

Additional Comments

  • Very nice apartment complex with students sharing bedroom with one roommate. Full kitchens, furnished, washer and dryer in the units, there is a commons apartment to gather and share dinner nightly. Grocery and staple budget/dancer. 5 minute walk to studios. Pool and gym on site. Scheduled outings weekly plus rides to airport, church, mall, and other destinations,
  • Experienced some prejudice from the dorm parents. They overlooked the obscene behavior of their son and those who shared the same belief system as them, whilst vilifying students who had different political and religious beliefs. They put up microphones and cameras to monitor students with out parental consent and intentionally concealed microphone feature from students. Throughout the year violated the boundaries of students who stayed in the housing and when admin was made aware, they did nothing.
  • Dancers are required to use the food provided to make their own breakfast and lunch. Dinner was prepared and provided for them. The food for dinner was not the healthiest and was frequently missing vegetables. Dancers were allowed to make requests for food. They often had to repeat their requests multiple times before getting basic items like milk, bagels.
  • Room Manager is a big complainer, too old for the job

Meal Plan

Meal Plan?

2
4

Food Quality

Gross
2
2
Excellent

Enough Food?

4

Late Meals Available?

4

Dancer w/ Dietary Needs?

3
1

What Were Needs?

1

Dietary Needs Met?

1

Academics

How Did Academics Work?

8

Academic Support

8

Did the School Support Academics?

Didn't support
4
2
2
Definitely supported

Overall Program Grades

Overall Dance Instruction

3
1
1
1
1
1

Career Support and Placement

1
1
1
2
3

Emotional Support

1
1
1
1
1
3

Housing & Food

1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1

Performance Opportunities

3
1
1
2
1

Overall Comments

Program's Best Aspect

  • Technique
  • Technique, friends
  • Dancers are truly a family and very supportive of each other. Strict policies - zero tolerance for drugs, tobacco, alcohol, or sexual misconduct. Students can be expelled and it has happened.
  • The name, and the students
  • performance opportunities
  • Warm environment where the students were supportive of each other. Residence parents weren't perfect, but clearly liked and supported the students. Performance opportunities and networking. The two main teachers were strong in technique.
  • The safety of NC, the overall homeyness of the residency, the supportive staff and students
  • Performance opportunities

Program's Worst Aspect

  • Culture
  • Favoritism
  • Too many top level dancers. No one left after my dancers first years hopefully done will leave this year!!
  • The housing and the director. The director of the program taught class with her nose in her computer and cared little about the well being of the students.
  • Toxic teachers and kids, only a few get attention, unfair casting
  • Poor food options for dinner. So much focus on competition detracts from training.
  • The room manager needs to be changed.
  • Favoritism is rampant and obvious

What Changes Would Be Helpful?

  • Lack of support for all but favorite dancers
  • Housing
  • Option for additional privates - one on one and would love master classes in contemporary
  • The director and the housing.
  • Teachers not ignoring all but a few students, stepping up in bullying situations
  • More opportunities for increased class time. More opportunities for private/semi private lessons not focused on variations for competitions.
  • More focus on the Spring show, it is usually underrehearsed
  • The artistic director should probably teach classes and not only when a short stay student comes around. Stop giving scholarship money to straight up bullies that you are blind to. Support all graduating students and celebrate their successes. Whoever handles social media should probably stop posting the same 4 students over and over and over again. We get it. They go to Cary. Help graduating students find programs before they are stuck. Stop with the flagrant and borderline inappropriate favoritism. The director will comment on dancer IG’s who don’t even go to Cary yet won’t comment on some of their own dancers IG. Cast people into roles that they are capable of dancing by skill, artistry and technique; Nutcracker 2024 highlighted serious casting concerns by audience and dancers alike. It was obvious. Complete strangers questioned me about casting!

Anything Else We Should Know?

  • The cost quoted is not even close to what you will actually be required to pay.
  • If you like to do your own thing, this is not the place for you! The teachers are awesome and the program is top knotch and very concerned with supporting the whole dancer. Communication is excellent and the rules are enforced very fairly. The resident managers are amazing people and take incredibly good care of the day to day needs of the dancers. I wish my dancer had come to Cary a few years earlier!
  • I don’t recommend the housing and you must be self motivated and able to self correct.
  • N/A
  • Bottom line this is a great school. Every school could have improvements. You will be paying a lot more than it originally looks like on the website unless you opt out of coaching.
  • If you know that you DO NOT want to do competitions, DO NOT COME.
  • Excellent foundation of dance in general. New building is terrible!! Extremely cramped two studios with no windows and your brain starts to literally feel “off” in those white walled interior rooms (other two studios inside are great sized). Excellent flooring!! It’s in a shopping lot. If you can ignore everything else (no place is perfect), if you are a favorite, if you are well connected in dance with a great IG following, are skinny, then go for it. Be ready to help yourself alone when graduating (resume, auditions, etc.) they have high turnover of faculty.
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