Princeton Ballet School
About the School
Princeton Ballet School is the official school of the American Repertory Ballet, celebrating over 65 years of excellence in dance education.
For information about registering for classes, please click here.
What Sets Us Apart
Founded in 1954 by Audrée Estey, Princeton Ballet School is one of the nation’s finest non-profit dance schools. Many things set Princeton Ballet School apart from the usual dance school, the most important being: our philosophy; our faculty; our affiliation with a professional ballet company; our dedication to live music in the classroom, and our facilities.
Our Philosophy
Princeton Ballet School is known for nurturing developing dancers in a safe and progressive way. We teach age and developmentally appropriate ballet technique classes from a syllabus that allows younger students more time for movement exploration while providing advanced students with the tools to become professional dancers, if they so choose. As a result, all of our students develop self-esteem, self-discipline, and a strong fitness level that will provide a powerful edge in any future endeavor.
Outstanding Faculty
Princeton Ballet School has more than 20 specialized faculty members. Many have attained graduate degrees in dance education and have won major teaching awards. All are committed to our philosophy of dance education and to helping students achieve their best. Members of our outstanding faculty have performed professionally with companies including: American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, Cuban National Ballet, and American Repertory Ballet. For more information about our faculty, please visit our Faculty Biography Page.
Live Music
Our ballet classes have live musical accompaniment. This is particularly fun for the children’s classes, where frequent improvisational exercises provide an opportunity for students to interact and collaborate with our staff of professional musicians.
Facilities
Princeton Ballet School has studios in Cranbury, New Brunswick and Princeton, New Jersey. All locations are wheelchair accessible and feature sprung dance floors and marley from Harlequin Floors. The striking Princeton and Cranbury facilities were designed by the late Ralph Lerner, an internationally known architect and former Dean of the School of Architecture at Princeton University. The studios in New Brunswick are part of the state-of-the-art New Brunswick Performing Arts Center, which opened in 2019. For more on our facilities and studio locations, please visit our Locations Page.
The faculty and guest instructors are so welcoming and provide the students with individualized attention that allows them to reach their full potential!
PBS Parent