We Develop Incredible Dancers
Pre-Professional Training at Pioneer Valley Ballet
At PVB, we offer pre-professional ballet training in an incredibly supportive environment. Our demanding curriculum is tempered by supportive faculty and staff, and a desire to create strong and confident dancers.
About Our Pre-Professional Classes
Pre-Professional Ballet Training
Pre-Ballet - Advanced Ballet (Ages 5 - Adult)
PVB’s Ballet Classes build upon each other with each passing year. Classes are designed to offer students developmentally appropriate levels of technique, strength-building, stretching, and choreography. Intermediate and Advanced students are placed in an appropriate level after evaluation. All pre-professional classes are year round.
A specific leotard style and color is required for each level. Click here to view the PVB Dress Code.
Ballet Curriculum
Pre-Ballet I & Ballet Introduction
In these levels children develop poise and musicality in a fun and creative environment. The instructor introduces children to a creative yet disciplined classroom structure that challenges their curious minds while introducing age-appropriate dance material. The students express themselves physically through exercises intended to increase their coordination, strength, flexibility, and awareness of spatial concepts while beginning their understanding of classical ballet. The strong emphasis on musicality and rhythmic timing increases their ability to listen to and dance with the music. Students do not receive evaluations and usually progress to the next class based on their age.
Beginning Ballet I, II & III
These levels offer children a challenging and disciplined classroom structure that is appropriately geared to their growing emotional and physical maturity. The students build their knowledge of the basic structure of a ballet class with a growing vocabulary. They work on proper placement of the torso, hips and legs without exceeding their anatomical limitations. They increase coordination of their arms and heads with a concentration on smooth transitions throughout the exercises and epaulement. As they progress through lessons the difficulty and sophistication of the classwork will increase accordingly. In addition to their dance education, students will learn about musicality, ballet terminology, and general stage and theater craft. All Ballet I, II, and III students are encouraged to participate in The Nutcracker and Spring Production as a performance supplement to their training.
Intermediate Ballet & Advanced Ballet
As students progress through Intermediate and Advanced Ballet, the technique classes develop in each student a mature, professional approach towards the study of classical ballet. Barre and center exercises increase in both difficulty and artistry in order to challenge the students’ increasing mental, expressive, and physical capabilities. A more mature sense of musicality and quality of movement is emphasized with a goal of continuing to develop suppleness and smooth graceful movements, coordination of the head, arms, legs, body, and the use of epaulement. The students will develop strong classical lines and solid anatomical placement, as well as virtuoso jumps and beats. In addition, these levels emphasize the development of the students’ awareness of choreographic concepts, training dancers to be quick studies who can embrace any choreographic style. Most students will begin pre-pointe work during Intermediate III once they demonstrate strength, stability, and proper placement of the body and legs. Advanced students also learn variations from the ballet repertoire. All Intermediate and Advanced dancers are encouraged to audition for The Nutcracker and the Spring Production as a performance supplement to their training.
