Category: Career Alternatives

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Cultivating Excellence: How to Develop Leadership Skills in Ballet

Guest post by Emily Graham

Leadership in ballet is not merely about directing a company or studio—it’s a journey of constant self-improvement, resilience, and adaptability. In an ever-evolving art form, the ability to lead with both artistic vision and strategic thinking is essential. This article explores essential resources to help ballet leaders, from artistic directors and principal dancers to choreographers, hone their leadership skills. From enriching books to specialized training courses, here’s a guide to the top opportunities that can support your growth as a leader in the ballet world.

Mastery Through Books

In ballet, leadership is deeply intertwined with artistry, discipline, and vision. Books are a timeless way to develop these qualities by offering insights into the psychology of leadership, strategic thinking, and personal growth. Leaders can look to literature that connects the nuances of ballet with broader leadership principles.

  • Books on Leadership: For a foundational guide to personal and professional growth, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Brood outlines timeless principles every entrepreneur should master to navigate uncertainty and scale with clarity.
  • Biographies of Iconic Ballet Leaders: Learning about the lives of legendary ballet figures, like George Balanchine or Margot Fonteyn, provides rich examples of leadership in the dance world. Their stories can shed light on overcoming challenges and nurturing talent in a competitive environment.
  • Emerging Trends in Artistic Leadership: To stay current, leaders in the ballet world should read about emerging trends in arts management, such as inclusive casting or the integration of digital platforms with live performances. These shifts require leaders to be innovative and adaptable.

Online Courses for Skill Enhancement

Digital learning has opened up a wealth of opportunities for ballet leaders to refine their craft. Online platforms offer flexibility, allowing you to enhance your leadership skills while maintaining a demanding schedule. Whether you’re focusing on emotional intelligence or strategic thinking, there’s a course to fit every need.

  • Platforms for Leadership Development: Coursera and LinkedIn Learning offer courses that cover a range of topics relevant to ballet leadership, from organizational behavior to team management. These courses provide practical tools and strategies that can be implemented in your role, whether you’re managing a dance company or leading a ballet school.
  • Specialized Leadership Programs for the Arts: Institutions like the Juilliard School and The New School offer leadership and management courses tailored to the arts. These specialized programs teach ballet leaders how to manage budgets, build donor relationships, and cultivate a culture of creativity and discipline within their organizations.
  • Interactive Webinars and Workshops: Participating in live sessions can allow for real-time interaction with peers and experts in ballet management. These interactive workshops often feature discussions on how to balance artistry with the operational demands of running a company, an essential skill for any ballet leader.

Articles and Case Studies

Staying up-to-date on current trends and case studies in ballet is a vital part of leadership development. Industry publications and articles can keep you informed about the latest shifts in the dance world and how other companies are leading the charge.

  • Ballet and Arts Management Publications: Publications like Dance Magazine and The Art Newspaper provide valuable case studies, offering insights into how ballet companies around the world are tackling leadership challenges, such as adapting to changing audience expectations or responding to social justice movements within the art form.
  • Case Studies on Leadership in Ballet: Dive into specific examples of how prominent ballet companies have navigated leadership transitions, innovative performances, or financial crises. These stories can offer lessons in resilience, vision, and the delicate balance of managing artistic and business needs.
  • Ballet Blogs by Experts: Following blogs by professional dancers, choreographers, and ballet administrators can provide ongoing learning opportunities. These resources often feature personal stories, industry advice, and fresh ideas that can inspire new leadership approaches.

Networking and Peer Learning

The ballet industry thrives on collaboration, and leadership is no different. Engaging with other professionals through networking opportunities allows for the exchange of ideas, experiences, and strategies. Learning from peers can expose you to new approaches and solutions for challenges you face as a leader.

  • Industry Events and Seminars: Attending conferences, masterclasses, or festivals provides a space for networking with other artistic leaders and discussing best practices in ballet management. Whether you’re attending a gathering like the International Ballet Festival or a local workshop, these events offer inspiration and practical takeaways for leadership.
  • Mastermind Groups for Artistic Leaders: Participating in a mastermind group with other ballet directors or choreographers offers a platform for sharing experiences and discussing industry challenges. These groups can lead to innovative problem-solving and collaborative opportunities.
  • Mentorship in Ballet: Having a mentor or being a mentor can be an invaluable part of leadership development. A senior mentor can offer advice on navigating complex issues in both the creative and operational sides of ballet, helping you avoid common pitfalls.

Practical Experience

No amount of reading or learning can replace the value of hands-on experience. Real-world practice allows leaders in ballet to test their skills and develop a deeper understanding of the art form’s intricate dynamics. By immersing yourself in practical situations, you can refine your leadership abilities in a way that theory alone cannot provide.

  • Leading Dance Projects and Initiatives: Stepping into a leadership role within a dance project or event is an excellent way to gain practical experience. Whether organizing a performance or managing rehearsals, these tasks provide a direct application of leadership skills in a creative environment.
  • Collaboration with Other Dance Professionals: Cross-collaboration between dancers, choreographers, and administrators offers invaluable experience in handling different aspects of ballet leadership. It also deepens your ability to mediate between artistic needs and organizational constraints.
  • Feedback and Self-Reflection: Actively seeking feedback from peers and dancers, followed by self-reflection, is essential for continued improvement. The ability to evaluate your decisions and their impact on the company’s performance helps refine your leadership approach.

The Importance of Lifelong Learning

The journey toward leadership excellence in ballet is ongoing. Just as dancers continuously strive for technical and artistic perfection, ballet leaders must also engage in lifelong learning. By regularly engaging with diverse resources, from reading to networking, you ensure your leadership stays fresh, relevant, and adaptive to the evolving landscape of ballet.

Whether through books, online courses, or real-world experiences, every resource you explore contributes to your growth as a leader. By remaining open to new ideas and approaches, you position yourself—and your company—for long-term success in the ballet world.

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Do You Have a Backup Plan? Ballet Dancers Need a Backup Plan

The professional life of a dancer is relatively short. You spend about ten years training, and then hope to dance into your 30’s (and if you’re lucky, until you reach 40). There are many dance career alternatives. However, what if for some reason you want to venture away from dance and go into something completely new? How do you know what you’d be good at, how you’d learn something new, and how to get your foot in the door?

I found this thorough list when searching for careers that would be good for “creative types”. Another article on that site gives some great advice for planning a career path. I agree that you should be careful not to become intimidated or overwhelmed by what your new endeavor will entail, and then never even take the first step forward in your new pursuit. Once you start finding out more information, getting whatever training you may need, and eventually looking for jobs in that field, you might be surprised at how quickly the momentum picks up. I can give a recommendation that I now wish someone had given me when I was studying ballet at the university, and that is to minor in something else. If I’d minored in business, it would have made it infinitely easier to start and run my dancewear store, or to run a ballet school.

I’ll tell you a little about my personal story, because I changed career paths a couple of times for different reasons. My intention during all my years of training in dance was to dance professionally and teach ballet. Since I hoped to teach at the university level, my education included getting a Master of Fine Arts degree in dance. During this time, as well as after, I was able to dance professionally, but unexpected life events came into play as well as injuries I’d never anticipated that caused me to cut my professional career short. I found love, married, and discovered my Achilles tendinitis was so severe that I could no longer dance en pointe without excruciating pain – all in the space of about two years. And then I became pregnant with my first child and that changed my priorities around completely.

While I was dancing in Lexington, Kentucky I visited the local dancewear store several times. I found that they were not very willing to get me what I needed (something as simple as canvas ballet shoes) if it wasn’t something they currently carried. Their store was very small and the leotards were Lycra with vivid colors and strange designs. It was difficult to find things for a ballet dancer there. This is where my first career change began to take shape. It all started with this thought, “I wish there were another store in this town”. If I were to have a store, I imagined, I’d staff it with dancers to add credibility and to give expert advice on fittings to customers. I’d carry several brands of pointe shoes and offer leather and canvas ballet shoes, as well as leotards in more subdued colors and with more traditional styles (such as cotton or supplex camisoles, tanks, three quarter, or long sleeves).

From this one thought came the realization of my own dancewear store in Lexington! I knew little about running a business, but took it one step at a time until one day we turned the sign to ‘Open’ and began to sell items that were quite different from the other store. There was a market for both (they catered to cheerleaders, gymnasts, and the like, and we catered to the serious student and professional), so we quickly became well known and successful. After nearly ten years in business, we sold the store to move to North Carolina. Dance Essentials, Inc. in Lexington has now closed completely, but I’d learned so much about business software (QuickBooks, etc.) and about using Microsoft Office applications like Excel.

Once we arrived in North Carolina, my husband still hadn’t found a job and it was imperative that I submit applications immediately. As Charlotte is a huge financial center, I landed an entry level position at the headquarters of a large bank. Fast forward twelve years and I am an Information Technology professional, honing my skills in software development and support, and turning my attention to the business analysis side of things. Who’d have thunk it possible? Definitely not me.

Life throws curveballs and it’s up to us to make opportunities out of them. One thought can change your life. If it’s appealing to you and learning about the career is stimulating, then keep on trucking. Get yourself on LinkedIn and start networking with like-minded individuals and those who may be able to connect you to your next thought. Good luck!

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Dance Career Alternatives

Many dancers simply dance, without thought to what might happen if they became injured and unable to continue dancing. It’s important to think about alternatives to a dancing career, not only due to unforeseen circumstances such as injury, but after you retire from dancing at the ripe old age of forty or older (if you’re lucky). One of the best ways you can ensure continued employment in the field you love is to begin teaching dance. Ballet companies usually have a school associated with them, and this is the perfect place to begin training as a teacher. Being a great dancer doesn’t necessarily mean you will be a great teacher, but the best way to learn how to teach is to do it!

There are many wonderful books about teaching ballet. Some of my favorites include these:

Classical Ballet Technique, by Gretchen Ward Warren
This book goes into great detail about the tradition of ballet, the ideal body structure and posture for ballet, methods of teaching, positions of the body and when to introduce steps, and includes notes on classroom etiquette, a pronunciation guide, and glossary of terms.

The Pointe Book: Shoes, Training & Technique Second Edition, by Janice Barringer and Sarah Schlesinger with forward by David Howard
In this book you will find a history of pointe dancing, the foot and pointe shoe making process, the fitting process, caring for shoes, basics of teaching pointe, sample pointe classes, and pointe-related injuries and their remedies.

Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet, by Gail Grant
You will find diagrams for directions of the body and feet. Arabesques, port de bras, and positions of the body are described for the Cecchetti Method, the French School, and the Russian School (Vaganova).

There are many other careers that are dance-related, too. Click here to see a listing. You may end up going back to school to get certification in physical therapy; you may decide to get a bachelor’s or a master’s degree in dance so you could teach at the university level; you may find that you have creative talent in the area of choreography; you might open a dance wear store, like I did. The opportunities are endless, and your expertise will be valued by beginning students and their parents, by audiences, and by school administrators if you wind up teaching, choreographing, or even selling dance wear (and knowing how to fit shoes properly).
Do any readers have ideas to share about alternative careers for dancers? Feel free to leave a comment below!

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Life After Dance

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I just learned that Merce Cunningham died last night at the age of 90. He danced until the very end of his life. This, in itself, is incredible. His legacy is monumental. So now I’m feeling a bit low, and wondering how he managed to stick with it into very old age. I’m thinking that Merce Cunningham created a way of moving that was specific to his body type, as he was known for a particular style all his own. Then there are people like me, who try to contort our bodies into shapes that were not meant for our body types at all—leading us to middle-aged back pain and chronic tendinitis.

What do you think? Even if you’re only seventeen, how do you see yourself in the future? Do you think dancing will be more an aid or a hindrance to your physical well-being when you’re forty years old? I had a chiropractor who talked to me when I was twenty-four. He said he was worried that I wouldn’t be able to walk when I was forty. I laughed. But now I’m forty-one, and I’m realizing he had a point.

I wouldn’t trade my years spent dancing or teaching for anything in the world. It’s the love of my life. But I can see how realistic the teachers are in Russia when they determine whether or not a child should begin studying dance by first looking at his or her proportions and physical tendencies. If someone is not blessed with a dancer’s body, they are not expected to dance. However, I’m thankful here in America we are all able to pursue our dreams, regardless of our potential.