Performance opportunities
Throughout the School year, students perform both in School and on some of the biggest public stages: this is as integral to their training as establishing sound ballet technique. Through regular performances, students understand how to transform ballet vocabulary into a magical, exhilarating experience for an audience and practice physically and mentally preparing for the stage.
Students perform at in-School showcases and public events throughout the academic year. At the end of the academic year, a season of performances takes place comprising five performances at Opera Holland Park and concluding with a matinée performance on the main stage of the Royal Opera House, accompanied by a full orchestra.
For these performances, the Artistic Director sources classical and contemporary repertoire to showcase the skills of the students at the various stages of their development, ranging from heritage ballet to more recently created works. The School also commissions new choreographic works from established and emerging choreographers who work collaboratively with the students, creating their work in the School’s studios.
The first such performance occurred in 1959 when then-students Antoinette Sibley and Graham Usher starred in the School’s staging of Coppélia Act I. Since then, a distinguished roll call of current and former stars of the ballet world have taken the first steps of their performing careers as part of these performances.Â