The summer intensive programs attended by students from St. Paul's include six students at American Ballet Theater New York, one at American Ballet Theater Detroit, two at The Rock School of Pennsylvania Ballet, three at Pittsburgh Ballet Theater, two at San Francisco Ballet, one at Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, one at Pacific Northwest Ballet, one at Suzanne Farrell's Summer Intensive, one at Studio Miestro in New York City, and one at American Academy of Ballet. All of these programs are highly competitive, holding auditions in the winter for a limited number of positions. But ballet this year is not just about the company. An amazing 45 students are enrolled in the ballet program this year when there are usually 30-35. It's nice to have a real class because it's a very well-rounded course.
Kids learn basic music theory and dance history through videos of professional dancers.
A large majority of this class is made up of some of the School's top male athletes. Soon you end up with half the wrestling or hockey team. They band together and end up improving their flexibility, agility, coordination, and strength through ballet class. So much of what we do in ballet parallels athletics. Along with the guys in Introduction to Ballet, two boys joined the company this fall making a total of three males in the company.