Dance your heart out at the best dance schools in the world

If you dream of becoming a professional dancer like Rudolf Nureyev, Sylvie Guillem or Anna Pavlova, you need to attend one of the best dance schools in the world. 

Dance has been ranked one of the most physically demanding jobs in the world — with only about 10% of graduates becoming professional dancers. 

But if you have a real passion for the field, it’s important that you expand your knowledge and skills in all the right ways.

To do this, the best dance schools in the world are good starting points.

Whether you are interested in ballet, tango or bhangra, these schools will equip you with the skills and techniques needed to succeed in the dance industry. 

 

Here is a list of the four best dance schools in the world: 

The Royal Ballet School of London

The Royal Ballet School of London is renowned for its excellent teaching. It has produced some of the best dancers in the world 

The school was founded by a ballet dancer named Dame Ninette de Vallois and was formerly known as the Academy of Choreographic Art.

Open to aspiring dancers aged 11 to 19 years old, this is where students receive rigorous training alongside quality academic preparation.

The school also has art studios, computer labs, a physiotherapy treatment space, and more. 

As a result of this dual training, the school has produced notable alumni such as Dame Margot Fonteyn, Sir Kenneth MacMillan, and Kevin O’Hare.

Many of their graduates have joined top companies worldwide, including the Royal Ballet in London and the Birmingham Royal Ballet. 

Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet, St. Petersburg

The Vaganova Ballet Academy is home to the three most influential ballet dancers of all time: Anna Pavlova, Rudolf Nureyev, and Mikhail Baryshnikov. 

Established in 1738, the school has been running for over 275 years, producing some of the best ballet dancers in the world. 

Known as one of the best dance schools in Russia, and the best in Russia, the academy draws many to its doors. Many begin applying to enter the programme by the age of 10. 

However, graduating from Vaganova Academy school is no easy task.

Every year only the dancers deemed the absolute best in their class will succeed.

Those who do, land positions at the Mariinsky Ballet Company while others join the likes of The Royal Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet and the American Ballet Theatre.

The Juilliard School, New York City

The Juilliard School is the #1 dance school in the US. It offers a four-year Bachelor of Fine Arts in dance, which fuses technical training and choreography techniques.

Here, students learn many genres of dance. The curriculum includes ballet, hip-hop, ethics, acting, stagecraft, kinesiology and many more.

On top of that, students have the option of choosing from a list of electives such as choreography, yoga and mindfulness.

Students are given the opportunity to participate in performances on and off campus to gain knowledge and experience in the field as well. 

Getting accepted is tough. The programme accepts only around 18 to 26 students a year.

You must have a high school diploma, a minimum of three years of training in ballet, modern or contemporary dance and be training for at least 10 hours per week.

NYU Tisch School of the Arts, New York City

The Tisch School of Arts‘s Bachelor of Fine Arts is a training programme that starts with learning how to dance in “the most efficient and healthy way.”

In the second year, courses in dance history, acting, improvisation, music literature, and advanced dance composition follow.

These two years come together into staged performance and choreography in the third year where students become ensemble members of Tisch’s Second Avenue Dance Company.

At Tisch, it’s possible for students to combine their dance training with new ways of working with technology.

In the course “Filming the Moving Body,” students will use HD camcorders, DSLRs, go pros and adobe premiere software to explore through creative projects the moving body.