Top 15 Ballet Schools for Dance in the World 2026
Top 15 Best Ballet Schools for Dance in the World. There are ballet theaters, companies, and schools in cities all around the world. The dance of ballet was first introduced to the world in the fifteenth century Italian Renaissance courts.
If 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.
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What are the top 10 ballet schools in the US?
1. Joffrey Ballet School, NYC
The Joffrey’s New York ballet school builds on the legacy of Robert Joffrey, one of the leading modern dance pioneers. Joffrey is focused on building versatile dancers; their programs include classical Russian instruction as well as modern, contemporary, musical theater, and folk styles. Their staff are highly professional and care about the dancers. They provide training and education to all ages and levels
2. Cincinnati Ballet Academy
Cincinnati Ballet Academy offers classical training in the Vaganova classical Russian tradition, infused with more modern techniques. The school is affiliated with Cincinnati Ballet and offers a full range of training for children through its pre-professional division. All classes are taught by Otto M. Budig’s distinguished faculty, including Cincinnati ballet dancers and artistic staff.
3. Pacific Northwest Ballet Academy.
The Pacific Northwest Ballet School has been considered one of the top ballet schools in the United States, and probably the best ballet school on the West Coast. The Academy offers classical ballet training from the children’s through pre-professional levels, along with performance opportunities that include the Pacific Northwest Ballet’s famous Nutcracker production. PNB School’s summer course is very selective. Only students who have the potential for a professional career are accepted.
4. Idyllwild Arts Academy
Idyllwild Arts Academy, a private school located in Idyllwild, California. It is a unique educational institution with a focus on all art forms for all artists of every age and level of accomplishment. Basically, the Idyllwild Arts Academy provides pre-professional training in the arts and a comprehensive college preparatory curriculum to a diverse student body of gifted young artists from all over the world. As students progress, they eventually graduate into the High School level intensives that will propel them onward as accomplished dancers.
5. Joffrey Ballet School, Dallas.
Joffrey also offers a new pre-professional ballet training program in Dallas, Texas. Their Dallas program is focused primarily on classical, offering the same high quality of instruction and focus on the versatility that their NYC program is famous for. Even better is that their Dallas location has a much lower cost of living, significantly reducing the cost of full-time pre-professional training. The school is designed to push dancers to a new level in technique and artistry across multiple styles and genres.
6. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (JKO) School of the American Ballet Theater.
The JKO School offers children through pre-professional training, including the American Ballet Theatre Studio Company, a performance troupe for trainees. The tuition is $6,750 for Students in the upper 1, $8,230 for Students in the upper 2, and $9,100 for Students in the upper 3. Scholarships are awarded based exclusively on merit and are extremely competitive.
7. San Francisco Ballet School
The San Francisco Ballet School offers classical ballet training for children, pre-professional trainees, and even adults. The school’s training is tightly focused on the athletic dance style favored by the San Francisco Ballet company.
8. The Juilliard School
The Juilliard School, New York City 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.
9. Walnut Hill School for the Arts
Walnut Hill School for the Arts, an independent boarding and day high school located in Natick, Massachusetts. They offer unparalleled training in dance; music, theater, visual art, and writing, film & media arts, complemented by a robust, college-preparatory academic curriculum. Walnut Hill School for the Arts is currently one of the best ballet boarding high schools in US.
10. School of American Ballet (SAB)
The School of American Ballet is located in New York City. SAB continues Balanchine’s legacy as the official dance school of the New York City Ballet, with a focus on classical ballet teaching. SAB requires that all students actively pursue and receive their high school diplomas. The tuition for most first-year beginner females is $3,555.
11. Houston Ballet Academy
Houston Ballet Academy is providing classical ballet training to more than 1000 students per year, from pre-school through pre-professional and professional levels. Houston’s training programs are focused on training well-rounded dancers familiar with a variety of styles and offer training experiences that include the opportunity to dance in the Houston Ballet’s second company during students’ second year of pre-professional training.
Best Ballet Schools for Dance in the World
1. 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. The school is 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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. Students also 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.
5. The Australian Ballet School, Southbank, Victoria, Australia.
For any Australian who wants to dance ballet with the Australian Ballet Company, this is the first step. Their website states that in addition to focusing on ballet and dance excellence, they also hold their pupils to a high moral standard, making it one of the best ballet schools in the world.
6. The Paris Opera Ballet School, located in Paris, France.
The best ballet dancers in the world have studied at this academy for more than three centuries. This one of the best ballet schools in the world has remained in the top three spots, and as far as we can tell, it isn’t going anywhere any time soon.
7. The John Cranko Schule, located in Stuttgart, Germany
It also is one of the best ballet schools in the world. Dancers come here to hone their talents after a great triumph. Following completion of their training, they join the Company of the State Theatre or other esteemed ballet groups.
8. Walnut Hill School for the Arts
Walnut Hill School for the Arts, an independent boarding and day high school in Natick, Massachusetts. They offer training that can’t be found anywhere else in literature, film, video arts, visual arts, music, theater, dance, and more. They also have a rigorous academic program that gets students ready for college. One of the top boarding high schools for ballet in America right now is Walnut Hill School for the Arts. The Professional Division of The Boston Ballet School at Walnut Hill is a unique dance training and education program that gives students a well-rounded education by combining world-class dance instruction with a top-notch college prep curriculum.
9. La Escuela Nacional de Danza, located in Cuba.
This ballet academy, one of our more recent institutions established under the leadership of Alicia Alonso. Members and professors of the National Ballet of Cuba currently serve as their instructors. Their goal is to help their students improve their use of classical methods and other genres while fusing them with the spirit and expression of Cuban ballet. In this special institution devoted to ballet, Latin American culture is highly valued.
10. Pacific Northwest Ballet Academy
One of the best-known ballet training institutions in the country is the Pacific Northwest Ballet Academy. The academy is renowned for offering some of the best ballet schools in the country. In the Washington cities of Seattle and Bellevue, there are two campuses of the Pacific Northwest Ballet Academy.
11. Joffrey Ballet School, New York City
New York City’s Joffrey Ballet School was established with the goal of training and advancing dance professionals. The school’s graduates work for one of the most famous ballet companies and theaters in the world. The school is basically synonymous with the American dance style. At the Joffrey Ballet School, adults of all skill levels can sign up for a wide range of dance classes, from beginner lessons to more advanced ones. It is considered one of the best ballet schools in the world and in the country.
12. White Mountain School
The White Mountain School, a coeducational boarding and day school serving students in grades 9 through 12 and PG, and is situated in the breathtaking White Mountains of northern New Hampshire. By drawing on an Episcopal tradition, they teach and encourage students to live lives that are full of curiosity, courage, and kindness. One of the top boarding schools and universities in the US for studying ballet is the White Mountain School.
13. St. Paul’s School
A top boarding high school for ballet in the USA is St. Paul’s School (SPS), a coeducational boarding school in Concord, New Hampshire, and is a highly selective college-preparatory school. It is a member of the Episcopal Church. It is a learning community where pursuing greatness is a common goal. The SPS Dance Program offers a strong academic education along with the best dance instruction in a specialized dance facility, essentially preparing its students to dance at the college and pre-professional levels.
What are the best ballet schools for kids in the US?
- Cincinnati Ballet Academy.
- Houston Ballet Academy.
- San Francisco Ballet School.
- Pacific Northwest Ballet Academy.
- Joffrey Ballet School, Dallas.
- Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School Of The American Ballet Theater.
- White Mountain School.
- Colorado Ballet Academy.
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