National Ballet Academy

Artistic Director: Christopher Powney

The Nationale Balletacademeie is affiliated with Het Nationale Ballet, the only ballet company in The Netherlands.
Together they train talented children to become professional classical dancers.
As dancer of the National Balletacademie you are capable of dancing the romantic, classical ballet repertoire. Your strongly developed classical ballet technique also enables you to perform modern ballet repertoire. Your skills allow you to work for both national and international ballet companies.

The first phase of the Nationale Balletacademie is a preparatory course. This study programme can take seven or eight years. The first two years run parallel with primary school groups 7 & 8. The following five, respectively six years,  run parallel with HAVO or VWO secondary education classes. Pupils follow a programme that combines regular and ballet education. 
You will receive daily lessons in classical ballet technique (Vaganova method). In addition there are classes in modern dance, world dance, historical dance and improvisation. For boys there are special lessons, like jumping technique and power training.

During the last year of the preparatory course, selections will take place for the (abridged)  HBO phase of the Nationale Balletacademie. The classical ballet lessons you follow are, like the preparatory course, based on the Vaganova method.  The emphasis here lies on speed, accuracy and purity. You will also follow a wide variety of other lessons:  pointe shoe technique, repertoire, variations, modern and jazz dance technique, caractère, pas de deux, power training and drama. The study programme also includes several theoretical subjects, for example, dance & health, music and dance-  and cultural history. 

Besides the compulsory section of the study programme, there is room to map out a personal study path that best suits your individual career ideals. In keeping with tradition, each academic year is concluded with a series of performances in one of Amsterdam’s major theatres.

Het Nationale Ballet already plays a significant role during your study. Not only is this internationally renowned company involved with the selection of students, the teaching staff and the contents of the curriculum – you will also dance in some of its major productions – like Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker or Romeo and Juliet.

A large number of renowned ex-dancers connected with the company now act as teacher at the Nationale Balletacademie, like Joanne Zimmerman, Amanda Beck, Fred Berlips, Grisha Chicherin and Rinat Gizatulin.

Currently many dancers of the Nationale Balletacademie dance with Het Nationale Ballet, among them, Igone de Jongh, Rachel Oomens, Rink Sliphorst, Noa Cohen and Hannah de Klein.

When all requirements have been satisfactory fulfilled, the student receives a diploma Bachelor of Dance (Bda). For more information, please contact the dance education office, René van der Eng, tel. +31 20 527 7643, email: r.vandereng@ahk.nl