It’s that time of year again – competition season! That means it’s time for everyone’s anxiety closet to open. Every year, we get questions about whether or not ballet competitions are worth it and if they’re necessary to have a career. Like with everything in ballet, it depends. 

Let’s start by saying you absolutely do not need to compete in order to have a successful ballet career. However, there can be some real benefits to competing that have nothing to do with how your dancer places.

There are several competitions in the U.S. The biggest and most well known is the Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP). It holds nearly 40 regional competitions around the U.S., and approximately 12 overseas, between October and March. Competitors are chosen from each regional to attend the YAGP final that takes place each year in April. 

There are other large competitions such as the Universal Ballet Competition, ADC IBC, World Ballet Competition, etc. All of these function in similar ways with some sort of regional selection and then a final later in the year. Entries into summer intensive programs are offered at all of these.

So, the not so good stuff. Competing is expensive. Not only are there entry fees, but there are costumes to be bought or rented, private coaching that takes place and sometimes travel required to get to the venue. Consider these expenses when you decide whether or not to enter a competition. 

There is also a perception that the larger ballet competitions are rigged. I’m not convinced of this, but the perception is there. There are clearly the “favored” studios that attend and succeed at the same competitions year after year. However, these studios often have excellent teachers who provide outstanding training. So, what looks like favoritism may simply be that these studios turn out strong dancers every year. 

Think about it – wouldn’t you want your student at the school that can provide the best training? It’s usually pretty clear which studios are the strongest in any geographic area and they usually attract the best dancers. This may not be the case everywhere, but that’s been our experience.

One thing that you will find as your student gets older is that the ballet world is EXTREMELY small. So, what may look like a rigged system is more something akin to a family reunion. The people who run ballet studios are usually former professional dancers. Guess what? So are the judges. And, often, all of these people danced together back in the day. If you see them chatting with each other or even headed out for dinner, it’s probably because they knew each other long before they teamed up for ballet competitions. 

And, speaking of small world, your dancer will see the same people over and over and over again. At auditions, summer intensives, master classes and yes, competitions. With my son, it became a bit of a running joke. 

He didn’t compete much once he went to a company affiliated ballet school, but he did do ballet competitions for about three years before that. In every one, he’d see the same kids. You could almost predict who was going to place before the competition started. This wasn’t because it was rigged. It was because these boys had watched each other dance so many times, they knew exactly how they stack ranked against each other. 

Ok, so now that we’ve pointed out the stuff that’s a little icky, let’s talk about the good stuff. Remember our blog post about where your student fits? Competitions are a great way to see the talent that’s out there. The one time my son went to YAGP finals, he was surrounded by really fantastic male dancers, both his age and older. Not only did he get to watch everyone else perform, but he also got to attend master classes with loads of talented boys his age. He realized that he was nowhere close to being one of the better dancers there. In fact, he was toward the bottom. But, it gave him a sense of where he fit and the amount of work required for him to get better and better. This was exactly what he needed to see at that age.

Competitions also provide opportunities to get on stage. Your dancer chooses a variation, spends several months perfecting it and then gets to go out and perform it on their own. After they’re done, they usually receive feedback, either written or oral. Each competition does things a bit differently, but all provide feedback of some sort. Although stressful, it can be a great learning experience. 

Dancers also get a lot of exposure at competitions. If you live in an area that doesn’t have a large ballet community, this is a great way to get seen by lots of different ballet programs. Most of the judges and master teachers represent a variety of company affiliated ballet schools and conservatories. It’s not uncommon to have spots at summer programs offered to dancers at the end of the competition or master class.

Finally, competitions can be great for networking. Remember what we said about seeing the same kids over and over again? My son is still in touch with kids he met at YAGP finals and they’re now all 18 and just venturing out into the job market.

Like we said before, you absolutely do not need to compete to have a ballet career. Furthermore, just because someone competed a few times when they were younger, and they are now dancing professionally, does not mean that the competition was responsible for them having a career. You will have to decide what works for your dancer’s individual situation and there really are no bad choices when it comes to this.

Have thoughts on this? We’d love to hear from you in comments below!