What does ballet training look like when it’s housed inside a 100-year-old university, with the Semperoper Ballet as your next-door neighbor? We sat down with Rector and Vice-Rector of in Dresden, Germany, for a close look at one of Europe’s most… click here to listen

What happens when a dancer who traded pre-professional ballet training at the John Cranko School and the Joffrey Ballet Studio Company for a Harvard degree? Or when a dancer who received offers from the training programs at Joffrey, Colorado Ballet,… click here to listen

Jason Beechey has spent his career shaping pre-professional ballet training. After 18 years as rector of Palucca University of Dance in Dresden, he now serves as Director of and Head of Dance at the Zurich University of the Arts. He walks us through… click here to listen

What happens when a dancer skips the postgrad route entirely and still lands a professional contract? Paityn Lauzon, now in her fourth season as a company artist with Nevada Ballet Theatre, did exactly that. She grew up at a small competition studio… click here to listen

Timothee Chalamet said no one cares about ballet anymore. Fran Veyette disagrees. He’s back on #NoThirds, and this episode goes deep into one of the most debated questions in the ballet world right now: are the classical, full-length ballets still… click here to listen

How long can your dancer stay home before it starts to matter? It’s one of the most common questions ballet parents face, and one of the most consequential. Jen Sommers, Director of joins us to talk through exactly that, along with everything else… click here to listen

Author, teacher, and former principal dancer Gavin Larsen has spent her post-performance life doing something she loves just as much as dancing: drawing stories out of other people. Her new book, Infinite Steps: 33 Dancers and Their Lives in Ballet,… click here to listen

What does it really take to go from pre-professional student to professional ballet dancer? Charlotte Junge, a company member with Madison Ballet, shares the unfiltered version of her journey from competition dance roots in Houston to training at… click here to listen

Madison Ballet’s Ja’Malik didn’t arrive to tinker around the edges. He came to change things, and four years in, it’s working. He shares a journey that started with Michael Jackson’s Thriller in his front yard and led him through the Joffrey Ballet… click here to listen

In the final episode of our four-part bullying series, we’re joined again by Kelsey Fyffe, a therapist who works with pre-professional dancers, and Suzette Takei, a veteran academic school administrator and educator, as we get into the messy stuff…. click here to listen

What does it actually feel like to train at the Vaganova Academy, the school that produced some of the greatest dancers in history, and then go on to perform at one of Russia’s most storied companies? Elena Kunikova has lived that story, and she’s… click here to listen

In part three of our bullying series, we tackle some of the toughest conversations ballet parents face: what to do when teachers make harmful comments about weight, body image, or use abusive language in class. Psychotherapist Kelsey Fyffe and… click here to listen

We sit down with Michelle Martin, Associate Artistic Director of Ballet Austin, for a refreshingly honest conversation about their complete training pipeline: the tuition-free Butler Fellowship program, Ballet Austin TWO, and the path into the main… click here to listen

LeeAnaca “Lee” Moore (Pacific Northwest Ballet) and Natalie Bowman (St. Louis Ballet) are the duo behind , the popular social media account showcasing the realities of pre-professional and professional ballet life. In this episode, Lee and Natalie… click here to listen

Lynne Charles, Artistic Director of , discusses the school’s new (GAP), a postgraduate program that combines performing with English National Ballet and continued education. Unlike traditional programs where students serve as “free labor,” GAP… click here to listen

Listeners asked, and Fran Veyette answers! We’re bringing back this fan-favorite #NoThirds “Fran’s Mailbag” episode, now combined into one extended conversation. Fran breaks down how casting really works, whether principals dance less, what happens… click here to listen

CiCi Houston-Sudholt, Rehearsal Director at Saint Louis Ballet, discusses their unique approach to dance education that puts students at the center. From integrating all levels of training to tailoring performance opportunities based on individual… click here to listen

We asked you to tell us what you love about the Ballet Help Desk Podcast, what needs to improve, and what topics you want us to cover. And you delivered honest, thoughtful, sometimes tough feedback. In this episode, we share what you told us:… click here to listen