Ballet & Dance Curriculum
BALLET CLASSES
Ballet Technique
Draper Center’s student division curriculum for ballet classes is based on the Cuban National Ballet School syllabus and incorporates our founder, Tim Draper’s, vision & teachings of classical ballet. The Cuban style is an authentic movement of classical ballet with its origins in the Russian Vaganova style. It emphasizes dancing with the entire body and promotes harmonious movement between arms, legs, and torso; clean and precise yet not restricted. Draper Center’s curriculum follows a clearly laid out structure that progresses our students through the technique with safety and joy of learning as a priority.
Pointe
Dancers progress into Pointe class after sufficient study of ballet; this usually occurs in Level 4. Dancers must demonstrate that they have the physical strength as well as the proper technique and understanding of the proper posture and alignment prior to progressing into work en pointe. At Draper Center we take a slow and methodical approach in order to assure a safe and solid foundation that will help students to be in control when dancing en pointe.
Variations
Variations class is the opportunity for the practical application of advanced ballet & pointe technique through the introduction of classical repertoire. Students will work on artistry as well as dance history as they learn challenging excerpts of corps work and solos from famous ballets including Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, Giselle, Esmeralda, Don Quixote and more.
Boys Class
Created to meet the specific needs of young boys, this class is full of energy and athleticism. Taught by the head of our Student Division, Fidel E. Orrillo Puga, our youngest boys will receive valuable exercise, flexibility, endurance, and motor-skill growth, complementing their weekly class training. They will be introduced to the discipline and hard work of ballet but in a fun and exciting environment; a great way for young boys to have an outlet for expressing themselves through movement.
Mens Class
This class is specifically designed to meet the needs of aspiring male dancers. Material in this class is designed to develop the strength, technique, and athleticism necessary to accomplish the difficult jumps, turns, and partnering required of a professional male dancer. Dancers in Level 4 and above will be invited to participate in Mens Class. This class is taught by the head of our Student Division, Fidel E. Orrillo Puga.
Dance CLASSES
Jazz/ Contemporary
Our Jazz/ Contemporary classes include full body conditioning, progressions, center work, style, and choreography. This dance class includes technical aspects with dynamic movements, unique rhythms, and floor work. Through our Jazz/ Contemporary classes we challenge our dancers to find their own unique style and develop artistry. Students will learn how to quickly change tempo and create sharp and clean transitions. Jazz/ Contemporary class cover many fun and exciting styles, including musical theater, hip hop, lyrical, and jazz funk.
Various Styles
This class is designed to introduce students to various styles of dance including floorwork, basic tumbling, modern, hiphop, and tap. The class will help develop students into well-rounded dancers by presenting vastly different styles throughout the year.
Dance Conditioning CLASSES
Stretch & Strength
Stretch & Strength is part of the weekly curriculum for Levels 2 through our Professional Training Program. Dancers are introduced to a progressing series of stretching and conditioning exercises that will better prepare their bodies for the physical demands of dance training. These exercises are also helpful in preventing injury. Exercises from Pilates, Progressing Ballet Technique, & Yoga are often utilized in this class.
Pilates
Pilates or Physical Mind method, is a series of non impact exercises designed by Joseph Pilates to develop strength, flexibility, balance, and inner awareness.
Yoga
Yoga combines physical exercises, mental meditation, and breathing techniques to strengthen the muscles and relieve stress.
Progressing Ballet Technique
Progressing Ballet Technique (PBT) is an innovative body-conditioning and strengthening program that has been designed to enhance students’ technique by focussing on training the muscle memory required in each exercise in all forms of dance. It is a unique training system using ballet-technique specific exercises to train skill acquisition in a graded and progressive manner from junior through to advanced levels. PBT helps teachers around the world prepare their students to receive the strength they need to achieve their personal best.
The program helps with injury prevention and rehabilitation and enhances the ability of athletes to perform at their best. It can be difficult for students to feel which muscles initiate the correct alignment in training. However, with the use of an exercise ball, the students gain a great sense of posture and weight-placement whilst feeling each correct muscle group working throughout each exercise, which then stays with them when whilst performing in dance or their chosen field of sport
PBT focuses on core strength, weight placement and alignment of the body with a gradual approach of carefully designed exercises and repetitions of these exercises that trigger their muscle memory. The program is designed with safe dance methodology to promote a long, healthy career and is now being taught by over 4000+ certified teachers worldwide and over 3500 schools globally have added PBT classes in their curriculum for students.
PBT is not only a program to improve technique in ballet dancers, it is now being appreciated and incorporated in training by all forms of dancers, athletes, physiotherapists and even footballers!
Draper Center currently has two faculty members certified to teach Progressing Ballet Technique.
For more information, visit pbt.dance/en/about