Dance (AA, BFA)
USF’s partnership with the Fort Wayne Ballet Conservatory means you will train with — and perform alongside — members of the state’s premier ballet company. As a Dance major at USF, you can simultaneously earn your degree, develop your technique, and participate in the professional world of dance.
I chose this program because I wanted to earn a degree and dance professionally — and that’s exactly what I’m doing! I started as a trainee, was promoted to apprentice, and now I dance as a member of the company. If you want to grow as a person and a dancer, this is the place.
Madison Cafaro ’18
Coryphée (Lead Dancer)
Fort Wayne Ballet
How it Works
Dance majors take academic classes at the university and dance classes at the Fort Wayne Ballet, only 2.5 miles from campus in the Auer Center for Arts and Culture. Located in downtown Fort Wayne, the Auer Center features professional dance facilities.
USF’s Dance curriculum will give you a strong foundation in the liberal arts, along with intensive dance training and real-world participation. The conservatory curriculum focuses on ballet, and also includes contemporary dance, jazz, tap, character, repertoire, dance history and theory, pedagogy, and choreography.
Real-World Experience
All Dance majors complete an Internship. You can:
- Rotate through the Ballet company’s various departments to understand the layers of a professional dance organization
- Teach dance in the Fort Wayne Ballet Academy or at Ballet West
On Stage!
In addition, Dance majors perform biannually with the Company in The Nutcracker and the spring production.
Your Dance Career Starts Here
Graduates of our Dance program are prepared to work as performers, artistic directors, choreographers, teachers, studio owners, arts administrators, and more. One of our first graduates — Kerry Coughlin ’16 — is a Soloist at Fort Wayne Ballet!
I came to USF specifically for the Dance program. I’m getting great training, professional experience, and a college degree. We dance 6 days a week and get a lot of one-on-one attention, yet we’re able to balance the academics. My goal is to dance with a professional ballet company and this program is reassuring me that it’s the right choice for me.
Martine Bartley ‘21
Dance major