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Philadelphia Ballet’s Summer Programs Focus on Professional Experience and Wellness

For pre-professional dancers, a summer at the School of Philadelphia Ballet means choosing your own adventure from its roster of expertly crafted experiences, led by school director Davit Karapetyan and Philadelphia Ballet artistic director Angel Corella.

During the five-week Summer Intensive Program, Karapetyan advocates for a balanced, holistic practice that starts well before morning pliés. He emphasizes that SIP students should learn to “eat properly, have the right amount of nutrition, develop strength and well-being, and sleep enough to recover and prevent injuries.” To that end, Philadelphia Ballet has tapped a team of wellness experts in everything from nutrition to physical therapy, Pilates, strength training, and sleep science for workshop sessions throughout the intensive. The diverse curriculum continues in studio with a variety of classes, including ballet technique, pointework, men’s variations, repertoire, contemporary, partnering, body conditioning, acting, music, and flamenco. Karapetyan and other faculty, which will include current and former professional dancers as well as internationally renowned guest artists, will challenge students to expand their technical foundations. For Karapetyan, this versatility is key. He encourages students to “adapt to different styles and choreographic approaches, cultivating a mindset that embraces change.”

Students ages 15 through 21 with professional aspirations can punctuate their summer experience with two unique one-week programs: the Classical Variations Intensive and the Company Experience with Angel Corella. In the Classical Variations Intensive, participants will refine their technical abilities and artistic expression through focused study of some of the most iconic solos in ballet history. The Company Experience is a one-of-a-kind opportunity for students to work directly with a company artistic director. Corella will give daily technique class before leading students in rehearsals of Philadelphia Ballet repertoire.

Summer Intensive Program, Company Experience with Angel Corella, and Classical Variations Intensive

Program size:
● Summer Intensive Program: 250–350 students
● Company Experience: 50 students
● Classical Variations Intensive: 50 students

Age range (as of start of program):
● Summer Intensive Program: 12–21
● Company Experience: 15–21
● Classical Variations Intensive: 15–21

Performance opportunities: Students will participate in a performance at the conclusion of each program.

Tuition: Please visit the website for more information. Scholarships are available.

Room/board: Student housing will be at Drexel University. Kitchens, laundry facilities, lounge areas, and vending machines are located throughout the residence hall. Security is present 24 hours a day. The residential portion of the Summer Intensive Program contributes greatly to the overall experience and pre-professional atmosphere created for the students. Lunch and dinner will be provided. Organized social activities take place on weekends. Past years’ outings have included trips to New York City, Ocean City Beach & Boardwalk, and an evening dinner cruise.

Daily schedule:
● Summer Intensive Program: Approximately 9 am–6 pm. Classes will include classical ballet technique, pointework, men’s classes, partnering, variations, repertoire, flamenco, contemporary, character, dance history, music theory, body conditioning, and wellness seminars.
● Company Experience: Approximately 9 am–5 pm. Students will work with Angel Corella, artistic director of Philadelphia Ballet.
● Classical Variations Intensive: Approximately 9 am–5 pm. Students will deepen their understanding and performance of classical variations with world-renowned faculty.

Additional opportunities: Students may be considered for the School of Philadelphia Ballet’s Trainee Program and/or the second company, Philadelphia Ballet II.

Important dates in 2025: January 4–March 23: Live-audition tour (full details here); June 16–July 26: Summer Intensive Program; July 28–August 2: Classical Variations Intensive; August 4–9: Company Experience with Angel Corella
● Touring cities include: Phoenix, Portland, Philadelphia, Houston, New York, Charlotte, Indianapolis, Washington, DC, Boston, Fort Worth, Pittsburgh, Salt Lake City, West Berlin, and San Diego.
● Live-audition applicants will receive their audition results via email within two weeks of their audition. Video-audition applicants will be notified of their results via email within two weeks of submission.

Registration for the Summer Intensive Program, Company Experience, and Classical Variations Intensive is highly competitive and processed on a first-come, first-serve basis. When full capacity is reached, remaining students will be placed on a waitlist.

A student during School of Philadelphia Ballet’s 2023 summer intensive. Photo by Arian Molina Soca, courtesy School of Philadelphia Ballet.

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Tapas Das: Tapas Das, a young entrepreneur of our times started TWIST N TURNS in 2005. A person who is kind, generous, creative and down to earth wanted to start his own one of a kind dance academy. According to him, Dance is a language of movements that involves space, time and the human body. He was born and grew up in Kolkata, the cultural hub of India. Being appreciated in the field of dance all his life, he is extremely talented. He has been dancing since the age of four. Once he finished his high school, he learned jazz/modern and contemporary dance. His horizons were broadened even more when he started dancing Bollywood with Beat Busters for 4 years, which then was the most upcoming dance crew in Kolkata. After that exposure, he studied how to be a dance teacher, which later started helping him impart his knowledge about dance. Thus, in 2005, with the help of family and friends, he started TWIST N TURNS. Starting with a mere number of 40 students, today TWIST N TURNS currently has over 500 students. Over the time Tapas has taught and performed all over the country. He has performed in cities such as Kolkata, Delhi, Chennai, Jhansi, Jaipur, Jodhpur, and Udaipur etc. He has been an active participant in the Salsa India Congress in the cities of Bangalore and Bombay, and he has also visited various International Salsa Congresses in Europe, namely in Berlin ,Singapore, Hong Kong,Dubai. He is been also trained recently at Broadway Dance Center (New York), Alvin Alley (New York) and Steps on Broadway (New York). He is not only a dancer or teacher. He is a successful choreographer and has coordinated various shows without difficulty in our country. His leadership skills are exceptional, thus he is where he stands today. His aim in life would be to become a dance educator. He wants to share his tremendous knowledge in the right way to the right people. He is also, simultaneously running other brands like Zumba Kolkata, Bollywood Studio ArtistWala.com and India International Dance Institute.