Ballet Rising

Ballet Rising will take you around the world to discover classical ballet in places you least expect. Join former Dutch National Ballet principal dancer Casey Herd as he takes you on a journey to visit ballet schools, watch electrifying new companies, and meet pioneers of the emerging ballet world. We’ll be traveling to the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, the humming city of New Delhi, and the colorful streets of Phnom Penh and learning from ballet leaders in places like Nigeria, South Africa, Iran, Colombia, Mexico and more.

Ballet Rising is a documentary film series supported by a media hub about the rising popularity of ballet in every corner of our planet. As we work on developing this groundbreaking film series, we invite you to enjoy our articles, interviews, dance clips, and more that will encourage you explore the rapidly growing, and incredibly diverse landscape of 21st century ballet.

Ballet Rising is committed to using the camera, the pen, and the star-power of our team to bring attention to underrepresented ballet communities around the world. We believe that the worldwide ballet community can be enriched by incorporating the voices, the bodies, and the creative vision of all its members.

DISCOVER THE STORIES

WE NEED YOUR HELP

Funded by the generosity of our supporters on our Founders Campaign and the personal savings of director Casey Herd and creative director Chris Weisler, the Ballet Rising team recently traveled to Brazil to shoot footage for our first two episodes. As we continue to work on these films, we’ve launched a series of interviews on ballet in Africa. We’ve also published articles on ballet in India and Cambodia, and we’ll debut a series on ballet in the Middle East soon. But we’re still in our launch phase, and we need your support to get Ballet Rising off the ground.

If you support the vision of diversity in ballet, expanded and strengthened global artistic networks, and reciprocal learning in the ballet community - or if you’re simply a ballet fan - here’s how you can help.

• SPONSOR US

We’re looking for sponsors to help us meet our goal of producing high quality films and journalism about ballet, art, dance, and culture around the world. To become a member of a growing community, place your brand at the forefront of a movement by sponsoring Ballet Rising content. 

SPONSORS

• DONATE

We can’t run Ballet Rising without your support. Consider donating to help us get off the ground. Any donation, big or small, will contribute to a more inclusive and diverse global ballet community. 

DONATE

• SPREAD THE WORD

Every comment, like, and share on social media helps us make the case for Ballet Rising. Join us on our social media channels, and be a part of the community.

FIND US ON:

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MORE INFORMATION

• OUR VISION

Ballet Rising is focused on the stories of people around the world, whose passion for classical ballet is redefining its culture and elevating ballet as a truly global art form.

• BEHIND BALLET RISING

A former principal dancer with the Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle and the Dutch National Ballet in Amsterdam, Casey fell in love with travel during his years on the road as a ballet dancer. Following his retirement from the stage in 2016, he embarked on a new project that combines his love for ballet with his love for learning about the world. Here he describes the inspiration behind Ballet Rising.

• BALLET RENAISSANCE

Although some critics have lamented some of the recent changes in the ballet world, the majority of audience members and professionals have welcomed these changes wholeheartedly. The momentum that pulled ballet out of a bleak period in the late 1990s was fueled by efforts to rethink tradition, to cross borders, and to encourage new habits. Ballet Rising is part of the effort to reimagine ballet for the 21st century.

• WHY DANCE

At Ballet Rising, we show how ballet can play a role in inspiring dancers and enriching dance communities around the world, but we believe that all forms of dance have important benefits for individuals and communities everywhere.

Here are 10 skills that dance can teach everyone:

• UNITED WORLD OF BALLET

In the epilogue to her 2010 book Apollo’s Angels, Jennifer Homans wrote, “We are watching ballet go, documenting its past and its passing before it fades altogether.” Homans’ opinion, one that was perhaps not uncommon at the time, was that ballet was experiencing a slow and inevitable decline.

?THANK YOU