Estelle Dennis/Peabody Dance Training Program for Boys

2025-2026 Estelle Dennis/Peabody Dance Training Program for Boys Audition and Placement

Auditions will take place at our Baltimore Campus on Saturday, June 21, 10:00-12:00 pm in AHB29 (Leakin Hall) and Saturday, August 2, 10:00-12:00 pm in LH-16 (Leakin Hall).

Auditions are open to:

Boys age 9-12 with some or no previous training and a strong desire to dance
Boys age 13-15 with prior training and a serious wish to improve technique and to take specialized men’s classes

The audition is led by Preparatory Dance faculty members and includes a stretching/strength-building section, basic ballet barre and center vocabulary, steps that travel across the floor, jumps, and an opportunity to improvise. There is no requirement to prepare additional material. The audition is designed to encourage boys who love to dance regardless of their readiness to join the program at this time.

Interested in our June 21 audition, register and reserve a spot here!

The tuition-free Estelle Dennis/Peabody Dance Training Program for Boys, established in 2009, is a ground-breaking opportunity for selected boys from the Baltimore metropolitan area who have the potential and a strong desire to dance. Each August and September, Preparatory Dance holds auditions to select exceptional boys — some with no or little previous training. Accepted boys receive tuition-free training in an all-boys dance class, some free dance attire, opportunities to view live performances and take master classes with successful male dancers, and to participate in performances with Preparatory Dance. This program addresses ballet’s significant gender imbalance – nationally, only 24.6% of dancers are boys. In 2009, as a way to attract boys to the Dance program and counter these challenges, Peabody established a scholarship program to encourage families in Baltimore who couldn’t afford the training. Many of the program’s alumni have gone on to dance company training programs or received scholarships to college dance programs. In addition, female dancers have access to scholarship opportunities through the Preparatory’s general scholarship fund, ensuring that financial need does not prevent talented students of any gender from pursuing their passion.

Recent graduates have entered dance programs at Goucher College, Indiana University, Peabody Conservatory, Point Park University, and the University of the Arts; attended summer dance programs hosted by Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, American Ballet Theatre, Boston Ballet, The Joffrey Ballet Chicago, Pacific Northwest Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, the School of American Ballet, Paul Taylor American Modern Dance, Philadelphia Ballet, and The Washington Ballet, among others; and continued their training at AMDA New York, Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, Colburn Dance Academy, the Joffrey Academy of Dance, Pacific Northwest Ballet School, and The Washington School of Ballet. Program alumni have danced professionally with Ballet Tuscon (Arizona), Contemporary West Dance Theatre (Nevada), Dallas Black Dance Theater: Encore, Huntsville Ballet Company (Alabama), and Oregon Ballet Theatre.

If your family would like to join our program, or learn more about what we offer, please email the Peabody Dance Office ([email protected]) and our Estelle Dennis/Peabody Dance Coordinator, Darion Smith ([email protected]) and/or sign up for a placement class. We would be happy to answer your questions and assist you with any registration.