Blissfully Yours Ballet

I’ve been dancing at blissfully off and on for almost 5 years now. I always feel both supported and stretched in my capabilities in all the right ways. All of the instructors are fantastic and I feel incredibly welcome

$54 for a single class drop in? There is no excuse for this level of inaccessibility

EDIT: again, there is absolutely no excuse for $54 drop in, or four classes a month at almost $200.

Does this mean BYB is paying their teachers well above $54 a class?

Working professionals in the largest cities in the US are not paying this amount for classes, classes taught by active professionals, or well respected retired professionals. New adult students are not paying this amount learning ballet from well respected and trained professionals in environments that prioritize uplifting and sustaining the local community.

As stewards of dance, our mission should be considering who makes up this local community we’re apart of, and how we positively impact their understanding of this art form. Ballet inherently has a culture of decades worth of exclusionary perfectionism that demands intentional participation and innovation in shaping how this art form is shared for generations to come; gatekeeping at such a price has supremacy written all over it.

If you are a student genuinely invested in learning ballet as an adult, know that you are grossly overpaying for training at this location. Colorado has a wealth of MANY professional companies, private studios, welcoming environments for beginning adult learners, and passionately skilled individuals who will not gatekeep the art of dance for such a price.

This is not what the community of dance is about. If you need to charge such an amount to keep your business afloat, you need to consider the impact this price has on the community and consider the perspectives of those who are NOT in and room with you, and why they might not feel welcome or able in the first place. Dance does not exist for you to succeed as a business owner, it exists for art and community. If you understand that your prices are out-of-reach for many and confirm that as an intentional part of your studios structure, then you are admitting to upholding oppression within the dance community.

Michaela DePrince is rolling over in her grave at this audacity.

As an adult, it can be intimidating to walk into a ballet studio. Even more so when you used to dance as a kid, and feel like you’re going to be a clumsy oaf running around with a bunch of skinny mini teens. At Blissfully Yours Ballet, there is no stress like that, I PROMISE and SWEAR. I’ve been dancing with BYB since they opened, and I am absolutely and completely in love with this space.

1. The space is big enough to move, while the classes are small enough to get individual corrections and support.
2. The community is lovely – so many other adult dancers, and everyone is a sort of “self-selected” group of cheerleaders – we’re all coming from different places, with different challenges, and we all see how much everyone else is working!
3. Great teachers – everyone has a slightly different style of classical training (Vaganova vs Balanchine vs Cecchetti, etc) but the classes are set with a specific level – Beginner 1, 2, All Levels, Advanced 1, 2 – and the work in each class builds on a general vocabulary while also being targeted toward the dancers present. It’s OK to ask questions, and you will get personalized guidance and corrections.

Don’t be afraid to try this space. Whether you are brand new to ballet, or coming back, curious about dance….there is a space for you here. And if you think “Oh, I don’t know if I am the right type of person for ballet” – you are! All bodies can be dance bodies. Your age, size, shape, skin color, gender identity, and previous experience – these are seen, but not in judgment. Rather, our entire community is present, supportive, and encouraging. COME DANCE HERE! You will love it!! (Also – you CAN learn to dance on pointe as an adult!)