Professional Program Trains for Complexities of Today’s Ballet Industry
Preparing dancers for the complexities of todayʼs ballet industry requires layering important influences into the overall rigours of the training program. We know that the training must reflect the movement, speed, vibrancy, and artistic language of relevant creators working today. At NBS, a part of this training comes by connecting young dancers with both emerging and established choreographic perspectives.
This is why bringing artistic voices like Silas Farley—ballet teacher, choreographer, former dancer with New York City Ballet and current Armstrong Artist in Residence in Ballet at Southern Methodist University in Texas—is such an important and rich part of the training experience for our students. With Werner Quintet, a new piece created on NBS students with its world premiere at NBSʼ 2026 Spring Showcase, Silas demonstrates how the classical vocabulary can be used to tell new stories that speak to the present.
John Alleyne—renowned choreographer, former dancer with Stuttgart Ballet and the National Ballet of Canada, former artistic director of Ballet BC and Artistic Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Advisor at NBS—is another choreographic force that our students were privileged to learn from. Johnʼs work exemplifies the ability to explore the language of ballet on the trained body, like our NBS dancers, that is fresh, timeless, and challenges us to reimagine the narrative of classical ballet.
“Silas is one of the world’s most exciting, new choreographic voices," says Artistic Director Margaret Tracey. "His commitment to the language of ballet, to the classical form, is all too rare and exactly what our industry needs as we move boldly into ballet’s future. John is one of the most successful Canadian artists this country has ever seen. His use of classical ballet vocabulary is inventive and extremely powerful in the way in which he connects music to movement. In his Schubert, he takes the dancer through the most intricate partnering passages that create a sense of trust and community amongst the cast. To bring Schubert to our repertoire has been an extraordinary gift.”
At NBS, we train with the understanding that the traditional canon does not define ballet; rather, it is the language of classical ballet that gives us the tools to tell infinite, meaningful stories—like Johnʼs Schubert and Silasʼ Werner Quintet—and to continue moving the art form forward.
2025-26 Guest Teachers and Choreographers
Additional influences that help invigorate NBSʼ curriculum include the choice of guest teachers that we invite to share their artistry with our students.
This year, we were excited to welcome:
Lil Buck, renowned dancer, educator and movement artist known for popularizing Memphis Jookin
Adji Cissoko, Alonzo King LINES Ballet Associate Artistic Director, former dancer with National Ballet of Canada
(NBOC)
Robbie Fairchild, Broadway star and former New York City Ballet principal
Lauri Fitz-Pegado, author, advocate, teaching artist, Co-founder of Beyond the Ballet Barre, former ballet dancer
Christine Friday, Artistic Director, choreographer, dancer, producer, community activator, teacher
Nikolaj Hübbe, former Artistic Director of the Royal Danish Ballet and former New York City Ballet principal
Christina Johnson, renowned teacher, former Dance Theatre of Harlem principal, founding member of Complexions Contemporary Ballet
James Kudelka, NBS alum and renowned Canadian choreographer
Jera Wolfe, award-winning choreographer and dancer
Ryan Tomash, NBS alum, principal dancer with New York City Ballet and Royal Danish Ballet
Royce Zackery, teacher at Howard University Dance Department and The Washington Ballet
Guest Teachers for Saturday Classes included:
Chelsy Meiss Fain, former first soloist with NBOC Hannah Galway, NBS alum, first soloist with NBOC
James OʼConnor, NBS alum and former second soloist with NBOC
Heather Ogden, principal dancer with NBOC
Kota Sato, NBS alum, second soloist with NBOC Piotr Stanczyk, NBS alum, former principal with NBOC
Selene Guerrero Trujillo, NBS alum, second soloist with NBOC
