The Dance program at Saint Mary’s Hall involves approximately one-third of the school’s enrollment from Montessori through Form 12. The program is focused in ballet - from fundamentals through advanced techniques.

Curriculum
The dance program provides a carefully-designed sequential program from Montessori to Form 12. This program includes the study of several ballet instructional approaches, and allows interested students to test for certification in the Enrico Cecchetti curriculum. Young dancers of pre-Form-1 age begin in a weekly kinder-dance class, move into pre-ballet through Form 2, and progress to formal classical ballet beginning in Form 3. After receiving a strong foundation in ballet and with the consent of their instructor, Middle and Upper School students may add pointe work. In addition to weekly ballet instruction, Middle and Upper School students are schooled in jazz and modern dance styles, and participate in a conditioning class once a week.

Length of Course: 2 semesters Prerequisite: None; this course may be repeated for credit Course Description: Dance students study ballet, jazz, character, Irish, and Flamenco dance technique in classes taught by professional and degreed faculty. Dance faculty audition each class after the start of each semester to determine a student's level of expertise to allow appropriate instruction and foster individual growth more effectively. A choreography unit allows the student to develop his/her own creative talents, and each semester is highlighted by a major dance production. Participation in the ISAS Fine Arts Festival OR an approved performance festival in the spring may be a requirement of this course. The course may be taken for either Fine Arts or PE credit. There is a fee for the course.