ABSTRACT
Creative Movement classes are offered in dance studios throughout the United States and in many countries. Many ballet dancers begin their training in these classes. Imagination, sensory-rich movement explorations, conceptual learning, and skill-development are the hallmarks of Creative Movement classrooms. They are exploratory landscapes designed to spark imagination, build movement literacy, and strengthen movement skills. Using movement concepts to teach dance is a foundational approach in Creative Movement classrooms. This chapter applies this approach to ballet teaching and investigates the importance of conceptual learning in the education of pre-professional ballet dancers. It examines common movement concepts taught in Creative Movement classrooms, and explores how those concepts relate to the study of ballet. A conceptual approach to ballet education teaches dancers to sense, perceive, and discern the differences between one way of moving and another, and provides varying options for perceiving and exploring balletic movement.
