Ballet
Our nationally-recognized and highly-respected ballet program provides authentic training for pre-professional dancers, as well as the necessary base for most other forms of dance. Whether a student desires to train for a professional career or for fun and fitness, PDT’s ballet classes are among the finest in the country.
Princeton Dance and Theater Studio is proud to include the AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE® National Training Curriculum, a breakthrough 8-level program that presents high-quality artistic training with attention to dancer health and child development. The ABT® National Training Curriculum consists of a comprehensive set of age-appropriate, outcome-based guidelines to provide the highest quality ballet training to dance students of all ages and skill levels.
PDT’s ABT® Certified Teachers include Risa Kaplowitz, Director (Primary through Level 7), Nora Cotter (who has successfully completed the ABT® Teacher Training Intensive in Primary through Level 7 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum and received her NYU masters degree in ABT Ballet Pedagogy, Talin Kenar (Primary through Level 7), Tori Hey (Primary through Level 5), and Elyse Mertz (Primary through Level 3). Ms. Kaplowitz, Ms. Kenar, and Ms. Cotter are ABT® NTC Affiliate Teachers and Fellows having successfully presented students for examinations.
Our advanced ballet students have been accepted to top summer intensives affiliated with prestigious companies and year-round programs. These include American Ballet Theater JKO School/NYC, School of American Balle,; The Royal Ballet School (London, England), Joffrey Ballet School/Chicago, The Juilliard School, Kaatsbaan Ballet Intensive, as well as the schools of Boston Ballet, Orlando Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Atlanta Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Houston Ballet, and Complexions Contemporary Ballet.
Our dancers are or have become professional company members or trainees of ballet companies including The Royal Danish Ballet, Dresden SemperOper Ballett, Complexions Contemporary Ballet, BalletX, Boston Ballet, Houston Ballet, Pennsylvania Ballet, Orlando Ballet, Ballet Met, The Washington Ballet, Colorado Ballet, Columbia City Ballet, Ballet Austin, Sarasota Ballet, and Sacramento Ballet.
Our dancers have graduated from PDT to attend esteemed college dance programs, including Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music (Ballet), NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, Rutgers University’s Mason Gross School of the Arts, North Carolina School of the Arts, and The University of Utah’s School of Dance.
Our students have added PDT’s exceptional dance training to their college résumés to help gain entrance to top universities, and many have continued dancing in prestigious university-affiliated ballet companies. In recent years, 7 PDT alumni have gone on to attend Princeton University.
Please note that new students seeking to enroll in classes Level 1 and above must schedule a placement class.
Important payment information: Registration is for an entire year of classes (32 classes). A 20% deposit is required at the time of registration, and the balance (80%) is due in September. Installment plans are available for your convenience. A $15 fee is assessed to each installment. Please note that a once-yearly family registration fee of $45 is added to the September invoice. Sibling and multi-class discounts are applied to the last installment.
For Adult/Teen ballet classes, all levels, click HERE. For Adult Beginner Ballet (ages 21+), click HERE.
Class placement is at the discretion of the instructor. As long as there is room in a class, registrations are accepted even after classes have begun. Tuition will be prorated based on the number of classes left in the school year. If you have questions about registration, please contact the office at studiomanager@princetondance.com or call 609-514-1600.
Check the CLASS SCHEDULE
Please register on a laptop or desktop. All class and payment options do not appear when registration is viewed on a mobile device.
NEW: Class size will be limited and all dancers must wear a mask. Students in Levels 1 through CP will have the option to dance in person or via Zoom. Please indicate your preference in the first box under “Optional Information” below.



Register online, in person, or by mail. Registration MUST be accompanied by the initial payment.Registration sent by mail should be directed to:
Princeton Dance & Theater Studio
116 Rockingham Row
Princeton, NJ 08540
PLEASE READ THE BELOW BEFORE REGISTERING:
By filling out this registration form, you are registering for the entire class as listed on this page. The division of fees into multiple payments (installments) is allowed for convenience with an additional $15 fee assessed per installment. If you withdraw for any reason, it is your responsibility to contact the Office Manager immediately at 609-514-1600. You are required to give 30 days’ notice of dropping a class. A drop fee of $25 will be charged. NO REFUNDS OF TUITION PAID FOR ANY REASON. UNUSED FEES WILL BE KEPT INDEFINITELY FOR CREDIT.
We offer a 2, 4, & 8 installment payment plan. Installment plans carry a $15 fee per enrolled class, per installment. For multiple-class enrollment, installment fees cap at $30.
Please note that our policy does not guarantee make-up classes.
Make-ups may be arranged for Dance With Me, Pre-Primary, and Adult/Teen Ballet classes at the discretion of the instructor if space is available in a comparable class.
Dancers in Levels 1 through Level 3 may take a make-up class on an alternate day from their usual schedule at the discretion of the instructor. CP, Level 4, and Level 5 students may make up classes in a level below their own if cleared by the instructor and arranged through the office.
Primary A, B, and C students may be allowed one make-up class per semester IF there is space in a comparable class. All make-ups must be scheduled through the office. If make-up classes are misused and/or if parents bring students to make-up classes without advance scheduling, we reserve the right to amend our policies to disallow make-ups.
Those registering after the start of classes will be charged based on a prorate of the 32-week session. Any class with a registration of seven students or less may be cancelled at the discretion of the Director.
BALLET PLACEMENT CLASSES:
Please note that new ballet students Level 1 and above must schedule a placement class. Dancers in Dance With Me, Pre-Primary, and Primary levels MUST be of specified age by September 30th. Only an instructor can finalize level placement.
TRIAL CLASSES:
Prospective students may take a risk-free trial class. No fee will be charged if the student decides not to register. If the student registers for the class, the cost of the trial class will be included in the overall tuition. For classes with a “drop-in” option (e.g. Adult/Teen Jazz and Adult Beginner Ballet), risk-free trials are only offered during the first week of a session. After that, students wishing to take a trial class must pay the drop-in fee.
INITIAL PAYMENT
Initial payment does not include the $45 non-refundable registration fee (assessed per year, per family). This fee will be added to your balance and is due with the first installment. The registration fee applies to school-year classes only. There is no registration fee assessed for Dance With Me or other classes offered in 10- and 12-week sessions.
If paying by check, please make checks payable to: PDT Studio.
MasterCard, Discover, and Visa are accepted for your convenience. If you are paying online, American Express is also accepted. Please note that online charges will be listed on your financial statement as PAYPAL.
NO REFUNDS FOR ANY REASON. UNUSED FEES WILL BE KEPT INDEFINITELY FOR CREDIT.
DISCOUNTS:
Sibling and multi-class discounts will be applied to the final installment. These discounts only apply to school-year classes, and not to those classes offered in sessions. Discounts are not valid for school-year class registrations after December 31st.
LATE FEE:
A late fee of $25 will be charged each time a payment is received more than 5 days past due.
RETURNED CHECK FEE:
There will a $25 fee assessed for returned checks.
CLASS CHANGE FEE:
There will be $25 fee assessed for class changes made more than three (3) weeks after classes have begun. A separate fee will be applicable per each change made.
OTHER:
PDT Studio is not responsible for items lost or stolen.
PDT is not responsible for your child before or after their assigned class. Please do not drop your child off early or pick them up late and expect the staff to supervise. Parents will be charged a fee if they habitually arrive late to pick up their child from class.
PDT Studio does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, or creed in the administration of its admission. PDT Studio is an equal opportunity employer.