A Summer of Ballet: Recapping Our Brooklyn Summer Camps

What a magical summer it was! This August, we spent three unforgettable weeks during summer camp exploring some of ballet’s most beloved stories through movement, creativity, imagination, and plenty of fun with friends.

Each camp week brought a new ballet adventure: Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, and Sleeping Beauty. While every story was different, each camp followed the same special journey: learning about the ballet, creating, dancing, exploring our neighborhood in DUMBO, Brooklyn and ending the week with a performance for friends and family.

Week One: Swan Lake Camp 🦢

We kicked off our summer camps with the enchanting world of Swan Lake. Throughout the week, our dancers learned about the story and characters while discovering how ballet can bring a story to life through movement. Of course, no ballet camp would be complete without getting creative! Our dancers made crafts inspired by the story and even created their own costumes to wear as they stepped into their Swan Lake roles.

The dancers also learned a special dance to share at the end of the week. On Friday, they proudly performed for their friends and families, giving everyone a chance to see all the fun and hard work that went into their week.

Week Two: The Nutcracker Camp 🎄

The following camp week, we traveled into the magical world of The Nutcracker. Our dancers learned about this classic holiday ballet and explored its characters, music, and imaginative story. There was plenty of time for creativity, too! From making crafts to designing their own costumes, our campers got to put their own personal touches on the world of The Nutcracker.

And then came performance day! After spending the week learning their dance, our dancers took the stage on Friday to share what they had learned with their friends and family. Seeing their confidence grow throughout the week was one of the sweetest parts of camp!

Week Three: Sleeping Beauty Camp 👑

For our final week of summer camp, we stepped into the fairy-tale world of Sleeping Beauty. Our dancers learned about the classic ballet story and brought it to life through imaginative play, creative projects, and dance. They made their own crafts and costumes, transforming themselves into characters from the story before learning a special dance to perform at the end of the week.

By Friday, our dancers were ready to share their hard work. Their performance was the perfect way to celebrate a wonderful final week of camp—and an incredible summer of dancing!

Exploring DUMBO Together 🏙️

Summer camp wasn’t all about dancing! Each week, we also headed out to explore the wonderful neighborhood around us in DUMBO.

Our field trips included visits to The Dumbo Archway, Main Street Playground, Adams Street Public Library, and Space Club, giving our campers opportunities to play, explore, read, create, and spend time together outside the studio.

These neighborhood adventures became an important part of our camp experience. They gave our dancers a chance to build friendships, discover new places, and enjoy all that our DUMBO community has to offer.

Visiting Adams Street Library 📚

Our campers loved visiting the Adams Street Public Library, where they had the opportunity to slow down, explore, and discover the joy of reading. We love encouraging a love of books from an early age, and reading offers so many wonderful benefits for young children – from building vocabulary and listening skills to encouraging imagination, creativity, and a lifelong love of learning. Our dancers enjoyed exploring the library and discovering new stories together, reminding us that adventures don’t always have to happen through dance, sometimes they begin with opening a book! 📖💕

Space Club Field Trips ⭐️

Every Tuesday, one of our favorite adventures was traveling to Space Club DUMBO, a sensory-friendly space where our campers could explore, play, and use their imaginations in a whole new environment. Our campers loved discovering all the different ways to move, play, and interact with the space, making it a wonderful complement to our creative and active days at camp.

Mornings at the Main Street Playground 🌳

We spent our mornings at DUMBO’s Main Street Playground, where our campers had plenty of time to run, climb, swing, and play together. Unstructured outdoor play is such an important part of early childhood development, helping children build gross motor skills, coordination, balance, and strength while also encouraging creativity, confidence, and social skills.

A Summer to Remember ✨

Across three weeks and three beloved ballets, our campers did so much more than learn choreography. They practiced creativity, teamwork, confidence, storytelling, and self-expression—all while making new friends and creating memories. From Swan Lake to The Nutcracker to Sleeping Beauty, each week was filled with dancing, crafting, costumes, field trips, laughter, and lots of imagination.

We are so proud of every dancer who joined us this summer and shared in these magical ballet adventures. Thank you to all of our dancers and camp families for making our summer so special. We already can’t wait for next year! More info on upcoming camps HERE!

Keep the Magic Going 🩰

We are open for ballet classes all year, for ages 6 months to 9 years old. Enrollment is on-going, join us at any time. We offer a free trial class to new students. Sign up here to experience the magic for yourself! ✨