Applicable to: All Preparatory, Young Dancer and Advanced Division Students

During Production Week, there are no regular Academy classes as students focus on rehearsals. Attendance is mandatory for all rehearsals and performances during this week. Warm-up classes will be held each day for all YD and AD dancers with the exception of Wednesday when warm-up class is for YD3 and AD dancers. PD students should warm-up on their own either prior to arrival or in their classroom or dressing room.

ARRIVAL AND DISMISSAL TIMES FOR PRODUCTION WEEK

For all rehearsals and performances, students should be in the following attire (underneath their street clothes or warm-ups) prior to arrival:

• Monday – Wednesday, May 11 – 13: Academy uniform unless instructed otherwise by Academy faculty.
• Thursday – Saturday, May 14 – 16:
  • Dancers who wear leotards to class should wear a nude or flesh-colored leotard, pink or flesh-tone footed tights, and pink or flesh-tone ballet slippers (or pointe shoes if applicable). Their nude or flesh-colored leotard will be worn under their costume for both rehearsal and performance so please make sure the straps are easily concealed and the color is close to the student’s skin tone. Students who don’t already own a nude or flesh-colored leotard may find one at their local dancewear retailer.
  • Dancers who wear dance shirts and leggings to class should wear a white fitted dance shirt (no logos, graphics or text), black leggings or tights, white socks and white ballet shoes.
  • YD and AD Modern Dancers: Please bring any additional attire as directed by your instructor.

Hair and Makeup:

• Unless otherwise instructed, female dancers with hair longer than chin length should have their hair in a medium bun prior to arrival. Male dancers with hair longer than chin length should have their hair tied back and secured away from their face. Female and male dancers with short hair should have their hair well-groomed and secured away from their face. We recommend hairspray to keep hair out of their face through the rehearsal and performance. Please no additional hair accessories other than what is provided by Wardrobe.
• Stage make-up (powder, blush, mascara, lipstick) is optional for Preparatory Division students and encouraged for Young Dancer and Advanced Division students. Make-up should be applied prior to arrival at the theater. Our schedule doesn’t allow extra time for hair or make-up needs.

• All jewelry should be left at home. No jewelry is permitted on stage.

During the Monday, May 11 and Tuesday, May 12 rehearsals at the Center for Dance, we are hosting all Preparatory, Young Dancer and Advanced Division students, so we thank you in advance for your patience during student drop off and pick up.

Please allow plenty of time to drive to SCPA’s Corbett Theater for Wednesday, May 13 and Thursday, May 14 rehearsals. The theater is about 10 minutes (without traffic) southwest of our Gilbert Avenue location. Prompt arrival to your call times is incredibly important! Students who have not arrived by their call time for the performance may not be able to perform.

DROP-OFF/PICK-UP PROCEDURES AT THE CENTER FOR DANCE (Monday – Tuesday)

• Drop-off and pick-up at the Center for Dance will follow normal Academy protocols.
• Upon arrival, students should check themselves in at the table in the Center for Dance lobby, so we can note their attendance and direct them to their designated space.
• Please note that large groups of students will be arriving and dismissing at the same time, so the driveway will be more heavily impacted than normal.

DROP-OFF PROCEDURES AT SCPA (Wednesday – Saturday)

• The Central Parkway curb in front of the main SCPA entrance will be designated as a quick drop-off zone and will not be available for parking.
• During Production Week, all students should enter through the main SCPA entrance and sign in.
• Parents are welcome to drop their students off in the quick drop-off zone on Central Parkway, or if they prefer, park and escort their student to check in at the main SCPA entrance. Please note: Cars may not park on Central Parkway directly in front of the main SCPA entrance.
• An Academy staff member or volunteer will be outside the door to safely usher students inside.
• PLEASE NOTE: There are several public events happening near SCPA at Washington Park, Music Hall, Memorial Hall, and in OTR throughout the week and weekend, including a FC Cincinnati match on Wednesday. Make sure to plan ahead when making arrangements for student drop-off/pick-up and parking.

PICK-UP PROCEDURES AT SCPA (Wednesday – Saturday)

• After the rehearsals on Wednesday and Thursday evenings, Preparatory and Young Dancer Division students should be picked up from their classrooms in the SCPA first floor hallway. One adult should enter SCPA through the main entrance and proceed down the classroom hallway to meet and sign-out their student.
• After the performances on Friday and Saturday evenings have fully concluded, Preparatory and Young Dancer Division students should be picked up from their classrooms in the SCPA first floor hallway. For those not attending the performance, please enter SCPA through the main entrance. One adult should proceed down the classroom hallway to meet and sign-out their student.
• Advanced Division students may sign themselves out. If a student in Advanced Division fails to sign out, their parents will receive a phone call to verify their safe departure.

Please Note:

• Parents are NOT permitted backstage for any reason unless they are on the official Parent Volunteer list. Only students, staff, and volunteers will be allowed backstage.
• Students may not be picked up during the show or at intermission. Parents must wait until the end of the show to pick up their students. Thank you in advance for your cooperation!
• To avoid congestion and confusion, please send only one adult per student to the classroom hallway at the end of the performance. We appreciate your patience as we work to safely dismiss students.

As staff will be in the theater quite a bit over the course of the week and especially on performance days, our ability to answer incoming calls to our Administrative Office will be extremely limited. To report an absence or a late arrival to a rehearsal or performance, or for any other urgent communication related to Spring Production, please use our Absence Notification Line (513.562.1111 Option 1) to leave a message for our team.

Please discuss the expectations below with your student prior to their arrival at the first theater rehearsal:

• All students must remain in their designated studio/classroom. Parent Volunteers are assigned to each studio/classroom.
• Students may not eat in and around costumes. Costumes are the property of Cincinnati Ballet and are often used by the Company. It’s really important we keep them in quality condition.
• Absolutely no running or yelling in the theater or backstage area at any time.
• Due to union policies, ONLY Wardrobe personnel are able to dress your student in costume.

What to bring for the Dress Rehearsal and Performances:
☐ Nude or flesh-colored leotard
☐ An extra pair of tights
☐ Ballet shoes including pointe shoes if dancing on pointe
☐ Additional required attire for YD Modern and AD Modern (as directed by instructor)
☐ Extra bobby pins, elastics, hairnets and hairspray
☐ A blanket, towel or yoga mat to sit on
☐ A small “clean” snack. Clean snack examples: pretzels, animal crackers, veggie sticks, crackers, string cheese. PLEASE: No nuts or anything that could discolor hands.
☐ Water in a closed container (please label your student’s water bottle). PLEASE: No liquids other than water.
☐ Books or a quiet game/activity are permitted as there will be some breaks

What to leave at home:
☒ Messy or sticky food
☒ Beverages other than water
☒ Noisy games, video games, electronic devices, cameras, tablets, laptops
☒ Make-up
☒ Jewelry and valuables

Please make sure all your student’s belongings are clearly labeled. The Academy is not responsible for lost or stolen items.

Female dancers with hair longer than chin length should arrive at the theater with their hair in a medium bun unless otherwise instructed. For guidance in making the perfect bun, below are a few helpful tips.

1. Start by making a good ponytail: When pulling hair into a ponytail, it is helpful for hair to be slightly damp or sprayed gently with hairspray. A good ponytail is slicked tight to the head without wispies (those little stray hairs hanging down). You can usually get rid of stray hairs by using a bristle brush to smooth them back once you have made your ponytail. The height of your ponytail should be in line with the type of bun you want. Unless otherwise instructed by your teacher, all students should have a medium bun.
2. Pull the ponytail straight out and twist it into a tight rope. Then coil the hair around the ponytail holder. It should look similar to a cinnamon roll! You may need to secure it with bobby pins as you go around if the ponytail is very long. Once the whole rope is coiled, tuck the tail under the edge of the coil and secure all the edges with bobby pins.
3. Use a hairnet that matches the color of your hair and loop it over the bun. Pull the net tight across the bun and twist the net. Keep looping it over the bun and twisting it until all the net is used. Tuck any extra under the edge of the bun. Secure with a few extra bobby pins.
4. Finish everything by spraying hair with a strong-hold hairspray. If you have very curly or wavy hair, you may need to use hair gel or “hair glue.”

All bun supplies may be purchased at your local drugstore in the hair styling section.

Our colleagues at Houston Ballet Academy have also created this video with examples of various hair textures:

Ticket On Sale Date: Wednesday, March 18, 2026

Spring Production tickets are now on sale! Tickets may be purchased online (click below), in person at the Cincinnati Ballet Welcome Center, or by phone. All students will perform in both productions, and casting is the same for both evenings.

The easiest way to purchase your Spring Production tickets is online via the link above. If you need to contact Cincinnati Ballet’s Box Office, please use the contact information below.

Phone: 513-621-5282
Email: welcome@cballet.org

Cincinnati Ballet’s Box Office is located at:
The Margaret and Michael Valentine Center for Dance
1801 Gilbert Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202

Box Office Hours
Monday through Friday, 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM

It takes a great team of parent/guardian volunteers to support our students behind the scenes at rehearsals and performances. All volunteers get one free ticket to the Spring Production performance of their choice! Visit the link below to learn more and sign up.

Professional photos of students will be taken from the audience during dress rehearsal and one of the two performances. Approximately 8-10 weeks following the performance, families will be provided with a link to an online gallery so they may purchase prints directly from the photographer if desired. The performance will also be professionally filmed, and a complimentary copy will be sent to each participant approximately 8-10 weeks following the production. Please remember all other photography and video recording is prohibited during the Spring Production performance.

Rehearsals for Spring Production pieces are now being held during regular class time during designated performance classes. All other classes will remain focused on technique to ensure students remain safe and physically equipped to meet the challenges of Spring Production while continuing their development.

Regular class attendance is important! For all performers, because Spring Production choreography is being taught during class time, class attendance is critical to their success.

Spring Production Attendance Policy: To uphold our professional standards, and knowing that consistency is vital to the safety and success of the staging process, any student with more than two unexcused absences from their performance classes or rehearsals may be removed from Spring Production. If additional absences occur beyond this, it will be at the discretion of the Academy whether students are eligible to perform in Spring Production. Furthermore, attendance is mandatory for all performance classes and rehearsals beginning April 27 through the performances. During this critical window, any unexcused absence may result in the student being removed to ensure the continuity of the choreography and the stability of the cast. However, we kindly ask you continue to observe all health and safety protocols and keep your student at home if they are sick. Their health and safety come ahead of rehearsal!

Communication is key! Please let us know if your student will have to miss a class by using our online Academy Absence Reporting Form or contacting the Academy at 513.562.1111 (select Option 1).

Applicable to: All Preparatory, Young Dancer and Advanced Division Students

In order to create cohesiveness for the pieces within each division, additional rehearsals will be scheduled in the weeks leading up to Spring Production. Please note the following dates:

Attendance at these rehearsals is mandatory in order to support each division of dancers coming together. Please mark your calendars!

Applicable to: All Preparatory, Young Dancer and Advanced Division Students

During Production Week, May 11 – 16, there are no regular Academy classes as students focus on rehearsals. Production Week will consist of evening rehearsals each night Monday, May 11 through Thursday, May 14 at either the Center for Dance or SCPA’s Corbett Theater, and performances on Friday, May 15 and Saturday, May 16 at SCPA’s Corbett Theater. Attendance is mandatory for all rehearsals and performances during this week.

On rehearsal and performance days, each class will have a designated arrival and dismissal time. More detailed information about these times will be added to this section as we get closer to the rehearsal and performance dates.