The Pacific Northwest is one of the fastest growing professional dance regions in the United States. The Pacific Northwest Ballet School, founded in 1974 in Seattle is considered one of the top three ballet schools in the country. Some of the companies noted below are well known for their world class performances in this region.

Bellevue

Ballet Bellevue
Ballet Bellevue brings world class performances to audiences in Bellevue, the Eastside, King County and Washington state. Ballet Bellevue combines Washington talent with nationally and internationally recognized dancers, choreographers and musicians. The eclectic company repertoire features classical ballets, contemporary masterpieces and new works by local and international artists. The performances are presented at various theatres throughout the Puget Sound region.

Edmonds

Olympic Ballet Theatre
Olympic Ballet Theatre seeks to develop and sustain professional dance, promote dance as a creative performing art, and engage the widest possible audience with a stimulating repertoire of classical contemporary, and dramatic ballets. Olympic Ballet Theatre seeks to; Attract young audiences through special programming with lively, familiar, story dances, draw mature audiences by featuring world-renown artists in local productions, and offer professional opportunities to dancers, choreographers, and designers in the Puget Sound area.

Olympic Ballet Theatre performs at Edmonds Center for the Arts, as well as at various venues in Everett, Kirkland, Seattle and other cities across the country.

Seattle

Creative Dance Center & Kaleidoscope Dance Company
Artistic Director Anne Green Gilbert founded the Creative Dance Center in 1981. She teaches classes at the Creative Dance Center and mentors and works closely with the talented, creative faculty she has assembled. Anne is a pioneer in the field of dance education and the Creative Dance Center leads the way in applying the most current research on how the brain learns to the lesson-plans and teaching strategies used in our dance classes.

Kaleidoscope Dance Company, CDC’s performing company of young people, offers professional performance opportunities for children and, in so doing, provides powerful and playful dance performances accessible to people of all ages. Performance series are offered at Broadway Performance Hall, 1625 Broadway, Seattle, and at schools and community events throughout the year.

The Pacific Northwest Ballet
The Pacific Northwest Ballet company is based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1972 as part of the Seattle Opera and named the Pacific Northwest Dance Association, it broke away from the Opera in 1977 and took its current name in 1978. It is said to have the highest per capita attendance in the United States, with 11,000 subscribers. Its founding artistic directors are Kent Stowell and Francia Russell, who left at the end of the 2004/2005 season. Peter Boal was named as Artistic Director following their retirement. The Company performs with 48 dancers. Fifteen of which are principals, with three soloists, twenty-four dancers in corps de ballet, and two apprentices. There are some 90 performances through-out the year.

The Ballet performs in McCaw Hall at the Seattle Center. It is especially known for its performance of the Stowell/Maurice Sendak Nutcracker, which it has been presenting since 1983. In 2006, the company was chosen to perform in the Fall for Dance Festival at New York’s City Center Theatre.

Tacoma

Dance Theatre Northwest
Dance Theatre Northwest is a performing company with school and is composed of dancers, musicians, vocalists, artistic and technical supporters, and volunteers. Their Mission is to provide quality, ballet-based, American contemporary and classical dance performance and ballet-based dance education, and to offer rural communities In the Pacific Northwest the opportunity to experience dance as an important art form. Dance Theatre Northwest offers year round performing opportunities and dance training. Performances take place in various different communities throughout the year.