ABOUT
“OUR MISSION is to inspire lasting love and appreciation for ballet through superb training, artistic excellence, and performance opportunities.”
THE CLASSICAL APPROACH
STUDENTS AT CLASSICAL BALLET have the opportunity to train from pre-school through advanced levels. They will gain performance experience, participate in outreach service within our community, and become eligible to dance with our Company.
OUR CURRICULUM is based on the traditional classical ballet syllabus. We maintain a system of progression based upon achievement of skills. Advancement within the levels is at the discretion of Faculty, for the good of the student.
EXPERIENCED FACULTY
OUR FACULTY represents many years of training at high levels, performance experiences, and teaching background. They are committed to communicating their knowledge of ballet to each student with kindness, clarity, and personal attention. Enthusiasm for their craft is evident in each class they teach. Bios are available for review on the Faculty page.
BALLET IS FOR EVERYONE
JOY AND POSITIVE INSTRUCTION set the tone, and positive correction with encouragement will be reflected in the attitude of our teachers. It is our intent that students experience the satisfaction that comes from doing their best—class by class.
ALL PETITE & ACADEMY LEVELS PERFORM in the Spring Showcase. Students in the Academy will be eligible for other performance opportunities. Academy students who take more than their “required” class are automatically guaranteed casting in more than one dance in their end-of-semester public performance.
COMMITMENT TO THE STUDENT
CLASSICAL BALLET OF MOBILE is committed to the whole child and helping each student develop a lifelong love of this beautiful art form - regardless of age and level of ability. We honor childhood in our dance technique, music selection and costuming to preserve and celebrate the innocence of youth.
We are grateful for your support and patronage.
PREVIOUS FACULTY
Pamela Thompson,
Founding Academy Director & Artistic Director
1952 - 2026
Mrs. Pam was a ballet teacher for more than twenty-five years, having taught in Mobile and Birmingham. She began her ballet training with Carol Graham, then continued in various programs, studying with Alexandra Danilova, Melissa Hayden, James Eaton, and others. She was a member of Mobile Civic Ballet under the direction of Duane Dishion, and teacher, Ann Duke. In Birmingham, she performed with the Birmingham Concert Ballet.
She graduated with honors from Samford University with a BA in English and Education. In 1999 she joined the faculty of Mobile Ballet under the direction of Winthrop Corey, serving as Associate Director of the school from 2007–2015, during which time she established the Student Choreography Workshop. A strong advocate of continuing education, she has participated in dance educator workshops with Marcia Dale Weary and Darla Hoover at Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet and at the Alabama Dance Summit, as well as numerous teacher observation opportunities in New York. Her life's passion is passing on the love and beauty of ballet through teaching young people to dance.
Winthrop Corey, Artistic Director Emeritus
1946 - 2023
Mr. Corey was a principal dancer with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet and the National Ballet of Canada. Dancing opposite Rudolf Nureyev in José Limón’s The Moor’s Pavane, Time Magazine noted “a chillingly effective performance”, while Clive Barnes of The New York Times added, “Corey, excellent in every way, a performance with style and authority.”
He taught master classes throughout the U.S., Canada, and Europe, and been a summer faculty member of The Joffrey Ballet School and American Ballet Theatre. Corey has choreographed numerous full-length ballets, and his original productions include Dracula and A Streetcar Named Desire, for which he was awarded a Dance Fellowship by the Alabama State Council on the Arts. This year marks the sixth time Corey has coached the New York International Ballet Competition.
Board of Directors
Hayley Van Antwerp, President
*Connie Catranis, Vice-President
Julie Walton, Treasurer
Tasha Steele, Secretary
Jennifer Adair, M.D.
Jill Boudreaux
Evan Cox, CPA
Zach Deas
Kelli Etheredge
Sarah Thomas
Jennifer Williams
Advisory Board
Beverly Davis
*Sara Kindt
Emily Shell
*past Presidents
Classical Ballet is a proud member of the Mobile Arts Council.