We teach ballet for children from age 3 in Szczecin, in the studio at ul. Mariana Rapackiego 3B (Joy Dance), in four age groups: Baby Ballet 3-4, Ballet 5-6, Ballet 7-9 and Ballet 11-13.
Classes run once, twice or three times a week - weekday afternoons and Saturday mornings - and are taught by Olga Kuźmina, a graduate of the Kyiv State Ballet School and a dancer at the Opera na Zamku. The two younger groups take children with no previous training, and enrolment is online, in the form on this page.
Classical ballet is more than dance. It is a technique with centuries of history, music, theatre and a discipline that teaches a child to pay attention to their own body. Here children come to it step by step: first through play and rhythm, then through positions, coordination and first performances, up to the threshold of the professional ballet school. Each group has at most fifteen children, so the teacher sees every one of them.
Baby Ballet 3-4 - first steps through play
The group for the youngest, from age three.
Classes last 30 minutes and take place twice a week: Wednesdays at 16:30 and Saturdays at 10:00. It is ballet in the form of play, but with real foundations: positions of the arms and feet, coordination, a sense of rhythm and moving with the music. A child learns to listen, to wait for their turn and to enjoy movement. This group takes beginners, with no assessment lesson.
Ballet 5-6 - positions, coordination and a first stage
A continuation of Baby Ballet, or a start from scratch. Lessons last 45 minutes, on Mondays at 16:45 and Saturdays at 10:30. We work on physical conditioning, coordination, ballet positions, correct posture and musicality; the exercises also help correct posture faults and flat feet.
In this group children step on stage for the first time - at the school's concerts and performances.
Ballet 7-9 - technique and three classes a week
The group for children who want to dance more, and more seriously. Classes take place three times a week: Mondays at 17:30 and Wednesdays at 17:00 for 60 minutes, and a longer lesson on Saturdays from 11:15. This is already regular work on classical technique - barre, centre, jumps, first pieces of repertoire - and taking part in the school's performances. Children join this group after an assessment lesson, where we match the level.
Ballet 11-13 - continuation once a week
An intermediate group for children aged 11 to 13, on Tuesdays from 16:30 to 17:30.
One hour-long lesson a week, focused on consolidating technique, clean positions and musicality - for children who want to continue ballet without the professional-school regime. The group has up to 10 people; children join after an assessment lesson.
From age 9 - two paths
After their ninth birthday a child can audition for our professional school - the Ballet 9-11 profi group, the first ballet class: three times a week, longer classes, preparation for competitions and for ballet school entrance exams - or continue here, in the 7-9 group and then 11-13. We describe the professional path on the Professional Ballet page.
Where and when
All groups train in the studio at ul. Mariana Rapackiego 3B in Szczecin (Joy Dance).
The season runs from September to the end of June. The first class is always free. Current times, free places and prices are shown on each group's card in the enrolment form on this page, and answers to parents' most common questions are below.