Ballet Chicago---Studio Company

[Monet]

Rebirth feel free to DM me.  That way no personal info will be public. 

[Seattleballet]

Monet, I can't PM you but my son just found out he received a full scholarship to train with BC during the 2020-2021 year.  Obviously, he is honored and intrigued - but we don't live in the Chicago area and would need to figure out his living and schooling situation.  Do you know if any students end up living with a host family?  Do most BC dancers do online school, or do some of them attend classes before their afternoon dance schedule begins?  He will be 16 this fall.  Thank you in advance for any insights/information!

[Phx115]

Seattleballet - I just emailed BC the same question about host families. She responded that in the past there have been families that have opened up their homes for year-round students, but it varies from year to year. Also, some of the older students will find apartments together or reside at the University Center (where they house SI students).

[Monet]

Most students that come from out of state rent apartments or condos.  We  bought a condo only a few blocks from the ballet and she and another dancer lived in it.  Some students get apartments a little further out and train in.  That is less expensive but we felt it was safer for her to be very close to the ballet.  Also most students that come from out of town do online school.  The students that live in or near the city either do online school or attend one of the private schools.  My dd started there at 15 and it was a great experience and amazing training.  The training really can't be beat.  If you have any other questions feel free to ask.  My dd was there from 15 until right before she turned 18 and received a company contract.  Many dancers stay longer.

[Phx115]

Monet - I am NOT judging at all!! Feel free to PM me, but that really seems like an expensive set up to me.  Buying a second piece of property in downtown Chicago, private schools? I guess I feel a bit disheartened that year-round training there might be out of our reach. 

[Monet]

No judgment felt!  We did buy a condo, no it was not cheap. But it was something our family enjoyed and we only recently sold it because we enjoyed using it even after she left BC.  Our dd did not attend a private school, she did a free online program.  However I will say 95% of the BC students that live downtown Chicago do attend private schools.  They students that live on the outskirts of Chicago and train in ro ballet do attend public schools as well as private.  All students that came from out of state when my DD was there did online school.  Also most do not buy condos, that is just what worked for us.  Most rent apartments with 1 or 2 other dancers.  Many rent apartments a bit out of the city where the rent is cheaper.  There are many options and many price ranges.  It would be possible to have an apartment with 2 other dancers and have quite reasonable rent, and do free online school meaning the entire set up  would be reasonable for many.  But honestly moving a child out of state to train is never super cheap.  I will also add my DD trained on merit scholarship so we did not pay any tuition and that helped.

[Seattleballet]

Wow - thank you so much for the quick and detailed response!  Lots to think about here.

[Phx115]

Monet - Thank you so much for clarifying! It is nice to know there can be a variety of options.