BalletNOVA
Specialty: Dance
BalletNova Center for Dance opened in the Fall of 1981 as Arlington Center for Dance, founded by Ken and Kathy Fredgren. The studio grew in size and stature and has long been recognized as one of the premier dance training centers in the Metropolitan Washington DC area. Known for its pre-professional ballet program, the Center also has one of the most extensive adult dance programs available, with classes in ballet, jazz, hip hop, tap, modern, and body conditioning.
In 2002, The Fredgrens decided to retire, and turned the management over to long-time faculty member and choreographer Nancie Woods. The board acquired the school and merged it into one non-profit organization, with Ms. Woods as Artistic Director, becoming The Center Dance Company.
After 25 years in Arlington, the organization lost its lease in February 2008 and after an exhaustive search was unable to find suitable space in Arlington. The best spot was a 20,800 square foot facility on Carlin Springs Road, which was renovated into 6 beautiful state-of-the-art equipped dance studios, with spring floors and high ceilings, and re-opened in July 2008 as BalletNova Center for Dance. The current space is only a block from Arlington, a short ½ mile from Alexandria and the City of Falls Church and is in Fairfax County. Our studios are available for rehearsals, events, and more!
In September of 2015, BalletNova launched its new Fredgren Studio Theater, dedicated to the co-founders Ken and Kathy Fredgren. The Fredgren Studio Theater is a black box-style theater designed for dance, the only one-of-its-kind available to the public in Northern Virginia. It offers sprung wood flooring with marley overlay, 150-seat audience area, fully equipped sound and lighting, and free parking. The Fredgren Studio Theater is available for rental and has a significant discount for non-profits. BalletNova anticipates that the Fredgren will become an important community resource and encourage small dance, theater and music groups to increase their performance activities, and grow the impact of the arts’ presence in Northern Virginia.
The organization, now with over 1,300 students, is based on elements from the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) and American Ballet Theatre National Training Curriculum syllabus (nationally and internationally recognized systems that provide a certification program in classical ballet) across all levels of children’s pre-professional classical ballet curriculum. BNCD operates on a semester basis for adult and enrichment divisions, school year basis for Pre-professional training program. The Center accepts children and adults at the beginning, intermediate and advanced levels into a year-round program.
