CCM Dance puts an emphasis on ballet and contemporary styles, making it perfect for dancers seeking top-level training and rigorous artistic, academic, and studio curriculum.
The Dance Department at CCM is a professionally oriented dance experience offering a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree in Ballet. Through an intensive academic and studio curriculum, dancers will receive advanced training while cultivating their artistry and inspiring creativity. Students will graduate with a thorough knowledge of the dance world and how to function within it. With the BFA, most students choose to perform or teach in professional dance companies and dance education organizations.
Online applications are due December 1 for fall admission in the BFA program.
The CCM Dance Department is comprised of distinguished, dynamic faculty members, state of the art facilities, performance opportunities, and a plethora of new and challenging experiences for our students. Faculty includes Shauna Steele (Department Chair), Deirdre Carberry, and Hee Ra Yoo, along with many dedicated adjunct faculty members, guest artists, company directors, and professionals from the dance field that are committed to nurturing highly technical, passionate, and artistic dancers.
CCM Dance students have numerous opportunities to perform throughout the year in full-length ballets, one-act ballets or in new works by faculty, students and guest artists.
CCM's production season is integrated with our curriculum, so all students have the opportunity to perform regularly.
Visit our CCMONSTAGE e-box office for more information on the ticketed performances that CCM Dance will present this year.
Qualified students may have the opportunity to perform with professional regional dance companies including Cincinnati Ballet, Dayton Ballet, Louisville Ballet and BalletMet while enrolled in CCM's BFA program.
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CCM's undergraduate admissions process begins on August 1 for entrance in the following year's fall semester. All application materials must be submitted on or before December 1 to be considered for specific scholarship awards. Visit the CCM Admissions website for additional application instructions.
Applicants must submit the required pre-screening materials via getacceptd.com/ccm on or before December 3 in order to be considered for admissions and invited for an audition.
The audition will consist of a traditional classical ballet barre and center followed by several combinations of pointe work (for women only). Dancers will then take the modern dance component, which consists of two-three movement sequences demonstrating the ability to perform floor work and various rhythmic and spatially-oriented structures.
Each applicant must submit a video/DVD of himself or herself performing a solo variation from the standard classical repertoire to CCM's Get Acceptd website. The applicants must also upload a photo with the applicant dressed in regular classroom attire posed in Arabesque en'lair (women on pointe). The video should include a short introduction of the dancer stating his or her name, name of the variation and name of the studio where the dancer trains. Only the introduction and selected variation should be on the video/DVD.
An audition by DVD should be no more than 10 minutes and should reflect the dancer's strengths. Applicants should show an example of their typical level of training including: exercises at the barre, center work, jumps, and point work (women, all center work en pointe). The DVD must reflect the dancer's current training, made within three months of the application submission. This should also be submitted to CCM's Get Acceptd website.
The student must include: pliés, tendues, dégagés (from fifth position, both straight and with pliè) ronde de jambe, a terre and en l’air, passé developpe en croix, frappes, grand battements and balances on one leg. The exercises can be short, but with enough repetition that the dancer can be seen clearly.
Please show all ballet combinations on one side only. Center work to include: adage, pirouettes en dehors and en dedans, petit allegro and grand allegro. Women finish with fouettes and men finish with turns in à la second. A classical variation (on pointe for women) one to two minutes in length.
Variations may be performed in practice clothes or costume either in the studio or on stage. Performance tapes are acceptable but should show only the applying dancer.
Female dancers should bring ballet slippers, pointe shoes and have footed tights that can be rolled up to ankle or calf-length for the modern component of the audition. Traditional attire (black leotard and pink tights) is recommended.
Male dancers should bring socks and ballet slippers as well as tights that can be rolled up to accommodate the modern dance component of the audition. Traditional attire (black tights and white T-shirt) is also recommended.
Off-site audition formats may vary slightly. Applicants must submit a full length photo with the applicant dressed in regular ballet classroom attire, posed in arabesque enl'air (women en pointe).
There are two ways to receive scholarship aid to study in CCM Dance at the University of Cincinnati. The first is through an academic scholarship called the Cincinnatus Scholarship. For details, please visit the Cincinnatus Scholarship Program website to learn more.
Every applicant is automatically considered for the CCM Talent Scholarship, which is awarded based on the audition and interview. No further applications or actions by applicants are required, other than applying and auditioning, to be considered for our modest talent scholarships.
November 18, 2025
Experience world-class performances by the next generation of performing and media artists at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM)! The college's spring 2026 schedule of major events is now available; tickets are on sale now through the CCM Box Office.
November 6, 2025
Dive into the holiday spirit with "Just Desserts: Selections from The Nutcracker and Faculty Works" on Nov, 20-22, 2025 in CCM's Corbett Auditorium.. Presented as part of the CCM Dance performance series, tickets for the production are on sale now through the CCM Box Office.
August 26, 2025
In this new short film created by CCM Recording Productions, viewers can experience an insiders look at the April 2025 production of the whimsical ballet Coppélia. Follow along with CCM students Celeste Lau (BFA Ballet, ’25) and Regina Murphy (BFA Ballet, ’25), who play both Swanhilda and Coppélia, switching roles on different nights of the production.
August 25, 2025
UC’s College-Conservatory of Music will welcome a variety of new faculty and staff members to its roster of distinguished performing and media arts experts, researchers and educators this fall.
August 19, 2025
Experience world-class performances by the next generation of performing and media artists at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM)! The college’s fall 2025 schedule of major events is now available; tickets are on sale now through the CCM Box Office.
August 1, 2025
CCM Dean Peter J. Jutras shares a message with the college community ahead of the 2025-26 academic year and performance season.
July 28, 2025
Enjoy an inside look at the Virtual Production Studio class offered in CCM's new Extended Reality (XR) Studio. The Media Production Division class is taught by instructor and CCM alumnus Joseph Maiocco (BFA Media Production, '06). CCM's XR Studio is a performing and media arts lab space that allows physical performance to take place in an immersive virtual environment via its 16x10 foot LED wall and a positional camera tracking system that works with 3D creation tools like Unreal Engine to render the digital scenery in real time.
July 22, 2025
UC College-Conservatory of Music Dean Pete Jutras has announced the appointment of Hee Ra Yoo as CCM's new Assistant Professor of Dance. Her faculty appointment officially begins on Aug. 15, 2025. An international dance teacher and choreographer, Yoo founded the New York contemporary dance company “Yoo and Dancers.”
July 1, 2025
Sarah Jessaic Parker recently gave Cincinnati a shoutout during an interview on the "Call Her Daddy" podcast. She talked about theaters she enjoyed visiting — like Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, where her father worked as a stage manager, and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. SJP attended the School for Creative and Performing Arts during her elementary school years, and also took classes at CCM Prep.
