About Birmingham Ballet

Cindy Free is the Executive and Artistic Director of the Birmingham Ballet. In a short time, she has built Birmingham Ballet from a small Academy with a performing outlet into a well established semi-professional community ballet company with a newly forming professional repertory ensemble.

The Birmingham Ballet Academy is the Official School of the Birmingham Ballet. It provides training for beginning through advanced students. A skilled faculty shares many decades of combined experience and knowledge with students. Mature dancers are assisted with college and career planning. Advanced students may apprentice with Birmingham Ballet’s Professional Repertory Dance Company as a bridge to their professional career. BBA students have received acceptance and scholarships to study at prestigious schools including American Ballet Theatre, School of American Ballet, The Joffrey Ballet School, Boston Ballet School, The Rock School for Dance Education, and Walnut Hill. College dance scholarships have been awarded to Birmingham Ballet Academy students from Birmingham-Southern College, University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa and Florida State University.

Semi-annual auditions are held for community dancers from Birmingham and surrounding areas who wish to perform with Birmingham Ballet. From these auditions, a Professional Ensemble, Senior Company, Junior Company and community Cast are chosen. Together these dancers represent over 70 different academic schools and 30+ dancing schools as well as cities as far as Gadsden, Tuscaloosa, Montgomery, Jasper, and Anniston. Birmingham Ballet’s annual The Nutcracker performed at the BJCC Concert Hall provides opportunity for 200+ dancers and draws some of the largest audiences for dance in Birmingham.

Birmingham Ballet productions generate excitement that is contagious! Audiences look forward to the fast moving colorful productions, choreographed by Cindy Free, that often include aerial ballet and captivating illusions. The cornerstone of the repertoire for the newly forming Professional Repertory Dance Company is choreography by the acclaimed Alfonso Figueroa who founded the first professional dance company in Alabama.