Ordway Conservatory of Classical Ballet students
Provided by Ordway Conservatory of Classical Ballet
What if serious ballet training didn’t require breaking children down to build great dancers?
At Ordway Conservatory of Classical Ballet, that question has helped shape a school where rigorous classical training and ambitious performance opportunities coexist with something historically less common in ballet: listening to children.
This season, that philosophy will take center stage as Ordway Ballet announces its 2026–27 performance season, featuring four productions spanning classical ballet, modern dance and an interactive holiday tradition — all while continuing the school’s mission to unlock what ballet can do not only for a dancer, but for a life.
“Ballet taught me that pain is temporary. It taught me delayed gratification, what hard work can accomplish and how much we are capable of when we keep going,” said founder and Artistic Director Sara Ordway. “I have used those lessons in every area of my life. I want our students to have those gifts, whether they grow up to become professional dancers, doctors, lawyers, business owners, parents or something they haven’t even imagined yet.”
A Different Kind of Serious Ballet School
Ordway, a former principal dancer of 12 years and certified Vaganova Method teacher who trained under two graduates of Russia’s famed Vaganova Academy, founded the school after being unable to find a ballet program that met both sides of her standards: the caliber of training she expected and the experience she believed children deserved.
The result is a school that takes ballet seriously without believing children need to be broken down, frightened or pushed to their breaking point to become excellent.
“We are not interested in creating a ballerina factory,” Ordway said. “We are interested in bringing out the best in kids — their best dancing and their best selves.”
At Ordway Ballet, that distinction shows up in seemingly small ways.
If a dancer walks into rehearsal during show week and something seems wrong, the first concern is not about the show. It is, “Are you okay?”
If a student needs to sit down, they can sit down.
If a dancer is grieving the loss of a beloved pet and needs a few extra hugs during class, there is room for that, too.
Advanced dancers have a voice in what they wear. Students collaborate with their teachers. Parents, dancers and staff are encouraged to speak — and leadership is expected to listen.
None of that means lowering the bar.
Students train extensively in classical ballet and modern dance, learn discipline and consistency, experience delayed gratification, develop physical and mental stamina, and perform in large-scale theatrical productions before audiences that regularly exceed 500 people.
The difference is that at Ordway Ballet, the person comes before the dancer.
From 40 Students to a Community of 200
Ordway Ballet began with approximately 40 students and two staff members. Today, it serves around 200 dancers with a staff of 10, drawing families from the Manassas area and as far away as Fauquier and Stafford Counties.
Its students range from three-year-olds taking their first ballet classes to advanced teenage dancers preparing for life beyond high school. The school also offers Parent & Me classes, adult classes, a modern dance track, a student-teacher training program and junior and secondary chapters of the National Honor Society for Dance Arts.
And at Ordway, performance isn’t something reserved only for the oldest or most advanced dancers.
Even the three-year-olds perform.
Students ages 3 to 18 become the stars of original productions, giving young dancers the unusual opportunity to experience not simply a recital, but the demands and exhilaration of theatrical performance.
One young dancer, Alina, spent roughly half a year unable to leave her mother’s side for an entire class.
Today, she frequently leads the line as dancers enter the stage.
It is exactly the kind of transformation Ordway considers as important as any technical milestone.
The 2026–27 Season
The season begins Dec. 19 and 20, 2026, with An Interactive Nutcracker at Unity Reed High School.
Rather than asking audiences to sit quietly and simply observe the magic, Ordway Ballet invites them into it. During the production, audience members are brought onstage, taught choreography and given the chance to perform alongside the dancers.
The result is part ballet, part theatrical experience and a holiday tradition designed to make classical ballet feel accessible to a child who may never have imagined themselves on a stage.
On Feb. 28, 2027, the company returns to the Hylton Performing Arts Center for its Modern Showcase, highlighting the school’s modern dance program and giving audiences another look at the range and athleticism of its young performers.
On April 11, 2027, Ordway Ballet presents Alice in Wonderland at the Hylton Performing Arts Center. Featuring original choreography and an entirely student cast ranging in age from 3 to 18, the production places young dancers — not visiting professionals — at the center of the story.
The season concludes June 13, 2027, with the Recital Showcase at the Hylton Performing Arts Center.
Across all four productions, Ordway hopes audiences leave seeing ballet differently: not as an exclusive or antiquated art form, but as something athletic, theatrical, joyful and very much alive.
Especially the children.
“I want a child sitting in the audience to recognize themselves,” Ordway said. “I want them to think ballet is cool. I want them to see what these dancers are doing and think, ‘Maybe I could do that.’ Because ballet is for anybody with a body.”
What Ballet Can Do
Ordway Ballet has received a Gold Stevie Award for Company of the Year, as well as a Dance Studio Owner’s Assosiation Award recognizing its original video-game-inspired ballet, Game On, as a Best New Product. Ordway herself has been recognized as an influential woman in Prince William County and has received a local hero award.
But the school’s definition of success extends far beyond trophies — and beyond professional dance careers.
Some alumni have continued into professional ballet. Others have gone on to pursue ambitious careers in fields including medicine and law.
To Ordway, those outcomes aren’t unrelated.
They are the point.
Ballet asks a child to practice something today that they may not master for months. It teaches them to walk into a room where they don’t know anyone, make friends and become part of something larger than themselves. It teaches them to perform while nervous, recover from mistakes, accept correction, work toward a goal they cannot achieve instantly and discover that they are capable of doing difficult things.
Those lessons follow a dancer long after the music stops.
Now a mother herself, Ordway is particularly excited to eventually watch her daughter experience the art form that shaped her own life — not because she expects her to become a ballerina, but because of what ballet can give her along the way: confidence, friendship, strength, consistency, stamina and the experience of working patiently toward something that matters.
That is ultimately the future Ordway Ballet is trying to build.
Not a school that produces one particular kind of dancer.
A school that helps produce remarkable humans.
“We want our students to reach their fullest potential,” Ordway said. “Whatever they ultimately decide that potential looks like.”
2026–27 ORDWAY BALLET PERFORMANCE SEASON
An Interactive Nutcracker
Dec. 19 and 20, 2026
Unity Reed High School
Modern Showcase
Feb. 28, 2027
Hylton Performing Arts Center
Alice in Wonderland
April 11, 2027
Hylton Performing Arts Center
Recital Showcase
June 13, 2027
Hylton Performing Arts Center
About Ordway Conservatory of Classical Ballet
Ordway Conservatory of Classical Ballet is a Manassas-area ballet school offering dance education from Parent & Me and preschool classes through advanced pre-professional training and adult ballet. Built on the belief that the person comes before the dancer, OCCB combines rigorous training, extensive performance opportunities and a deeply supportive culture designed to help students discover what they are capable of — in dance and beyond. ordwayballet.com
