How do you become a professional dancer?

well to become a pro dancer you have to have many years of experience. like if you have been dancing for 5 years that is not good enough. you have to have lots of practice. so if you want to train here are some of the top dancing school in the U.S # The Ailey School # American Academy of Ballet # American Ballet Theatre Summer Intensive # Boston Ballet School # Briansky Saratoga Ballet # The Harid Conservatory # Houston Ballet's Ben Stevenson Academy # Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at ABT # Joffrey Ballet School # North Carolina School of the Arts # The Nutmeg Conservatory # The Rock School for Dance Education # San Francisco Ballet School # Steps on Broadway # The Kirov Academy # Walnut Hill School for the Arts # Washington School of Ballet and it takes about 18 years to complete your train(there are different years for different types of dance)

Maybe she was born with it. I have a hard time with that though. I have talked with many dancers. They train, exercise, diet, etc. They not only have to be able to be flexible and dance. They have to look great as well. It is a lifetime commitment and lots of hard work. However, I have never met a dancer who did not enjoy what they do. Certain types may not appreciate men's comments.

Once you combine hip hop and ballet in the same question, you're asking too broad a question, especially when it comes to asking about good dance schools. Ballerina4ever gave you some of the top ballet schools, but they'd be absolutely no good at teaching you hip hop. The key step to become a professional dancer is to get expert training from teachers who were or are professional dancers. I disagree with Leyla that classical training is not important. If you watch "So You Think You Can Dance," you will have heard Cedric also confess that you gotta get to class and that you can't just practice your heart out in your basement. There are several routes that professional dancers take, depending on their preferred styles. Some go for commercial (for profit) type work while others aim for dance companies (non-profit). To learn more about the world of professional dance, you might think about subscribing to "Dance Spirit" magazine. The Answers4Dancers site is also good for getting a feel for the biz. http://www.answers4dancers.com/ P.S. [to your follow-up questions]: My answer INCLUDES hip hop in what I'm saying: find teachers with professional experience if possible. The best place for hip hop training would be L.A., followed by NYC. I wasn't using the term "classical training" to just mean ballet. Jazz dancers also receive classical training. Classical training involves learning technique and emphasizing that over learning "routines." The more you are grounded in technique, the more adaptable you can be as a dancer, which means your career will also survive as hip hop changes with the times. I think the shortest amount of time needed to train to professional levels in hip hop might be four years if you train fairly intensively: 15 to 20 hours of CLASSES a week. At the very least, those classes should also include jazz and possibly modern in addition to hip hop. As for career opportunities, they are going to be even more limited if your training is limited (by not including ballet). As you would see from reading "Dance Spirit" and the site I gave you, most of the commercial work involving hip hop is concentrated around L.A. where dancers need agents to help line up auditions.

You're born with it. And quite frankly I don't think this web site is going to help you. And for information I was born with it!

you need to be discovered but i didnt read all those lines you wrote sooo if i dont make sence you know why

I started dancing at age 4 at a wonderful studio which is no longer in business. What I did was take several different classes in various dances and found the ones I liked and narrowed it down to those. Once I did that, I was told by my dance teacher that I was a natural dancer and that I should study Choreography. I did not go to any fancy dance school to become professional. Training isn't the same for everyone. There are people who are natural dancers where everything comes at ease or you are a trained dancer who studies for years at the topnotch schools. There are may career opportunities when you are younger. Dancers have a "peak" at which time they are considered too old but can teach or choreography only. You can dance on stage, become a prima ballerina, national and international performing tours,on broadway-off broadway, las vegas shows, teach and choreography. You can also become a background dancer in videos, commercials and movies. Studios also look for dancers. Hip Hop is so much fun, and can be easily taught. Its basic steps plus a whole lotta attitude. It can get tricky (actually look) if you want to add a level to it.

I start dancing when I was a kid in school programs. And I always attend some dance contest. I don't have a formal training. An old gentleman taught me a few foot works and body moves routine that I can do so many kind of dance out of it. My passion is dancing.

wat u have to do to get over your nervousness take off all of ur clothing and start dancing in the middle of town

There are many options for people to pursue dancing professionally. I went to college for dance and at my school they offered... Dance Education, Dance Performance and Choreography, Dance and Physical Therapy, Dance and Business and a Dance minor. Of course there are many dancers that do not go to college they just have many years (as in their entire lives, or the last 5+ years dedicated to dance) of intense training. Currently I am dancing with a dance ministry company as well as teaching at a local dance studio. Cruise lines, Broadway, off Broadway, commercials, schools -public, private and studios, local shows/theatres, choreography work, dance ministry, choreographer for area dance teams/musical productions/etc, and many many many many more. Let me know if you need more help. I hope that this helps!