PNB School 2025/2026 School Year Highlights

From PNB School’s Halloweek to the launch of our first Strike Up the Band fundraiser, there’s lots to celebrate from PNB School’s 2025/2026 year! Keep scrolling to read the highlights of our 2025/2026 school year and see some fun photos.

New Voices kept Level VII students engaged in the choreographic process with multiple showings of original student work, viewing dances by Twyla Tharp and Mark Morris, and creating and performing ‘pop up’ pieces during the intermissions of the ALL LANG rep. Now in its ninth year, this course has inspired hundreds of young women studying at PNB School and will continue to mentor and educate the next generation of female dance makers.

Partnering with 18 Seattle Public Schools, DanceChance expands equitable access to classical ballet through school visitations, tuition-free training, mentorship, performance opportunities, and exposure to careers across the professional ballet field. During the 2025/26 school year, DanceChance led presentations and movement classes for roughly 1,300 third-graders, and provided eight ballet classes weekly! DanceChance families enjoyed backstage tours during The Nutcracker, and over the course of the Fall and Spring Sessions, students learned about the array of occupations within the professional ballet field. Visiting guest instructors taught classes in dance anatomy, music, and musical theatre. DanceChance II danced in March’s DISCOVER DANCE performance and are excited to return to the McCaw Hall stage for School Performance. DanceChance Mentorship Program held fun-filled events throughout the year for DanceChance alumni and their families aimed at building camaraderie, support and community.

Dance for All offers inclusive creative movement for individuals with diverse cognitive, developmental, and physical needs, cultivating joy, connection, and community. Dance for All’s year included twice-weekly classes during Fall and Spring Sessions and movement stations at PNB’s sensory-friendly performances.

STG Dance for PD® classes center dance, live music, and community in a safe, creative environment that supports artistry, grace, and Parkinson’s-Disease‑specific movement needs.

This year, nearly 2,000 elementary-school students from 23 local public schools participated in in-school residencies with PNB Community Education teaching artists and accompanists. Students explored dance concepts while collaborating to communicate ideas through movement. Central to these programs is the practice of arts integration- connecting dance concepts with another area of study. Students created dances about stories (English language arts), geology (science), the salmon life cycle (science), and more! PNB also welcomed over 7,000 students to McCaw Hall for student matinees and over 700 community members to the Phelps Center for behind-the-scenes field trips.

PNB was thrilled to once again offer REACH Student Dance Group this winter! A partnership between PNB and Whim W’him, REACH is an intensive creative workshop offered for dance students of all levels ages 10-14. Participants collaborated with PNB School Faculty Eva Stone and Olivia Evans to create a new choreographic work, which they performed on stage at McCaw Hall in March! 

PNB School students show off their creative costume skills.

NEXT STEP provides opportunity, infrastructure, and support to grow tomorrow’s choreographic talent while providing a performance opportunity to PNB School Professional Division students. This year, NEXT STEP performances took place at the Phelps Center and featured choreography by PNB Company dancers Luther DeMyer, Ashton Edwards, Zsilas Michael Hughes, Elle Macy & Dylan Wald, Leah Terada, and Lily Wills.

Performing on the McCaw Hall stage is a special and exciting opportunity for students and is just one of the many things that makes dancing at PNB School unique. This year over 300 PNB School students ages 7 to 19 performed in mainstage productions like George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker®, Cinderella, Firebird, Giselle, and the premiere of our new Family Matinee ballet, Momotaro. 

This year’s Family Matinee was an exciting opportunity for PNB School students as they were the original cast of a world premiere production, Momotaro (The Peach Boy). Choreographed by PNB Resident Choreographer Jessica Lang, Momotaro is based on the classic Japanese folk tale in which young Momotaro befriends animals, fights ogres, and seeks his fortune. To celebrate the new ballet, PNB’s I.D.E.A. Committee presented Momotaro Community Day, a family-friendly event highlighting Japanese and Japanese-American art and culture. 

Pacific Northwest Ballet School once again collaborates with Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra (SYSO) at this year’s School Performance! Founded in 1942, Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra is one of the largest youth orchestra training programs in the United States. SYSO’s programming reaches more than 1,300 students annually through seven academic-year orchestras, a Conservatory program offering academic and performance studies for musicians at all levels of experience, two summer training programs, and inclassroom programs via a decades-long partnership with Seattle Public Schools. Led by Music Director Juan Felipe Molano, SYSO fosters an inclusive community where young musicians achieve their highest potential in a fun and supportive environment. Learn more about SYSO’s programming at syso.org.

At this year’s School Performance, SYSO accompanies PNB School students performing Concerto Barocco, Vienna Waltzes, and excerpts from Swan Lake. SYSO’s participation in PNB School Performance is part of Community Stages, supported by Allen Family Philanthropies.

Maestro Juan Felipe Molano graduated with special honors as an orchestral and opera conductor from the Vienna Conservatory in Austria. He has led a vibrant teaching and performing career, conducting top professional and youth orchestras in Europe, Asia, South America, and the US. Current Music Director of the Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra and the Morelia Music Festival Sinfonietta, he has also served as Conductor for the Yucatan Symphony, Youth Orchestra Los Angeles, Colombian Youth Philharmonic, Colombian National Youth System of Orchestras, among others.

This April, PNB School and the PGA presented a brand new fundraiser Strike Up the Band! This special event featured performances by PNB School students, refreshments, and a silent auction. Thanks to the generosity of the entire PNB community, the event was a huge success and raised over $20,000 to support PNB School!