English
My account

You control your data

We use cookies to tailor the experience of creating resumes and cover letters. For these reasons, we may share your usage data with third parties. You can find more information about how we use cookies on our Cookies Policy. If you would like to set your cookies preferences, click the Settings button below. To accept all cookies, click Accept.

Settings Accept

Cookie settings

Click on the types of cookies below to learn more about them and customize your experience on our Site. You may freely give, refuse or withdraw your consent. Keep in mind that disabling cookies may affect your experience on the Site. For more information, please visit our Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy.

Choose type of cookies to accept

Analytics

These cookies allow us to analyze our performance to offer you a better experience of creating resumes and cover letters. Analytics related cookies used on our Site are not used by Us for the purpose of identifying who you are or to send you targeted advertising. For example, we may use cookies/tracking technologies for analytics related purposes to determine the number of visitors to our Site, identify how visitors move around the Site and, in particular, which pages they visit. This allows us to improve our Site and our services.

Performance and Personalisation

These cookies give you access to a customized experience of our products. Personalization cookies are also used to deliver content, including ads, relevant to your interests on our Site and third-party sites based on how you interact with our advertisements or content as well as track the content you access (including video viewing). We may also collect password information from you when you log in, as well as computer and/or connection information. During some visits, we may use software tools to measure and collect session information, including page response times, download errors, time spent on certain pages and page interaction information.

Advertising

These cookies are placed by third-party companies to deliver targeted content based on relevant topics that are of interest to you. And allow you to better interact with social media platforms such as Facebook.

Necessary

These cookies are essential for the Site’s performance and for you to be able to use its features. For example, essential cookies include: cookies dropped to provide the service, maintain your account, provide builder access, payment pages, create IDs for your documents and store your consents.

To see a detailed list of cookies, click here.

Save preferences

Dance Resume Template & Examples for 2023

You can battement tendu and grand jeté with the best of them. But you’ll look like an amague unless you prove your dance skills. Do it with this expert dance resume sample.

Tom Gerencer, CPRW
Career Writer at ResumeLab
Dance Resume Template & Examples for 2023

No wonder it’s not easy.

 

Artistic directors and choreographers wade through hundreds of dance resumes. They reject most. If you look like an empty leotard, they’ll skip you.

 

But take heart. With a little training, you can brisé toward your next big role.

 

This guide will show you:

 

  • A dance resume template better than most.
  • How to write a dancer resume that leaves them breathless.
  • How to make the perfect dancer job description for resumes.
  • Why you can’t just list your credits on a dance resume.

 

Create my resume now

 

CREATE YOUR RESUME NOWdance resume example

 Create a job-winning resume with little effort. Hack your way through ATS software with our 18 beautiful templates—give our builder a try!

Looking for other gigs, too? See our guide:

 

 

Haven't found what you're looking for? Check all our Resume Examples for Over 200 Jobs.

 

Dance Resume Template You Can Copy and Use

 

Zoe Gigot

Dancer

 

Personal Info

 

Phone: 909-416-7643

E-mail: zoezgigot@gmail.com

linkedin.com/in/zoezgigot

instagram.com/zoezgigot

 

Summary

 

Professional dancer with 7+ years of experience. Seeking to excel at Los Angeles Ballet. At American Contemporary Ballet, performed featured roles of Clara and Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker. Also played Odette in Anthony Johnson’s Swan Lake at Ballet Magique. Corps de Ballet in Battle of the Year (film).

 

Professional Experience

 

American Contemporary Ballet

Corps de Ballet and Featured Roles

2018–2019

Lincoln Jones’:

  • The Nutcracker - Clara
  • Swan Lake - Odette

 

Ballet Magique

Corps de Ballet and Featured Roles

2014–2018

Anthony Johnson’s:

  • The Nutcracker - Sugar Plum Fairy, Snow Flake
  • Don Quixote - Aldonza Lorenzo
  • Cinderella - Anastasia
  • Giselle - Bathilde
  • Sylvia - Aminta

 

Battle of the Year (Film)

Corps de Ballet — Director, Benson Lee

2013

  • Street scenes.

 

Anaheim Ballet

Corps de Ballet

2012–2014

  • Recognized by artistic director for form.

 

Education

 

BA Dance, USC

2008–2012

  • Excelled in repertory & performance classes.
  • Conducted senior project in dance technique.

 

Summer Courses

 

  • Los Angeles Ballet, 2007
  • Marat Daukayev School of Ballet, 2006

 

Awards

 

  • Cover of Dance Magazine, May 2018.
  • Featured in article in Dance Studio Life.

 

Additional Activities

 

  • Study classical music.
  • Teach weekly yoga classes.

 

Hard Skills: Ballet, hip hop, jazz dance, French

 

Soft Skills: Interpersonal skills, teamwork, active listening, communication

 

Here’s how to write a dance resume that clicks:

 

1. Select the Best Dance Resume Format

 

You’ve got poise. Grace. Skill. Make them see that, with a professionally-formatted resume.

 

It starts with the reverse-chronological resume layout. That puts your most recent credits near the top.

 

Here’s how:

 

Dance Resume Format

 

  • Use 1-inch margins in a single-page resume.
  • Add white space between paragraphs.
  • Employ a common resume font like 10–12pt Calibri or Garamond.
  • Create resume sections like Heading, Summary, Professional Experience, Education, and Skills.
  • Save your work as a PDF. A PDF resume moves gracefully from one computer to the next.
  • Don’t add a photo. Save that for your portfolio website—or attach it to the back.

Expert Hint: There are only about 150 ballet companies in the US, and precious few other venues that hire dancers. Your dancer resume has to glow like Misty Copeland.

2. Make a Dance Resume Objective or Summary

 

Imagine this. You’re slogging through a pile of 500+ dance resumes. They all look “pretty good.” But you only need five dancers.

 

Now turn the tables. Why should anyone choose you?

 

Chin up. Make them notice you with a well-crafted resume summary or resume objective. That’s just a quick paragraph that matters to the artistic director.

 

Add:

 

  1. An adjective or two (professional, capable)
  2. “dancer”
  3. Years of experience (1+, 8+)
  4. Your goal (excel at Los Angeles Ballet)
  5. Best dance moments (played Odette in Swan Lake at Ballet Magique...)

 

Tip: make your best dance moments match the job, and write it last for a smooth transition.

 

These professional dance resume examples show how:

 

Dance Resume Summary—Example

Good Example
Professional dancer with 7+ years of experience. Seeking to excel at Los Angeles Ballet. At American Contemporary Ballet, performed featured roles of Clara and Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker. Also played Odette in Anthony Johnson’s Swan Lake at Ballet Magique. Corps de Ballet in Battle of the Year (film).
Bad Example
Experienced dancer, skilled in ballet, jazz dance, and hip hop. A team player who can hold her own in nationally-recognized ballets. Proficient at performing multiple featured roles in The Nutcracker and Swan Lake.

The difference is clear.

 

Both samples reference The Nutcracker and Swan Lake.

 

But one adds American Contemporary Ballet, Ballet Magique, Clara, and Odette.

 

But wait. Are you writing a professional dancer resume with no experience?

 

You still need proof. See these dance resume examples for balance:

 

Dance Resume With No Experience [Objective]

Good Example
Professional dancer with skills in ballet and hip hop. Seeking to excel at Ballet Magique. Excelled in repertory and performance classes at USC. Conducted senior project in dance technique that was written up in Dance Spirit Magazine. Attended Los Angeles Ballet Summer Course.
Bad Example
Ballet dancer with no experience, skilled in hip hop and jazz dance. A team player with great interpersonal skills and a very hard worker. Have not yet held a professional dancing job, but I know I can excel.

Don’t miss that.

 

The second of those dancer resumes with no experience begs for a chance.

 

But the first shows you’ve earned it.

Expert Hint: Most dancers work in theaters or dance schools. In a dance instructor resume, it helps to show you’ve worked in a similar position in the past.

The ResumeLab builder is more than looks. Get specific content to boost your chances of getting the job. Add job descriptions, bullet points, and skills. Easy. Improve your resume in our resume builder now.

 

CREATE YOUR RESUME NOW

 

CREATE YOUR RESUME NOWcreate your resume now

Nail it all with a splash of color, choose a clean font, and highlight your skills in just a few clicks. You're the perfect candidate, and we'll prove it. Use our resume builder now.

 

3. Write a Graceful Dance Job Description and Skills Section

 

Don’t make the choreographer read through everything you’ve ever done. That’s exhausting.

 

Just pick the few credits that’ll wow him. For instance, does the company do Nutcracker every year? What about Swan Lake?

 

If you’ve done those, say it. But also say what company you worked for, and the choreographer. Add your role (if any). And put your last job first.

 

Emulate the first of these dance resume samples:

 

Dance Job Description for Resume [Sample]

Good Example

Professional Experience

 

American Contemporary Ballet

Corps de Ballet and Featured Roles

2018–2019

Lincoln Jones’:

  • The Nutcracker - Clara
  • Swan Lake - Odette

 

Ballet Magique

Corps de Ballet and Featured Roles

2014–2018

Anthony Johnson’s:

  • The Nutcracker - Sugar Plum Fairy, Snow Flake
  • Don Quixote - Aldonza Lorenzo
  • Cinderalla - Anastasia
  • Giselle - Bathilde
  • Sylvia - Aminta

 

Battle of the Year (Film)

Corps de Ballet — Director, Benson Lee

2013

  • Street scenes.
Bad Example

Professional Experience

 

Battle of the Year (Film)

Corps de Ballet — Director, Benson Lee

2013

  • Street scenes.

 

Ballet Magique

Corps de Ballet and Featured Roles

2014–2018 

Anthony Johnson’s:

  • The Nutcracker - Sugar Plum Fairy, Snow Flake
  • Don Quixote - Aldonza Lorenzo
  • Cinderalla - Anastasia
  • Giselle - Bathilde
  • Sylvia - Aminta

 

American Contemporary Ballet

Corps de Ballet and Featured Roles

2018–2019

Lincoln Jones’:

  • The Nutcracker - Clara
  • Swan Lake - Odette

The difference?

 

The last of those dance resume examples uses the wrong order. Sure, it “shows the progression of your career.” But what if the director has 600 dancer resumes to read? (She does!)

 

She’ll never get to your “progression” if you bury roles like Clara and Odette down deep.

 

Next—an entry-level resume:

 

Entry-Level Dance Resume Job Description [Sample]

Good Example

Anaheim Ballet

Corps de Ballet

2012–2014

  • Recognized by artistic director for form.

Don’t have even that much dance experience?

 

Don’t pull a Madame Butterfly just yet.

 

Make your education and training section longer. Then put it higher on your resume. That’s next.

 

Need a dance skills list for resumes?

 

  1. Find the skills to put on a resume (or resume keywords) in the call for auditions.
  2. List those on your resume or try this list:

 

Dance Skills List

 

Hard Skills

Soft Skills

Ballet

Interpersonal Skills

Jazz Dance

Teamwork

Hip Hop

Communication

Contemporary Dance

Creativity

Ballroom

Physical Stamina

Tap

Work Ethic

Foreign Languages

Positive Attitude

Choreography

Empathy

Music Theory

Flexibility

Floor Work

Discipline

Expert Hint: The average dancer makes less than $20 an hour. Some make $100,000 a year or more. To get higher in the range, customize your resume.

4. Wow Them With Your Education

 

Especially in a dancer resume with no experience, education matters. But an education resume section can’t blend in like Corps de Ballet.

 

So research the artistic director a little. What things does she care about? Put those in your education section.

 

This dance resume sample shows the routine:

 

Dance Resume Example—Education

Good Example

Education

 

BA Dance, USC

2008–2012

  • Excelled in repertory & performance classes.
  • Conducted senior project in dance technique.

 

Summer Courses

 

  • Los Angeles Ballet, 2007
  • Marat Daukayev School of Ballet, 2006

In a dance resume for college, your education can cover the whole page.

Expert Hint: Dance jobs are shrinking, not growing. But you can still get a high-paying job right out of school. List educational achievements that match the job you’re vying for.

5. Include Additional Sections in Your Dance Resume

 

They’ll want to know you’re passionate, not just temporarily interested. Show them dancing is your real love.

 

Include additional information in your dancer resume that may strengthen your candidate profile. Check these examples:

 

  • Awards
  • Associations (UDA, ACDA)
  • Portfolio website
  • Conferences
  • Groups
  • Volunteer positions
  • Freelancing
  • Publications
  • Media appearances
  • Additional activities
  • Hobbies
  • Fitness

 

But don’t overdo it.

 

Let your credits and education do most of the talking.

 

The next of our dance resume examples is en l’aire:

 

Dance Resume—Extra Sections

Good Example

Awards

 

  • Cover of Dance Magazine, May 2018.
  • Featured in article in Dance Studio Life.

 

Additional Activities

 

  • Study classical music.
  • Teach weekly yoga classes.
Bad Example

Additional Activities

 

  • Yoga
  • Photography

Expert Hint: Learn how to write a cover letter. Your resume for dance jobs stands a better chance if you write one. In it, show your love of dance and why you fit the company so perfectly.

Double your impact with a matching resume and cover letter combo. Use our cover letter generator and make your application documents pop out.

 

CREATE YOUR COVER LETTER NOW

 

CREATE YOUR COVER LETTER NOWcreate your cover letter now

Want to try a different look? There's 21 more. A single click will give your document a total makeover. Pick a cover letter template here.

 

Key Points

 

Here’s how to write a dance resume that works:

 

  • Use the dance resume template up top. It lets you fit your skills to the artistic director’s needs.
  • Show your credits in reverse-chronological order.
  • In a dance resume for college, stretch your education to fill most of the page.
  • Add “other” sections that express your passion for motion.

 

Got questions on how to write great resumes for dance jobs? Not sure how to show dance on a resume? Leave a comment. We’ll be happy to reply!

Rate my article: dance
Thank you for voting
Average: 5 (4 votes)
Tom Gerencer, CPRW
Tom Gerencer is a career advice writer and a resume expert at ResumeLab. Tom has been featured on BBC News, NBC, The Economist, Business Insider, Fast Company, and dozens of other outlets. His insights, commentary, and articles reach over a million readers every month. With inside knowledge of key industry players and in-depth research, Tom helps job seekers with advice across all professions and career stages. Tom holds a degree in English from Colby College.

Was it interesting? Here are similar articles

56 Resume Writing Tips and Tricks for 2023

56 Resume Writing Tips and Tricks for 2023

You can stop searching—this is the ultimate collection of best resume tips that can help you succeed in 2023. These resume writing tips will help to impress hiring managers.

Roma Kończak
Roma Kończak
Career Expert