The Diamond Conservatory of Ballet is designed for serious, professionally-minded ballet students who are currently at an intermediate or advanced level and want to achieve their highest level of ability in ballet. The program is selective, and accepted students are chosen based on their mental readiness and professional potential. Admitted dancers will be placed into either the intermediate or advanced program based on their current abilities.

This program meets the needs of today's elite level dancers and allows them to train more rigorously. Students can expect to receive nurturing and attentive training, and small class size allows for a great amount of individual attention and growth.

Dancers admitted into the conservatory program receive priority casting in The Nutcracker, their own spring performance with included coaching, the opportunity to learn classical repertoire, and mentoring for their future goals.

Students in the Conservatory Program aim to be accepted into top ballet summer intensive programs across the country and may aspire to dance professionally or to be accepted into top dance universities.

As elite level athletic artists, DCB students are expected to train year-round to maintain their strength. The Diamond Conservatory of Ballet will offer summer training programs and will also facilitate their students attending nationally respected out of state ballet academies during the summer months if so desired.

All students in the Conservatory program will be mentored on their path to achieving their artistic goals based on their individual needs and aspirations.

To enroll in the Diamond Conservatory of Ballet:

New students:

Auditions for the Diamond Conservatory of Ballet for the 2024-2025 season will take place on May 18th at 11:00AM. The audition fee is $25. If you miss the audition please reach out to our director for options. If you miss May 18th, our makeup audition is June 15th, 2024 at 10:00am.

The audition is geared toward students ages approximately 9 and up who are already training in ballet and are at or near a pre-pointe level, as well as for dancers already on pointe. Dancers with only a beginning level of ballet training are encouraged to continue training for another year before auditioning.

Students training on pointe should bring their pointe shoes for potential placement into one of the ballet conservatory’s pointe levels.

Dancers should wear a black leotard, pink tights, and pink ballet shoes and should bring their audition fee along with the registration form.

Please note that admittance to the program is selective.

Evening Program 2024-2025

Michelle Sabol

Conservatory Director/teacher

An Ohio native, Michelle Sabol started dancing at the age of 8. She grew up dancing at local studios in Ohio where she studied ballet, tap, jazz, and pointe with many guest artists such as Ginger Thatcher, Allen Fields, Suzanne Lounsbury, and Kay Eichman; all former dancers with the Cleveland ballet. While earning her BBA in business management from Cleveland State University, Michelle studied ballet and modern dance with Lyn Tabor and Lynn Deering of Cleveland State’s dance faculty. During that time, Michelle also furthered her ballet training, dancing at the School of the Cleveland Ballet. In the summers of 2005-2007, Michelle completed her certification training for Dance Educators of America, teaching all levels of ballet, tap, jazz, pointe and modern dance, under the direction of Charles Kelley and Raymond Lukens.

Michelle started her teaching career for her home studio and then taught at many local studios. In her hometown, Michelle taught for 29 years at Miss Kristin’s Dance Studio before moving to Phoenix! Outside of the dance studio, she was also the owner and director of Amanda’s Tumbling Center for 6 years and the head cheerleading coach at Avon Lake High School for 20 years.

In her spare time, Michelle has choreographed for Lorain and Avon Lake, Ohio community theaters. She also choreographed for the Elyria High School drama club for 10 years. Theater credits include: Annie Get Your Gun-LCMT, West Side Story(dancer)-LCMT, Brigadoon-MGP, Sound of Music-MGP, Oliver-MGP. Elyria High Choreography: The King and I, The Music Man, Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat, and Beauty and the Beast, Guys and Dolls, Once Upon a Mattress, Hairspray, Oliver, Little Shop of Horrors, and Mama Mia.

Katharine Frey - Conservatory program teacher

Katharine Frey’s early training began at Indiana University School of Music. She was awarded annual scholarships to the School of American Ballet (SAB) and spent a year training with the Royal Danish Ballet.

She began her professional career at the age of seventeen, joining the Atlanta Ballet, followed by Madison Ballet, Milwaukee Ballet, Ballet Metropolitan, and Arizona Dance Theatre. She was a founding member of Ballet Arizona. She performed corps de ballet, soloist, and principal roles in classical and contemporary ballets. At age twenty-seven, she began assisting Ballet Arizona director/choreographer Jean Paul Comelin in staging his works. At age thirty-five, she took on full responsibilities of ballet mistress, repetiteur, and rehearsal director of Ballet Arizona where she worked for sixteen years.

Katharine has instructed ballet and pointe technique for over forty-six years. She has assisted many notables (Violette Verdy, Frederic Franklin, Gary Masters, Patricia Neary) in staging numerous ballets (Swan Lake, Giselle, Cinderella, Coppelia) and has been exposed to and influenced by various styles of dance (Petipa, Balanchine, Limon, Taylor).

Lindsay Van Deest - CONSERVATORY PROGRAM TEACHER

Lindsay Van Deest is from San Antonio, Texas, but began her dance training in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, at age four. When her family moved back to Texas, she kept dancing and transitioned from being a recreational dancer to a competitive dancer. She began competing with Lonestar Collective Dance in Boerne, Texas, in 2013 under directors Michelle Hackbeil and Mary Rae Moy. At LCD, Lindsay trained in ballet, pointe, progressing ballet technique (PBT), jazz, contemporary, modern, lyrical, tap, clogging, musical theatre/Broadway jazz, and improvisation. She competed on LCD’s team for a total of seven years and was on their elite company from 2017 to 2020. Lindsay has won several scholarships and other standout awards at numerous conventions and competitions. In addition to her training at LCD, she has participated in numerous intensives, workshops, and master classes with various artists. She also studied at Quenedit Ballet School in San Antonio the summers of 2017 and 2018, in addition to the spring of 2019 under directors Catalina Garza and Ernesto Quenedit, where she further developed her ballet and modern technique. Lindsay was in LCD’s Ambassador program from 2018 to 2020 where she was a class assistant and gained instructional experience in creative movement and both beginner and intermediate ballet. She taught beginner jazz at LCD her senior year of high school. Lindsay came to Phoenix in the fall of 2020 for Grand Canyon University, where she graduated the winter of 2023 with her Bachelor of Science degree in nutritional science and a minor in dance performance. Her dance experience at GCU includes ballet, jazz, and modern under the expertise of GCU’s dance faculty, including Crystal Fulmer, Tiffany Fox, Lisa Drew, and Bekki Price. Lindsay is now beginning graduate school with GCU to get her Master of Science degree in nutrition and dietetics.

Frequently Asked Questions:

1. Why take the ballet conservatory classes? 

The Diamond Conservatory of Ballet is designed for serious, professionally-minded ballet students who are currently at an intermediate or advanced level and want to achieve their highest level of ability in ballet.

 2. Is there an absence policy for conservatory?

No, there is no absence policy, however dancers that attend class regularly will see an increase in technical skill. Consistency is key. We encourage dancers to make up classes they miss, to continue consistency in their training.

3. If my dancer is on competition team, can conservatory ballet classes take the place of team ballet classes?

The answer is yes, however if a dancer takes conservatory class in place of team ballet requirements then the team absence rule for team would apply.

4. Will my dancer participate in the Spring Variations show?

Yes, all dancers are invited to participate in the ballet showcase in some capacity.

Performance Opportunities for Conservatory Dancers

The Nutcracker “The Land of Snow and Sweets” 2024

Auditions will take place on August 17th, 2024 at the Diamond Dance Works studios. There is no audition fee for dancers enrolled in the Diamond Conservatory of Ballet. All other dancers have an audition fee of $25.

Dancers must be currently training in ballet in order to audition for this ballet production.

1:30-2:30pm Ages 5-8

2:30-3:30 Ages 9-12

3:30-4:30 Ages 13 and up

Female dancers should wear a black leotard, pink tights, and pink ballet shoes or pointe shoes. Gentlemen should wear black tights or athletic pants, a fitted black or white shirt, and black ballet shoes.

Casting will be announced at a later date following the audition. The Nutcracker tentative date is scheduled for November 23rd, 2024 Details TBA.

Diamond Conservatory of Ballet “Spring Variations Showing” 2025

Students will perform select variations from the classical ballet repertoire, rehearsed beginning in January of 2023.

The Spring Variations Showing is tentatively scheduled for April 26th, 2025 at 2pm at Cactus Shadows Fine Arts Center. Dancers must check-in backstage at 11:45 am. Dancers will take warm-up class followed by stage spacing.

Dress rehearsal is tentatively scheduled for April 25th, 2025 and will be held at the studio. Dancers must check-in at 4pm. Makeup is not required for dress rehearsal. Dancers will take warm-up class and then change into their costumes. Dress rehearsal is scheduled to end tentatively at 6:45pm. Please be on the lookout for information about the finalized end time.

Tickets for the performance can be purchased here beginning April 1st at 10:00AM. There is no limit to the number of people you can invite to attend.

All Conservatory students will participate in the spring showcase, however some groups will perform ballet solos and some a group dance. Soloists will work with Ms. Michelle and other conservatory faculty to select an appropriate variation version to learn and must learn as much of the variation as they can on their own prior to their first rehearsal. Dancers will receive coaching sessions and have open studio time available to work independently. They may also schedule as many additional private lessons as they would like.

SUMMER BALLET TRAINING 2024

Ballet is a discipline which requires training year-round in order to remain in optimal condition. We are pleased to offer the following summer training schedules:

June Drop-in Maintenance Classes

Drop-in technique classes are offered Tuesdays and Thursdays throughout June from 2:30-4:00pm for $15 per class. Class may be taken on pointe for those qualified. Dancers should follow standard ballet dress code, but may wear any color leotard.

Drop-in classes are open to any student in the Diamond Conservatory of Ballet as well as students currently on the Junior, Teen, or Diamond competition teams, and students who have completed at least one year of Junior or Senior ballet level 2 or higher. These classes are geared toward our more advanced ballet students and thus are not suitable for Petite age groups or those with minimal or beginner level ballet training.

Payment is required at time of registration and is non-refundable. Six dancers must be pre-registered for class or class will be cancelled and dancers notified the morning of by email. Please pre-register in your parent portal, to let us know you will be attending.

July Ballet Intensive

The July Ballet Intensive is geared toward those students seriously studying ballet. Older/more advanced students will find themselves in classes all day with master teachers studying technique, pointe/pre-pointe, variations, conditioning, etc. Younger/lower level students will have a half-day schedule.

Two weeks of classes are offered and recommended, or you may opt for a single week session. Dancers approved to begin pointe work MUST attend at least the first week of the intensive.

Enrollment is open to any conservatory student, the competition team as required, and students in any ballet level 3 class. Dancers in Junior or Senior levels 2 may contact the studio for approval to enroll.

Week 1: July 1st -5th 9:00am-2:30pm $250 (Half day $150 9:00am-11:30am) (No class on July 4th)

Week 2: July 8th-11th 9:00am-2:30pm $250 (Half day $150 9:00am-11:30am)

Cost: To enroll in the conservatory program there is a $35 registration fee. Program tuition listed above based on level.

*Conservatory classes cannot be combined with regular season tuition.

For more information regarding the conservatory program or to request an audition please submit form below.