Alberta Ballet School: Faculty Profile

Diane van Schoor

Alberta Ballet School is pleased to feature our talented faculty monthly. The foundation of our school is built on the incredible level of expertise, experience, and professionalism that are cornerstones of each of our faculty members – and are engrained in our students.

This month we are excited to feature Diane van Schoor.

Diane’s Role at Alberta Ballet School

Diane van Schoor is currently the Alberta Ballet School’s Artistic Advisor. Diane was instrumental in the creation and implementation of the Professional Division Curriculum in 2017. After seeing the success of this new curriculum, she worked alongside Alberta Ballet School faculty to create a curriculum for our Open Division students, which was implemented in the Fall of 2019. Diane visits the Alberta Ballet School a few times a season to assess our students and teachers to ensure the highest quality of training possible.

Diane’s Experience and Ballet Journey

Diane was born in South Africa. During her early dance career, she was trained by Jennifer Louw. She attended the University of Cape Town Ballet School and danced professionally for CAPAB Ballet. She then opted to create the School of Classical Ballet and went on to hold a lectureship in Movement Studies in the Dramatic Arts Faculty at the University of Stellenbosch.

Diane’s resume goes on – her experience in the dance community is rich. She has taught at many of the world’s leading schools and companies including The Royal Ballet and both Upper and Lower Schools, The Paris Opera Ballet School, The Vaganova Academy, The National Ballet School of Canada, Royal Winnipeg and Alberta Ballet and their Schools in Canada, New English Ballet Theatre, the Bartholin Seminars in Copenhagen and in the USA, Sweden, China and Japan.

Her accolades and recognition in the ballet community are plentiful. As the past Artistic Director of The Cecchetti Society of Southern Africa, Diane holds The Enrico Cecchetti Mabel Ryan Medal, Enrico Cecchetti Diploma and Fellowships of the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing London [ISTD] and Royal Society for the Arts. She is the recipient of the Cecchetti Dedication Award 2000, for services to Ballet in South Africa and in 2011 was awarded The Enrico Cecchetti Gold Medal by the ISTD – a lifetime achievement award in recognition of her promotion of classical ballet around the world.  She is a Trustee of the Cecchetti Society Trust in the UK and an ABT® Certified Teacher in Pre-Primary through Level 6, 7 and Partnering of the ABT® National Training Curriculum.

More recently Diane still finds herself teaching across the world. She joined the artistic staff of The Royal Ballet School in 2000 and she held the position of Ballet Principal of The Royal Ballet School, White Lodge from 2004-2014. During that time, she taught Graduates at White Lodge, 2nd Year Diploma at the Upper School, choreographed for the Royal Opera House Main Stage for the Royal Ballet School’s annual performances and for the National Youth Ballet of Great Britain.

Diane frequently presents papers at international conferences and has acted as a subject consultant for various dance publications. She is an Honorary Committee Member of the Wayne State University for Fine and Performing Arts USA, Honorary Member of The Cecchetti Council of America, a founding member of Cecchetti International and an Advisory Panel Member for the Margaret Saul Scholarship in Canada.

During the past few years, Diane taught the Enrico Cecchetti Diploma to a selection of dancers from The Royal Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet for a heritage legacy film for the Cecchetti Trust UK. She acted as Artistic Director for the film project.

Today, Diane describes herself as a freelance master teacher, coach and examiner, teaching and consulting internationally. Thank you, Diane, for your continued expertise and support.

Alberta Ballet School Instructors

As the official training school for Alberta Ballet Company, our students are afforded the opportunity to train with the ballet’s artistic staff and dance in company productions. This, paired with the quality instruction provided by our acclaimed school faculty, ensures our students have every opportunity to develop their skills in a warm and positive learning environment. Learn more about the Alberta Ballet School team.