Call for Proposals

CORPS de Ballet International 27th Annual Conference

June 18-20, 2025

Salt Lake City, Utah

 

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Choreographing Community:
Innovations & Collaborations in Ballet Education

One of CORPS de Ballet International’s objectives is to serve and support the community of ballet educators who work in university and college settings. For 27 years, CORPS has done just that by fostering a sense of community through pedagogical exploration and academic discourse. In 2025, we expand the notion of community beyond the scope of traditional academe. We seek to rethink what it means to be a ballet community, examining how we cultivate community across and within a range of different spaces and places – real and virtual, professional and recreational, local and global.

As the 2025 conference dates overlap with the US federal holiday Juneteenth, a commemoration of the ending to the practice of slavery in the US, we seek to honor Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision of the “beloved community.” Building on King’s discourse, bell hooks wrote: “Beloved community is formed not by the eradication of difference but by its affirmation, by each of us claiming the identities and cultural legacies that shape who we are and how we live in the world.”

Ballet, when viewed broadly, incorporates numerous dialects, lineages, and legacies from an international population of dancers, choreographers, teachers, presenters, scholars, and beyond. In this year’s conference, we seek to mirror this wealth of knowledge and experience, connecting corporeal embodiment with rigorous academic investigation and exploration. We intend to explore the diverse ballet communities that exist locally, nationally, and globally and discover ways in which these communities diverge from and intersect with one another. Most importantly, this year’s conference aims to explore how our communities generate structures of care and support that further elevate and evolve ballet.

We invite research proposals relevant to this theme, broadly considered. Submissions might relate to the following:

• Exploring how ballet exists in various communities and settings, particularly in non-traditional ways
• Fostering community engagement and connections through ballet collaborations within and across a range of entities, including private studios, conservatories, higher education institutions, professional companies, community projects, etc.
• Approaches to ballet education that support community through decolonizing practices
• Acknowledging the varied communities and backgrounds of past and present practitioners, teachers, faculty, and students
• Advocacy and policy-making as ways to support community and advance ballet education at local, regional, national, and international levels
• Exploring technological advances (AI, social media, etc.) as a means to connect communities
• Developing community by cultivating inviting environments for non-traditional ballet students
• Creating care-based practices and pedagogies that foster community/communal engagement in the studio and beyond

 

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Book Author Showcase

New this year!

Authors who have published books relating to CORPS de Ballet International’s mission are welcome to submit their book for our “Book Author Showcase.” Books do not have to be specific to the conference theme. During the conference, selected book authors will have the opportunity to discuss their work during tabling events. Book Authors will be required to register for the full conference. Applications must be submitted through the Book Author Showcase Request Form.

Click here for the Book Author Showcase Request Form

 

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Types of Presentations

PAPER & POSTER PRESENTATIONS (“Adagio,” “Allegro,” & “Petit Allegro”)

> “Adagio” presentations are full-length paper presentations assigned a 30-minute timeframe, which typically includes 5-10 minutes for Q&A. Note that accepted paper submissions may be scheduled in tandem, with a shared timeframe for Q&A, depending on content and scheduling needs.

> “Allegro” presentations will be assigned a 10-minute timeframe, typically scheduled in groupings of up to four individual presenters, with a shared 10-minute Q&A following the completion of all four presentations.

> New this year: “Petit Allegro” presentations are poster presentations with groups of presenters in shared spaces, allowing participants to walk the room(s) and attend each presentation.

NOTE: During the submission process, submitters for paper and poster presentations will have the option to select if they are interested in consideration for all types of presentations (Adagio, Allegro, Petit Allegro) or only one.

Proposals must be submitted via the Conference Presentation Proposal Form, which requires:

• General presenter information
• Presenter’s biography (250-word maximum)
• Paper/Presentation abstract (250-word maximum)
• Sample bibliography

 

PANELS

Group panels will be assigned a 45-60-minute timeframe (depending on content and scheduling needs), which includes time for Q&A. Proposals must be submitted via the Conference Presentation Proposal Form, which requires:

• General presenter information for all panel members
• Biographies for all panel members (250-word maximum each)
• Overall panel description (250-word maximum)
• Sample bibliography

 

OTHER (Classes, Lecture/Demonstrations, Workshops, etc.)

Classes, Lecture/Demonstrations, Workshops, etc. will be allotted a 45-60 minute timeframe, (depending on content and scheduling needs), which includes time for Q&A. Proposals must be submitted via the Conference Presentation Proposal Form, which requires:

• General presenter information for each presenter
• Biographies for each presenter (250-word maximum each)
• Overall description of the session (250-word maximum)
• Sample bibliography

NOTE: All presenters, including book author showcase participants, are expected to register for the full conference.