5 Top Ballet Dancers Share Their Work-From-Home Setups

The COVID-19 pandemic led to the cancellation of the spring performance season for ballet dancers, forcing them to adapt their home environments into makeshift studios to maintain their rigorous practice schedules. This transition presented unique challenges, particularly concerning suitable flooring and space for large movements. Despite these obstacles, renowned dancers found creative solutions to continue their training. Isabella Boylston, a principal dancer at American Ballet Theatre, transformed her Downtown Brooklyn kitchen into a dance space. The kitchen, being the largest room in her new construction condo, allowed her to use the countertop as a barre. She addressed the issue of slippery wood floors by obtaining a piece of marley flooring, a material that provides necessary traction for pointe shoes. Boylston also incorporated personal touches into her space, including a well-stocked bar cart and an art wall featuring works by friends and family. While the kitchen served for her daily classes, she sought outdoor spaces like Brooklyn Bridge Park for grande allegro, or big jumps, to avoid shin splints on her hard kitchen floor. Dores André, a principal dancer with the San Francisco Ballet, approached her Twin Peaks apartment with a minimalist and utilitarian design, viewing it as a "canvas" dominated by white, wood, copper, and pink tones. Her open-plan living area, where she primarily dances, has a hard concrete floor, which she mitigated by placing a Harlequin marley floor over a carpet or yoga mat. André improvises with a chair or the back of a large canvas as a barre. She also has a small backyard where she practices jumps when the weather permits, occasionally having to move her numerous plants, which she affectionately names, to create space. Gonzalo Garcia, a principal dancer at the New York City Ballet, and his partner Ezra Hurwitz, purchased a parlor apartment in a brownstone on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. A significant draw was the charming backyard garden, which they meticulously transformed into an outdoor lounge and Garcia's primary ballet studio. This outdoor space is equipped with a professional ballet barre and mirror, surrounded by various plants. Their decor, inspired by the French Riviera and Mediterranean styles, includes yellow chairs from Article and furniture from CB2. When the weather is unfavorable, Garcia utilizes a large inherited mirror in his bedroom for practice. He initially found his living room floors too slippery and uneven for ballet, emphasizing the need for a stable and visible practice environment. Joseph Gordon and Adrian Danchig-Waring, also principal dancers with the New York City Ballet, temporarily relocated to a midcentury ranch-style home on Shelter Island, owned by friends. The house's open layout, featuring three skylights and a vaulted ceiling, offered ample space for their training. They personalized the rental with their own "wabi-sabi, boho-chic" style, adding items like Noguchi lanterns and Pendleton blankets. They utilize the sunroom's windowsill or a dining chair as makeshift barres, recognizing the height challenges these improvisations present. The expansive wraparound deck serves as an alternative outdoor dancing space. Both dancers acknowledged the surreal nature of training at home and the challenge of maintaining motivation without a ballet master's direct guidance, relying on each other for encouragement and adapting to the limitations of their unconventional practice environments while embracing a more flexible approach to their artistry. #WorkFromHome #BalletDancers #HomeStudios #InteriorDesign #CreativeSpaces #HomeTours #DanceTraining #DIYHome #PandemicLife #WorkFromHome #BalletDancers #HomeStudios #InteriorDesign #CreativeSpaces #HomeTours #DanceTraining #DIYHome #PandemicLife