Contemporary Dance Education

Rooted in a supportive and inspiring environment that nurtures each dancer’s evolving artistic voice, Berlin Dance Institute offers a comprehensive, challenging, and highly creative 3-year Contemporary Dance programme.

Our faculty consists of exceptional dance lecturers, many of whom are active performing artists, bringing valuable real-world experience into the studio. Students also benefit from working with a diverse range of international guest choreographers and teachers, helping them develop the skills and insight needed for a professional career in dance.

The programme is designed to shape versatile and adaptable dance artists. It combines strong technical training with choreographic development and performance experience, preparing students for the demands of today’s dance world.

Berlin Dance Institute is a vocational college recognised by the Berlin Senate. The Contemporary Dance programme is equivalent to a Bachelor’s degree and follows the German university grading system as well as the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS). A total of 180 ECTS credits is awarded upon completion of the programme.

Our training is grounded in an intensive, studio-based practice that cultivates technically accomplished and artistically distinctive dance artists. The core curriculum integrates foundational techniques such as Graham and Horton-based modern, alongside a diverse spectrum of contemporary practices—each shaped by the individual artistic perspectives of our faculty.This technical foundation is complemented by Classical Ballet, Floor Barre, body conditioning, Pilates, Yoga, and Partnering, supporting both strength and longevity in the body. The programme is further enriched through guest teachers who introduce specialised approaches, including Flying Low and Gaga, expanding each student’s movement vocabulary and artistic range. At the heart of our method lies a deep investigation of the body’s potential. Students develop heightened awareness of their individual physicality, refining coordination, sensory perception, and dynamic control. Precision, placement, and alignment are cultivated not only as technical principles, but as tools for articulate and expressive performance.

At the Berlin Dance Institute, we believe that creative exploration and contextual understanding are essential to training exceptional dance artists. Individual artistic development is at the heart of our programme, and our faculty nurture each student’s unique voice.Throughout the 3-year Contemporary Dance education programme, students engage in intensive movement research, including improvisation, contact improvisation, composition, and choreography. By cultivating creative skills and tools, BDI empowers students to enter the dance community with confidence, inspiration, and the ability to learn from and contribute to their peers. This process enhances artistic potential and fosters independent, imaginative, and versatile performers.

 Throughout the programme, students benefit from a wide range of performance opportunities, including semester projects, public showcases, and outreach initiatives. These experiences help them build stage presence, refine their performance abilities, and develop their unique choreographic voice. Repertoire classes allow students to explore, analyse, and embody diverse choreographic styles, while collaborative projects with peers encourage teamwork, creativity, and innovation. Regular contributions from guest choreographers expose students to a variety of methods and artistic approaches, ensuring familiarity with different styles and professional practices. Completed works are presented both within the institution and at venues across Berlin, offering valuable exposure and practical, real-world experience.

BDI maintains international links with renowned festivals, choreographers, and companies—including Mata Saka, the Merce Cunningham Trust, Maria Caruso, Bodiography, Paul White, Tanja Liedtke Stiftung, Dan Pelleg, Marko E. Weigert, Wee dance company, Lena Biallawons, and Steven De Gijnst—offering students exposure to global perspectives and opportunities.

In their final year, students embark on an independent project that brings together both theory and practice, culminating in a written dissertation and the performance of an original choreographic work

Understanding the connection between technical training, creative investigation, and performance is central to BDI’s philosophy. Students engage in theoretical courses covering anatomy and injury prevention, nutrition, dance history, dance film and video, audition preparation, and cultural and financial management. These modules support, contextualize, and deepen students’ practical dance knowledge, providing a well-rounded foundation for a professional career.

Throughout the 3-year Contemporary Dance programme, students are fully immersed in technical training, choreographic exploration, and performance practice, developing the individual and professional skills necessary to become confident, versatile, and resilient dance artists. The programme equips students with the knowledge, experience, and adaptability needed to thrive in the evolving world of dance, preparing them to enter the professional community with creativity, poise, and a strong artistic voice.

The 3-year Contemporary Dance education programme at BDI provides the next generation of dance artists with the endless possibilities that dance encompasses.

We welcome inventive, creative, and curious individuals from all nationalities and backgrounds who are inspired to explore and develop their artistic voice.