The Miami Conservatory is a school of

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

and classical dance, located in

South Miami, Florida South Miami is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida in the Miami metropolitan area. The population was 11,657 at the 2010 census and as of 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, was 11,911. South Miami's central business district is directl ...

. Founded in 1949 by Thomas Armour, it is the oldest school of ballet in

South Florida South Florida is the southernmost region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is one of Florida's three most commonly referred to directional regions; the other two are Central Florida and North Florida. South Florida is the southernmost part of th ...

. The conservatory trains students of all ages, with more of an emphasis on young children. Many of the students of the conservatory go on to perform at the

Miami City Ballet Miami City Ballet is an American ballet company based in Miami Beach, Florida, led by artistic director Lourdes Lopez. MCB was founded in 1985 by Toby Lerner Ansin, a Miami philanthropist. Ansin and the founding board hired Edward Villella, f ...

, a professional ballet company with a national and international reputation, founded in 1985 by

Toby Lerner Ansin Toby Ansin (née Lerner; born January 3, 1941) is the former wife of the late Edmund Ansin, co-founder of Sunbeam Television In 1985, she founded Miami City Ballet, a dance company that altered the cultural landscape of the city of Miami and which ...

with founding artistic director,

Edward Villella Edward Villella (born October 1, 1936) is an American ballet dancer and choreographer. He is frequently cited as America's most celebrated male dancer of ballet at the time. He has won numerous awards, including the Daytime Emmy Award for Outst ...

. Famous alumni include actress

Fiona Hutchison Fiona Hutchison (born 17 May 1960) is an American actress. She is known for her roles on the American soap operas '' One Life to Live'' and '' Guiding Light''. Personal life Hutchison was born in Miami, Florida, to British parents. She grew up i ...

, who learned from Armour as a child.

External links

Official website
*https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/south-miami/article231502683.html Culture of Miami Education in Miami Ballet schools in the United States Dance in Florida 1949 establishments in Florida Educational institutions established in 1949 {{dance-stub