the rotterdam dance academy
Rotterdam Dance Academy (RDA), which was founded in 1931 by Corrie Hartong and Gertrud Leistikow, is one of Europe’s leading professional institutes for contemporary dance.
Go to the bottom of this page for the video Inside the Academy.
Each year, RDA selects a few dozen talented dancers from hundreds of applicants from all over the world. These students will train in Rotterdam to become professional dancers, choreographers or teachers. By emphasising excellence, RDA aspires to educate highly qualified dance artists who can quickly find work in the international labour market.
In RDA’s studios, in addition to our team of top teachers, there are always dance professionals from the Netherlands and abroad at work as choreographers or guest teachers. RDA students gain ample stage experience by appearing in performances, theatrical tours and festivals. RDA maintains close ties with well-known dance companies where students can gain practical work experience by doing internships. Students are also able to take part in student exchange programmes with other excellent dance schools in Europe and the USA.
RDA has about 200 students in the professional programmes (representing 30 nationalities) and about 200 students in the preparatory programmes.
Together with Rotterdam Conservatoire (RC) and the bachelor’s programme Rotterdam Circus Arts (RCA), RDA is part of Codarts, University for the Arts, a mid-sized university (about 1,100 students) in Rotterdam that offers a very high level of professional arts education. Codarts has also established itself as a research and knowledge institute for music, dance and circus through its Research & Development department and a variety of professorships.
Rotterdam
RDA is located in Rotterdam, a young city with a young population. Every year, there are approximately 50,000 students enrolled at hbo/wo level. Rotterdam is also a world city: for hundreds of years, this port city has been a trading center with an international orientation. The population of Rotterdam is comprised of 160 nationalities and can accurately be called a melting pot. Rotterdam is also a city with a rich cultural life; there are dozens of theatres, cinemas, concert stages, orchestras, museums and galleries. The city also has much to offer in the applied arts and hosts a number of important festivals, such as the International Film Festival Rotterdam, the Gergiev Festival, and the North Sea Jazz Festival. And thanks to, among others, Scapino Ballet Rotterdam, Conny Janssen Danst, Dance Works Rotterdam, Meekers Uitgesproken Dans, Dansateliers and RDA, Rotterdam is also a dance city.
Our programmes
At the bachelor’s level, RDA offers two degree programmes: the Bachelor of Dance programme and the Bachelor of Dance in Education programme.
For talented students, RDA offers the option of studying for one year on a contract basis in the Bachelor of Dance Programme (the fourth year of the programme).
RDA also offers a masters’ programme: the Master in Dance Therapy.
To prepare boys and girls from the age of 9 years to study dance at a professional level, RDA has a number of preparatory courses.
Download the study guide of Rotterdam Dance Academy (pdf file).
Our bachelors’ programmes
- The Bachelor of Dance programme, specialisation Dancer, will prepare you to become a contemporary dancer with a high level of training in both ballet and modern dance techniques. The programme lasts four years. You will take daily ballet and modern dance classes (different techniques and styles), given by our own teachers and a variety of guest teachers. In the fourth year you can do an internship in a professional dance company.
- The demend for well-trained dance teachers who can relate tot the continually changing metropolitan multicultural society is very high. The Bachelor of Dance in Education programme prepares you for this perfectly in four years. As a dance teacher you can set to work in primary and secondary education (including 'broad schools'), in community centres, in the educational department of a dance company, in ballet schools, with a youth theatre group - to give a few examples.
Contract education / Certificate programme
For talented students it is possible to take a one-year study course on a contract basis in the fourth year of the Bachelor of Dance programme. As opposed to regular students, you do not have to comply with all set demands of a bachelor diploma. You are registered as a contract student and receive a certificate of participation after completing the year. Admission is only possible after an audition. The level of your dance technical skills must be equal to that of third year students of the Bachelor of Dance programme. As a contract student you are not eligible for financial support in the form of a government grant. For contract education separate registration fees apply.
Our masters’ programme
The Master in Dance Therapy is intended to deepen the knowledge and professionalism of practicing therapists and to expand career opportunities for dancers, dance teachers, psychologists, movement researchers, physiotherapists and social workers. The Master in Dance Therapy offers a two-year programme (part-time) that begins once every two years. This is the first Master in Dance Therapy in the Netherlands.
Our preparatory courses
We have five different preparatory programmes: the Juniorenklas (for pupils 9 and 10 years of age), the A-klas (for pupils 11 years of age), the Boys class (for boys between the ages of 10 and 15), the Schakelklas (for pupils 15 years of age and older), and the Havo voor Muziek en Dans (a secondary school, located in our building, that prepares students to study music and dance at a professional level).
Furthermore, RDA has joined hands with the Dance Department at the Royal conservatory of the Hague to create enthusiasm for dance in boys and girls from 9 years old, and to prepare them for a professional career in the international dance world in the best possible way. For more information, please visit ikworddanser.nl (Dutch only).
The professional world
The education offered at RDA is closely related to the professional dance world. The RDA maintains very close contacts with international dance companies and professional dance programmes. As a student, you will work with guest teachers, the artistic directors of dance groups, and choreographers from the Netherlands and abroad. You will also learn repertoire pieces from professional dance companies and choreographers.
In recent years, works by the following choreographers and artists have been performed: Jiří Kylián, William Forsythe, Regina van Berkel, André Gingras, Club Guy & Roni, Ken Ossala, Megumi Nakamura, Neel Verdoorn, Anouk van Dijk, Sascha Engel, Neil Ieremia, Dietmar Janeck, Xing Liang, Dylan Newcomb, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Michele Pogliani, Cathy Sharp, Ed Wubbe, Itzik Galili, Amy Raymond, Stephen Shropshire, Ton Simons, Rinus Sprong, Thom Stuart, Sjoerd Vreugdenhil, Mauro Bigonzetti, Václav Kunes and Padma Menon.
In the fourth year you can do an internship with professional companies and choreographers both in the Netherlands and abroad. Among others, the following groups and individuals offer internships: Dance Works Rotterdam, Scapino Ballet Rotterdam, Conny Janssen Danst, Meekers Uitgesproken Dans, Dansgroep Amsterdam, NND, Introdans, Leine & Roebana, Station Zuid, Nanine Linning, Ann Van den Broek, De Dutch Don’t Dance Division, The Forsythe Company, Kibbutz Dance Company, T.E.C.S. Cathy Sharp, Iceland Dance Company, Diversions, Bencha Theater, Aterballetto, Opus, Lonneke van Leth, De Stilte and Xynix Opera.
Common language: English
Many of our students come from outside the Netherlands; as a result, RDA’s common language is English. You must be able to understand, speak and read this language. Your ability to function in English will be tested.
Interested in auditioning
Admission to RDA’s bachelors’ programmes is only possible by doing an audition. RDA holds several auditions every year, both in the Netherlands and abroad. To be admitted, you must be in possession of a Dutch secondary school diploma (havo, vwo, four-year mbo) or a foreign diploma at an equivalent level. At the audition, RDA will look at your technical dance skills, your potential to develop both technically and artistically, and your motivation. Your health will also be evaluated as part of the admissions process.
The Master in Dance Therapy has its own specific admissions procedure.
RDA’s preparatory courses also have auditions (with the exception of the Boys class), in which both talent and skills are evaluated.
The final step: applying
You can apply for an audition on this website (go to the page 'application' of the programme of your choice). Whether you are invited to take part in the audition is dependent on a preliminary selection that is made based on your experience and the order in which applications are received.
We hope to see you at RDA!
