In a strip mall just off Federal Highway, the afternoon quiet is broken by the thump of a pianist's chords and a voice calling out positions in French. This is the Lighthouse Point Ballet Academy, a 4,000-square-foot studio that has grown from 30 students in 2019 to 140 today—and, in the process, has become the closest thing this small Broward County city has to a centralized dance community.
Whether that growth amounts to a "ballet boom" depends on whom you ask. But for families in Lighthouse Point and neighboring Pompano Beach and Deerfield Beach, the academy's expansion has meant access to pre-professional training that previously required driving south to Fort Lauderdale or Miami.
From Empty Nester Space to Daily Rehearsal
The academy's founder and artistic director, Antonio Bellini, opened the studio after leaving a larger regional company where he felt students were "processed through like a factory." His solution was smaller class sizes, capped at 16, and a requirement that intermediate and advanced students take character dance, music theory, and acting for dancers alongside their technique classes.
"The body is only part of it," Bellini said. "If they don't know what they're expressing, or why the music moves the way it does, they're just exercising."
That philosophy has translated into longer training days. Students at the intermediate level and above are in the studio four to six days per week, logging 12 to 18 hours during the school year and up to 30 during summer intensive sessions. Tuition ranges from $2,800 to $5,200 annually depending on level, with need-based scholarships covering roughly 15 percent of students, according to the academy.
What the Students Are Actually Learning
The academy's curriculum follows the Vaganova method, with pointe work beginning around age 11 after a physical screening. Repertoire classes introduce students to full-length ballets—this year, Giselle and Les Sylphides—rather than isolated variations. Three alumni have gone on to trainee or second-company positions at regional ballet companies in Florida and the Southeast over the past four years.
Maya Chen, 16, has been at the academy since she was 8. She described the training as "old-school" and noted that injury prevention has become a bigger focus recently, with a physical therapist now visiting monthly to screen students and correct alignment issues.
"It's not always fun," Chen said. "But when we put on the showcase, you can see why the details matter."
That showcase, held each spring at the Pompano Beach Cultural Center, has become a local fixture, drawing roughly 600 attendees in 2024. Admission is $25 for general seats, with a portion donated to the Lighthouse Point Public Library's arts programming.
A Measured Community Impact
The academy's growth has had visible, if modest, ripple effects nearby. Maria Santos, owner of Café Pirouette two doors down, estimated that dance families now account for about 20 percent of her weekend coffee and pastry sales. A local alterations shop, Sew Fine by Rosa, has added dancewear repairs to its regular services after fielding increasing requests from academy families.
City officials have taken notice, though cautiously. Lighthouse Point does not have a dedicated cultural affairs officer, but Mayor Kyle Van Buskirk said the academy has been a reliable partner for library events and holiday performances at the city marina.
"They show up prepared, and the turnout is consistently good," Van Buskirk said. "But I'd stop short of calling it a renaissance. We're a city of 10,000 people. One strong studio doesn't remake the culture overnight."
Not everyone in the local dance community is convinced the academy's prominence is an unalloyed good. Denise Holloway, who runs a smaller musical theater and jazz studio in Deerfield Beach, said she has lost several students who switched to Lighthouse Point for its classical ballet focus.
"I don't begrudge them the success," Holloway said. "But 'holistic' training shouldn't mean ballet-only. Some of these kids would thrive in a different environment, and families don't always know they have choices."
Looking Ahead
Bellini is now fundraising for a larger space—ideally 8,000 square feet with sprung floors in every studio and a small black-box theater. He hopes to announce a location by late 2025. The academy also plans to launch a student exchange with a Vaganova-affiliated school in Buenos Aires, which would bring two Argentine students to Lighthouse Point each summer and send two locals south.
For now, the studio remains the most visible hub for serious dance training in a city without much of it. Whether that constitutes a boom, a bubble, or simply a well-run business filling a local gap is a question the next few years will answer.
The academy is currently accepting enrollment for its fall term, with placement auditions scheduled for August 16
