Jones and Barr Bring Ballet to the Stage of the 2025 National Symposium for Classical Education

The fast approaching 2025 National Symposium for Classical Education, hosted by the Great Hearts Institute, is set to take place at the Mission Palms Hotel in Tempe, Arizona, February 19-21. As with previous years, this year promises to be an inspiring event for educators and enthusiasts of classical education.

Perhaps one of the most anticipated and unique workshops being offered during the three-day conference is a talk on “Ballet, the Soul, and Society” presented by Lincoln Jones, Director of the American Contemporary Ballet, and Hannah Barr, a professional ballet dancer with the company.

“The cultivation of wonder occurs through the intellect and the imagination, through the study of texts and ideas, but it also draws us toward the contemplation of the beautiful,” explained Great Hearts Institute Director, Carol McNamara. “Ballet storytelling, through music and movement, draws us towards what is beautiful and causes us to lose ourselves in wonder at the capacity of the human body to move with such power and grace simultaneously. Lincoln Jones will join us at Symposium to explain why ballet should be an integral part of a classical education.”

The workshop will explore the capacity of the body to teach the soul. This is not something we consider often in our society, but we can feel differently instantly by smiling, or by standing up straight. In fact, Jones will present that part of ballet’s origin was the intent to create physical nobility, and in the 15th century, when it was being developed, the body was considered a reflection of the soul.

Jones is a renowned choreographer who has led discussions on ballet for The Los Angeles Philharmonic and The Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation at Cambridge, among others, and has served on the Jury of the Los Angeles Film Festival. He is a recipient of the Philanthropy Roundtable Courageous Leader Award.

He founded the American Contemporary Ballet, based in Los Angeles, with dancer Theresa Farrell to produce original contemporary classical ballets, and to present masterworks that exemplify dance as a musical art form. The company performs over 60 shows each season.

Attendees of this workshop will also enjoy a ballet demonstration by Hannah Barr, a company dancer with American Contemporary Ballet. Barr began dancing at the age of five in Florida and trained with prestigious institutions such as Next Generation Ballet, the Alvin Ailey BFA program, and Houston Ballet Academy. She has danced with Atlanta Ballet’s second company and Oklahoma City Ballet, performing works by renowned choreographers like Balanchine and Webre. A recipient of multiple scholarships and awards, Barr joined American Contemporary Ballet in 2019, where she has premiered several featured roles.

The talk and demonstration will show how ballet, a kind of science of dance, prepares the body to be an instrument of the soul, and helps teach the soul nobility through physical practice. For the young, it also teaches positive, confident relationships and sophisticated interaction with the opposite sex in a structured environment. It is the most sophisticated physical education available.

Jones would argue that our society suffers from a lack of structured, refined social dancing, both for what it can provide in enjoyment, and for social and communal relations. By making it a standard part of education, we will be improving both the individual lives of our children, and our society.

Join Jones, Barr, and many other presenters and experts in the field at the 2025 National Symposium for Classical Education, at the Mission Palms Hotel in Tempe, Arizona, February 19-21. REGISTER TODAY to take advantage of the special early bird pricing that expires January 17, 2025.

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