Wednesday 12 November 2025 marks the return of World Ballet Day, a global celebration of dance, following a year’s hiatus. Building on over a decade of innovation, World Ballet Day moves from its theme of access behind-the-scenes to a focus on access as a way to make dance a welcoming space for all.
Under the direction of Kevin O’Hare, Director of The Royal Ballet, and curated and conceived by Robert Binet, choreographer and Artistic Director of Fall for Dance North Festival, this year’s theme focuses on radical accessibility – inviting artists and audiences to experience ballet in transformative new ways. Companies around the world will explore social questions about accessibility and co-create work with disabled perspectives to offer broader access to ballet.
At the heart of The Royal Ballet’s World Ballet Day celebration will be a collaboration between four world-class choreographers and blind artist Devon Healey, whose Immersive Descriptive Audio invites listeners into the inner world of dance through sensation, sound and storytelling.
The Royal Ballet will present the world premiere of a new work that redefines how we experience dance. The six-minute work commissioned by The Royal Ballet will feature choreography from Resident Choreographer of The Royal Ballet Sir Wayne McGregor, principal dancer of New York City Ballet Tiler Peck, choreographer Bim Malcomson and Royal Ballet Artist Rebecca Myles Stewart. Each choreographer will collaborate with Devon Healey to explore how blindness can open new modes of perception and creativity in dance.
The choreography by these four distinctive artists will be woven together with Immersive Descriptive Audio (IDA) by Devon Healey and set to music by acclaimed composer Max Richter. IDA develops a rapport between blindness and sight through a soundscape giving voice to that which does not always appear. IDA is not merely a description of a performance; it is performance.
Students of The Royal Ballet School will also feature in The Royal Ballet’s stream, responding to the same creative process in a special workshop with Devon Healey.
Ballet companies worldwide will stream and share content for Access becomes Art: World Ballet Day 2025 from their individual platforms. Other companies include The Australian Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet, The National Ballet of Canada, Northern Ballet, The Norwegian National Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet and San Francisco Ballet.
See worldballetday.com for more information and links to the website for each company involved.
Robert Binet, curator of this year’s commission, says:
‘World Ballet Day was founded on the principle of access, offering a look behind-the-scenes. A decade later, our aim is to engage disability as an access point for all to experience ballet anew. Engaging blind artistry through Immersive Descriptive Audio unlocks new pathways of accessibility for blind and sighted audiences alike. We are excited to experience how ballet companies around the world will work in relationship with disabled artists to broaden the ways we all experience dance.’
Kevin O’Hare, Director of The Royal Ballet, adds:
‘World Ballet Day has always been about opening doors. This year, we’re exploring new ways of approaching the creative process and inviting the world to experience what dance can be when we embrace new collaborative perspectives.’
Join the celebration on 12 November 2025, and be part of a reimagined World Ballet Day – where dance meets innovation and access becomes art.
For more information and full streaming details, visit worldballetday.com
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