Dance is perhaps the least prominent of the performing arts, but the massive success of some dance performances like Riverdance shows the success that can be achieved. Making a career in the area is rare, so you need to be passionate about the activity and dedicated to it.

Dancers typically work with a choreographer, who puts together new routines and dances or creates new versions of existing dances. 

Dancers can find opportunities to perform with musical productions, opera, musical theatre, television, movies, music videos and commercials. Often these roles will demand additional skills, especially singing and acting, so a broad skillset can help.

In order to build a successful career, you’ll need to be open-minded and take constructive criticism on board. If you want to get into performance, a dance portfolio is an absolute must. This could include action shots and DVDs of you dancing, as well as an up-to-date CV, a list of achievements and a broad range of publicity photos.

As dance is so demanding on the body, careers typically are not long. This means dancers need to plan for life after dance. Opportunities include moving onto choreography, where you work with dancers to craft performances, as dance instructors through setting up stage schools and training the next generation, or administration, using your knowledge of the industry to help run dance troupes.

Long hours go into rehearsing and dancers performing in family entertainment, such as musical theatre are on the road for much of the time.