Dance Resume Sample

Some people think that workers in the entertainment industry don’t need a resume. These people think you turn up to the audition, and the best dancer gets the job.

But what is an audition if not a specialized kind of job interview? And how do you get a job interview without a resume? The entertainment industry is infamous for nepotism, but if you don’t know the right person (and sometimes even if you do) you need a strong, well-written resume to get in the room.

With a great resume, you have a reliable way of getting auditions and interviews and landing better gigs. Use these three tips to write a resume that impresses choreographers:

1. Highlight your dancer resume skills

“Dancer” is a broad job title when there are so many styles of dance. Employers are going to have at least one or two types in mind when they’re hiring, and they don’t want to waste their time with ballerinas when they need masters of hip hop and modern dance. Make it clear what you can do with a complete resume skills section.

Don’t just focus on your dance skills, though. You want to prove that you’re a competent professional, not just a talented hobbyist, so include relevant hard skills as well.

Use some of these top dancer skills on your resume to prove you have what it takes to succeed:

• Mastered dance styles (ballet, jazz, hip hop, modern, ballroom, voguing, etc.)
• Coordination
• Active listening
• Critical thinking
• General computer skills
• General people skills
• Communication skills
• Public performance skills
• Creativity
• Choreography
• Teaching
• Time management skills

Also be sure to list your dance training. If you’ve worked with renowned teachers and choreographers, that fact proves your skill as a dancer, and employers will be impressed.

2. Add hard numbers to your achievements

Many of the most common measurements of success are subjective in the entertainment industry. Even facts like “performed to sold-out audiences” don’t mean much if the theater in question seats only a handful of people.

But if you add hard numbers to the accomplishments on your resume, everything you’ve achieved becomes clear. Hard numbers demonstrate what you’re capable of.

You can find hard numbers for your resume in the,

• sizes of audiences you’ve performed for
• number of dance routines you’ve choreographed or performed
• amount of money earned from ticket sales for your shows
• the speed in which you can learn a complete new routine, particularly if it’s a significantly faster than other dancers

This resume sample has several examples of hard numbers in its work experience section. For instance:

• Develop and practice new dance routines and choreographies and perform in various shows with audiences ranging from 500–1500+

This bullet point makes it clear that the candidate can both dance and choreograph, is skilled at dancing in front of live audiences, and has experience performing in front of large audiences.

3. Customize your dancer resume to the job post

Because dancing is such a broad career, narrow down what makes you qualified for each position you apply to. If you’re applying for a dance instructor job, listing the places you’ve danced before doesn’t tell the employer anything about your ability to teach.

Editing your resume to be the perfect answer to the job posting is the best way to impress a hiring manager. Include information that directly addresses the requirements and preferences listed in the job ad, and omit information on experience that isn’t relevant.

The resume sample on this page is written for a position where the dancer would dance with a group. The candidate’s background is made clear through their work history and use of keywords like “collaborate,” “communicate,” and “work with.”

If they were applying to be a choreographer instead, they would use bullet points that describe their experience in dance development and teaching.