Dance in Paris Program

Live in and experience Paris from the point of view of a dancer. Take classes from a faculty filled with creative artists and scholars, see performances by some of the world’s greatest choreographers, visit iconic dance venues, and glimpse a world outside your comfort zone. 

The dance program at the University of South Florida offers the most exciting study abroad opportunity for students to immerse themselves in the European dance experience. Through our two USF Dance in Paris programs, university-age dance majors can study in the French capital for a summer or a semester. Both courses of study feature a wide variety of workshops and technique classes taught by a European-based dance faculty, along with live performances, lectures and seminars, excursions to some of Paris’s great dance locales, and opportunities to interact with other dancers. Since 2007, over 350 dancers from across the United States have expanded their horizons and challenged themselves through these unique study abroad programs. Come join us in Paris!

Check out our IG account: https://www.instagram.com/usfdanceinparis/  

Dance in Paris Semester Program

Please contact program director, Michael Foley (mcf@usf.edu), with any questions.  

Since 2016, the USF Dance in Paris Semester Program (USF/DPSP) has been a significant contribution toward providing an immersive study abroad opportunity for dance majors. The USF/DPSP distinguishes USF as the only American university to offer a fully accredited study abroad program specifically geared toward university-age dancers where students earn academic credits in dance technique, theory, and creative practice, which contribute directly toward their respective dance degrees. The USF/DPSP is also an opportunity for dance majors to expand their historical, cultural, and performance-based knowledge through exposure to the rich tradition of dance in the French capital over the course of one semester. The goal of the USF/DPSP is to facilitate the edification of the student global artist/scholar through the lens of dance in the city of Paris, and by extension, the society in which we all live. 

 

Dance in Paris Summer Program

We are celebrating the 16th iteration of the USF Dance in Paris Summer Program in June 2025, making it the oldest summer study abroad opportunity in France devoted specifically to university-age dance majors/minors. Led by USF faculty member Michael Foley, and co-directed by Barnard College faculty member, Colleen Thomas, this annual 30-day course of study in Paris is a unique opportunity for serious dancers and choreographers to live and dance in one of the world’s greatest cities. This Program offers a once-in-a-lifetime experience for dancers to expand their historical, cultural, and performance-based knowledge through exposure to the rich tradition of dance in the French capital. Among the many opportunities afforded to students in the summer program (including over 65 hours of technique classes and workshops), is that students will present their own choreography as part of a final open showing to the public. The goal of the USF Dance in Paris Summer Program is to enable students to expand upon information they have already gleaned from several courses required of dance majors (technique, choreography, and dance history) with the goal toward global artistic citizenry.