Andrea Thompson - Artistic Director

Andrea Thompson comes to Northwest Classical Ballet with over 25 years of teaching experience in Ballet and Pointe. Andrea has trained in multiple dance styles, but her specialty, and love, is Classical Ballet.

Andrea started dancing at the age of six and was taught by her grandma for several years! She started her training at the Stites Studio of Dance in Gresham, OR and then later attended Ballet Oregon, School of Oregon Ballet Theatre, and the Joffrey Ballet School in New York City on scholarships. While living and training in New York, she was fortunate to take classes with the legendary dancers and master teachers, David Howard and Gelsey Kirkland.

​​Having graduated from Jefferson High School, Andrea was a member of the Jefferson Dancers, performing throughout the Pacific Northwest and Canada with the company. She then went on to perform in multiple ballets with Ballet Oregon and Oregon Ballet Theatre.

Andrea is passionate about teaching ballet and has instructed consistently in the Portland/ Vancouver area, holding artistic directorship positions at several studios. She also teaches ballet at the da Vinci Arts Middle School and has extensive experience instructing dancers of all ages and levels. Andrea has extensive experience choreographing ballets that have been performed throughout the Pacific Northwest. In 2017, she choreographed an original ballet on the Jefferson Dancers and has choreographed, staged and directed The Nutcracker ballet for many a holiday season over the years!

​Also a mom to four kids, Andrea has been married for as long as she has been teaching! She holds a Master of Science in Nursing Education degree and worked as a nurse for several years. However, her greatest passion remains classical ballet instruction and choreography, and she is truly excited to continue her artistic journey at Northwest Classical Ballet.