Early professional ballet was influenced hugely by Louis XIV (also known as the Sun King), who established the Academie Royale de Danse in the late 1600s, which was a professional acadamy for dancers. As dance developed, ballet was offered to the public, not just to monarchs.

In 1738, the Russian rulers founded the St. Petersburg school, which is now one of the most famous dance schools. It is also the world's second oldest acadamy of ballet. Around that same time too, England started becoming more interested in ballet.

Another very important time in dance was the Romantic Age. It was started with the coreography of Giselle. It was also the time when females learned to dance en pointe- or on the tips of their toes. However, unlike today, the shoes they danced in gave them very little support. In short, the Romantic Era of dance was the product mostly of very talented dancers such as Carlotta Grisi, Maria Taglioni, Lucile Grahn, and Fanny Cerrito.

In the modern period, Anna Pavlova was the star. Born in 1881, she was the picture of grace and beauty. People like British Margot Foteyn and Russian Rudolf Nureyev also were stars of the modern era.

Now, ballet has aquired more of a modern twist as modern and jazz become even bigger. However, many companies, like American Ballet Theater and the Joffrey Ballet still perform classical ballets like Swan Lake and The Nutcracker.