Authentic: William Starrett

William Starrett has spent four decades proving that the arts don’t end when the curtain falls. As CEO and Artistic Director of South Carolina Ballet, he’s inspired generations of dancers, introduced nearly three-quarters of a million students to ballet through educational outreach, and helped shape a thriving arts community across South Carolina.

Ask Starrett what ballet means, and he doesn’t start with dance. He starts with people.
“People don’t always realize how enriching the arts can be,” he says. “People come together to celebrate what the human spirit can create, and that’s what’s most important.”

That belief has guided him since childhood. Growing up in Southern California, Starrett discovered ballet almost by chance after his father’s construction company accepted dance lessons in place of payment for a remodeling project. What began as childhood curiosity eventually earned Starrett the bronze medal at the first U.S. International Ballet Competition and carried him to stages in 29 countries and all 50 states. Yet the place that would define his life’s work wasn’t New York or London—it was Columbia.

“I began my love affair with Columbia,” he says of his first guest appearance with South Carolina Ballet in 1977. Less than a decade later, he returned as Artistic Director with a much bigger vision. Building a season of performances wasn’t enough. He wanted to create a lasting home for professional ballet in South Carolina. Today, that vision lives on through South Carolina Ballet, now the state’s largest performing arts organization, with productions ranging from Dracula: Ballet with a Bite to Sleeping Beauty.

Starrett’s impact extends well beyond the stage. Through the Educational Outreach & Engagement Series, hundreds of thousands of students have experienced ballet for the first time. Sometimes all it takes is one performance to spark a lifelong curiosity about the arts. “You have to meet people where they are,” he says. “Then you can bring them forward.” For Starrett, that has always been the goal. Whether welcoming a child into the theater for the first time or giving professional dancers a reason to build their careers in South Carolina, his work has always been rooted in creating opportunities for others.

“My dream was to build a professional ballet company here,” he says. “Before, talented dancers had to move away. I wanted them to have a reason to stay.”

Today, his legacy can be found in the dancers who stayed, the students who discovered something new, and the audiences who continue returning—season after season.

Interested in bringing your class to South Carolina Ballet? Learn more and complete the Educational Outreach inquiry form at southcarolinaballet.com. A member of the team will follow up to help plan your visit.

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