San Francisco Ballet Ballet dancers received some training at San Francisco Ballet School. The school was founded in 1933 as part of the San Francisco Operatic and Ballet School when Gaetano Merola, the founder of the San Francisco Opera, perceived a need for an institution where dancers could be trained to perform in opera productions. The school was under the direction of ballet director Adolph Bolm from 1933 to 1938. Willam Christensen became director from 1938 to 1940, followed by his brother Harold Christensen from 1942 until 1975. Richard L. Cammack directed the school from 1975 to 1985; he oversaw the move to
San Francisco Ballet end of 1975 with "Nutcracker" and has met with both audience and critical acclaim ever since, becoming known by the 1990s as one of the world's finest ballet orchestras. SFBO toured with the SF Ballet's touring company from 1978 until 1984. It has accompanied many prestigious international ballet companies that have toured to the San Francisco Bay Area, including The Royal Ballet, the Royal Danish Ballet, Stuttgart Ballet, Hamburg Ballet,the Bolshoi Ballet, Paul Taylor Dance Company, American Ballet Theatre, and the Paris Opéra Ballet. In 1995, the orchestra took on the remarkable task of accompanying 13 international dance companies over