Payton Thompson ‘25

Payton Thompson is a senior at Harvard concentrating in Economics and Theater, Dance, Media. Payton spent her high school years training at International Ballet Academy. Following high school graduation, she was offered a trainee contract with Ballet West and spent the 2020-2021 season dancing with the company. Payton has spent summers training on scholarship with Pacific Northwest Ballet School, Ballet West, Joffrey Ballet, Complexions Contemporary Ballet, and Francisco Gella’s Pre-professional Dancer Institute. Payton was invited to represent contemporary ballet and compete in the Judge’s Round of So You Think You Can Dance, seasons 13 and 17. In the summer of 2023, she worked with Dance Theatre of Harlem, performing repertoire by Robert Garland. She is the director of the Harvard Ballet Company and co-founder of Harvard Contemporary Collective.