What do you get when you put ballet dancers next to dogs? A stunning photoshoot, of course! A set of photographs featuring elegant ballet dancers together with dogs are taking the online world by storm. And that’s for the obvious reasons – the dogs featured really look majestic, too!
Thanks to a project named Dancers & Dogs, which is started by photographers Kelly Pratt and Ian Kreidich.
Dancers posing with dogs
The Dancers & Dogs project came to life when Kelly and Ian had to photograph dancers with dogs as part of their job. The two work for the ballet company called Saint Louis Ballet, and they travel across the United States taking pictures of dancers while rehearsing.
Launched in 2017, the couple did not expect that the project would become successful the way it is today. Currently, they have more than 100K followers on Instagram. On top of that, they have also launched a book.
One of their most recent photoshoots is the Muttcracker. In this endeavor, the dancers of Saint Louis Ballet are photographed with shelter pooches (and some cats!) that are placed for adoption. This is a stellar and popular project that has been carried out in the last few years.
It’s all for a cause
According to Kelly and Ian, Muttcracker is their fun take on The Nutcracker, a holiday ballet favorite. They explain that Muttcracker started as a side project in 2018; it is a complementary project for their highly popular series Dancers & Dogs.
Currently, this is their third year on the project. This year, they have taken more animals than ever. The dogs and cats do not only come from the St. Louis Area but also from close states and even Caribbean islands. One of the most purposive goals of this project is to show people these animals, which were once living on the streets, in a loving, sweet, and whimsical light.
The pictures below show how elegant and magical the moments with dogs are.
Image Source: Dancer & Dogs via Instagram
