Poised marketing

Feeling a sudden urge to visit the ballet? It might be marketing’s fault. But it’s not the ballet companies paying for the ads. It’s a recent surge in the use of ballet in advertisements. 

An article from Marketing Brew discusses the trend in more detail, citing recent advertisements from brands like NikeSKIMS and home decor company Lulu and Georgia. Both ads borrow from ballet performance and aesthetics – classical music references, ornate settings, dancewear-inspired outfits, and literal ballet techniques – to promote their products.

But why ballet, and why now? The article suggests that the spike in “balletcore” across brands and marketing rides on the wave of a broader cultural conversation – AI’s rising prominence. Our modern lives are dominated by the digital. The internet (and now AI) has made information limitlessly accessible. We’ve optimized everything for seamless, easy experiences. Ballet, and other high-skill art forms, appeal to the need for something analog, something that requires years and years of training to master. It’s a refreshing break from cyberspace that celebrates effort and expertise. 

Brands across categories are all reacting to AI’s new cultural status. Some brands have openly embraced AI (think of Coca-Cola’s 2025 holiday ad that generated controversy for being entirely AI-generated). On the flip side, JPMorgan Chase recently ran a spot that celebrated its physical locations where customers can come to talk to a person, not an AI bot. 

Ballet’s resurgence is just one case study. The conversation is evolving, and we have a feeling we will continue to witness discourse, art, and commerce that wrestles with the question of what AI means for the human experience.