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The XIV Moscow International Competition (https://moscowballetcompetition.com/ ) started last friday and the first round both in junior and senior groups was held yesterday. It's possible to watch videos of the competition here: https://moscowballetcompetition.com/video/ . The jury consists of the leading ballet professionals and there are some promising participants, mainly from russian theatres, including Maria Iljushkina from Mariinsky, Anastasia Smirnova from Mikhailovsky theatre, Anna Fedosova from Krasnoyarsk State theatre and many other good dancers. The second round of the competition in the senior group will be shown on Tuesday and in junior group on Wednesday and it will be possible to watch it live.

My daughter attends a dance school which does not enter festivals/competitions. They do a show every other year and offer other smaller performance opportunities as well as ballet exams (but not exams in the other styles of dance like tap, modern etc). Through other dance classes and workshops my daughter has become aware of the world of competitions and festivals and would like to do these, but as this isn’t something her dance school do I don’t know how we would enter? And I get the impression that they don’t approve of festivals, but don’t know why this is? Can anyone enlighten me? Why do some dance schools enter competitions and others don’t? Are they worth looking into for my daughter? She is happy dancing where she is and wouldn’t want to change dance schools!

My DC would like to enter some comps, but I’m not sure what ones we have in this country? Can anyone give me any ideas, and their experience of them? Thanks

I haven't been on here for quite some time and hope that everyone is enjoying the wonderful world of Ballet!! I read with interest the thread " not vocational " and felt it time to present to you something I have designed purely to help UK Ballet dancers. During my years teaching and coaching, and especially after the work I have been doing this past year, I have noticed there is a gap in standard with our students here and the international ones I see. I believe a large part of the difference is a deep sense of self confidence that burns through every step thats taken to create an entirely different effect as a dancer. And like anything in life - If you believe you can perform that movement, well you are far more likely to pull it off! Obviously other factors exist but this has become a clear denominator now - upper body, artistry, dynamics and confidence! Technique can only work to its best with all these areas combined. And so I present to you The Performance Platform. An opportunity to be seen and taught by well connected industry professionals whilst focusing on performance and artistic skills. To be awarded mentorship, scholarships, bursaries and many more opportunities to inspire and ensure talent keeps training in these post covid times. Its about providing access and opportunity. The long term network created via this platfotm will also prove crucial as the dancers move through the years - alot of 'open doors' and opportunities arise through who you know and timing as much as what you can do.😉 Overall the aim is to inject a renewed sense of community in to the Ballet world where we all come together to offer the best chances for UK students and above all else to hope to instil a sense of self in to each and every dancer so they fulfill their potential. I see so much talent locked up inside unsure dancers. UK students ARE as good as international ones they just don't have the same self belief! This self belief colours everything they do and will lead to greater progress. Take a look - Gary Avis MBE and Aniya Young MBE are amidst the mentors and patrons. The uk ballet scene is coming together to help uk students.😍 www.theperformanceplatform.org.uk

Selected Candidate information Prix de Lausanne have now published the details of the candidates selected for 2021. There are two lists, one list giving candidates names, their nationality, school they attend and in which country and another one by country, showing how many applied and how many were accepted. As far as I could see connected to UK there is one British girl studying at a school in Portugal and one Japanese girl studying at Elmhurst.

I'm a teacher, and our London based dance school would like to start doing competitions but would like some advice on where to start. Any good local competitions to start with? Are solos or group dances better to begin with? Are there criteria for each style/age group? Any other advice for starting out? We currently have some very talented children with strong technique up to age 14 in all genres. Thanks so much in advance!

Has anyone had experience of the above. How the day runs and general standard please?

I know it's early in the year, but I thought that it would be nice to have a thread that followed the dancing successes of 2017, be it successful auditions or medals in competitions etc. It would be like a photo album of happy results! Good luck for everyone ????

My daughter is 7, and has been in ballet classes for 4 years. She's very keen, and has started asking about doing competitions. Her dance school specialises in another style of dance, and those students often compete, but not the ballet students. She adores her teacher, works hard, and has been in two recitals. So is there any harm at giving her a turn at competing? It's something I have no experience in. Her teacher said she'd help with choreography and extra training, and she'd be competing under our school's name. Part of me says it could be fun, and give her a bit of a chance to push herself a bit. Another part worries that it's just part of a huge money-making industry and it won't really help her in the long run. I'd really appreciate some guidance, thank you.

My dd has had to withdraw from this competition due to injury and I now have tickets for both the semi finals and the final if anyone is interested, I have posted on the 'For sale' section of the forum. Just wanted to say thank you though to all the lovely people on here who have sent private messages. Much appreciated

Is anyone else taking part in the awards day on 28th September?

Dear parents/guardians of young dancers, It may be of interest that - from October 2014 - Spirit Young Performers Company will be launching an Elite Dance Troupe. The performers selected for this troupe will perform in professionally filmed showcases and represent us at prestigious live events. We're looking for skilled dancers aged 10-17 who are dynamic and compelling performers. These dancers will train and rehearse with us every Sunday in Central London from 4pm - 6pm, working on jazz, contemporary, lyrical and modern routines. Performances will be professionally filmed every term and released to thousands of viewers and subscribers on our online channel. We are also lined up to perform at competitions and prestigious live events. For those who do not know, Spirit Young Performers Company is an acclaimed performing arts school, best known for filming our performances with a professional multi-camera filmcrew for invaluable showcase. We will be auditioning for the Elite Dance Troupe in July. To register your interest, please visit our website. Kind regards, Sophie Boyce Director - Spirit Young Performers Company http://www.spiritypc.co.uk