Pas de Quatre Posted July 13, 2015 Author Share Posted July 13, 2015 (edited) The students are indeed told this at Laban during their audition process. During the three years they all study 'everything'. But some modules are by choice. However during the third year the student chooses whether for their degree they will be marked as a performer, as a teacher, as a choreographer or as a combination of two of these. So yes, not everyone is looking for a performing job. I posting about Laban because that is the establishment I know. The comments about lack of rigour in training are inaccurate. Everyone has a ballet class nearly every day. There are five levels and students are put in the appropriate one. Some have never learnt ballet, other have a vocational ballet standard and pointe was included for those who wished. Likewise Contemporary classes were streamed according to ability and previous experience. Graham, Cunninham, Horton, and Release are among the disciplines studied. Edited July 13, 2015 by Pas de Quatre 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tutucute Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 Here's an interesting read ..... http://www.gramilano.com/2014/03/tsiskaridze-real-ballet-dancers-trained-paris-moscow-st-petersburg/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harwel Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 Nothing like a bit of self promotion! 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sarahw Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Does he not have political as well as dancing balls to keep up? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fiz Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Plonker! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pas de Quatre Posted July 19, 2015 Author Share Posted July 19, 2015 This article is actually quite old, and yes, it was a political answer to criticisms of his appointment to the Directorship of the Vaganova Academy. Just as a quick answer, if he thinks RBS is not in the top league of training, then how did Xander Parrish and Sergei Polunin manage to be so good? Everyone, please feel free to add names of other International stars who did not train at the three schools he says are the only ones that are any good, (Vaganova Academy, Bolshoi & POB). 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harwel Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 The list is way too huge Pas de Quatre! Pretty much agree with Fiz. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swanprincess Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Purely on the basis of employment rates, I believe RBS have 100% graduate employment- which to me, makes it one of the best schools in the world, as ultimately a school's aim is to help its students to get in to employment... Out of curiosity, do any other UK schools have a 100% graduate employment rate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PetitDi Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 Some more comments from Tsiskaridze about the Russian supremacy, but more watered down than before: http://www.gramilano.com/2015/07/nikolay-tsiskaridze-on-the-vaganova-academy-and-russian-ballet/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billyelliott Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 What a silly man ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa O`Brien Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 It`s the same attitude as Putin. I put it down to having a massive chip on his shoulder. The former Soviet Union was a superpower. Russia is not. How that must really grate with some people.! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 its the difference between balletomania and megalomania - right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huddsballetmum Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 The contemporary schools are responding and taking note of comments made. My DD is on the CAT programme at NSCD and has been advised that next year there will be more ballet classes and streaming in ballet as well as contemporary. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
invisiblecircus Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 Purely on the basis of employment rates, I believe RBS have 100% graduate employment- which to me, makes it one of the best schools in the world, as ultimately a school's aim is to help its students to get in to employment... Out of curiosity, do any other UK schools have a 100% graduate employment rate? I don't know if they have a 100% graduate employment rate every year (or even this year) but they certainly have a superb graduate employment rate. There are other schools which have a similar graduate employment rate but not necessarily the same percentage of classical contracts. More curiously, do we know the graduate employment rates of the three schools mentioned? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeliB Posted July 22, 2015 Share Posted July 22, 2015 (edited) Purely on the basis of employment rates, I believe RBS have 100% graduate employment- which to me, makes it one of the best schools in the world, as ultimately a school's aim is to help its students to get in to employment... Out of curiosity, do any other UK schools have a 100% graduate employment rate? There is a caveat to this which is that some other ballet schools round the world are not necessarily so selective and may not assess students out- esp if they don't have any state funding and thus need to make ends meet. For example, at my DSs school students would self select out if they felt they didnt want to do ballet any more or had been told they really wouldn't make it as a professional dancer, but they wouldnt be asked to leave if they wanted to stay. So the school doesn't have a 100% rate of graduate dance contracts- I don't think you can use this to suggest that their teaching isn't up to scratch...(and by the way they have pretty amazing university entrance stats considering the students do a limited curriculum- several to Berkely/Harvard/med school that I am aware of in the last couple of years) Also I have said before and would still maintain that RB upper school has many many students who did their core training (11-16) elsewhere. Who then is respoinsible for that graduate's success on graduation? RB or the original school? How many of those graduate contracts are to dancers who have been at RB since age 11? I'm not implying that RBs teaching ISNT good, just that the graduate contracts don't tell the whole story.... Edited July 22, 2015 by CeliB 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melody Posted July 22, 2015 Share Posted July 22, 2015 (edited) That's true, but I thought some of the revamping at the RBS a few years ago was because the placement rate at international companies wasn't all that great and it was felt that, in its efforts to be a feeder for the RB, the school wasn't answering the needs of companies in the more streamlined modern era. Edited July 22, 2015 by Melody Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kate_N Posted July 23, 2015 Share Posted July 23, 2015 (edited) Historically, he's right: St Petersburg and Paris were the great centres of ballet in the 19th century. Paris was the world centre for ballet performance throughout the 19th century & well into the 20th century. However, he's overstating the current position just a bit! But it's just press hyperbole, and probably part of hids job to talk up the Vaganova School - it's indisputable that the Vaganova Institute IS one of the top schools in the world. Just not the only one The thing we have to remember is that again historically as well as now - ballet is an international art/business. There's ALWAYS been movement between the big metropolitan centres, and the star dancers (as well as corps de ballet) have always been internationally mobile. Given that only about 1-2% of young people training in dance actually become professionals, I think that good training will take someone anywhere. And the training from 12-18 is not the only training a dancer will do in her life. Edited July 23, 2015 by Kate_N Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spax Posted July 24, 2015 Share Posted July 24, 2015 My dd left a private school at 16 on the condition she went somewhere where she could do her A levels (Scotland HND) and BA Hons. She choose Ballet West as you also get 3 years stage full tour experience too. She has got her HND, ARAD and BA Hons this year. She is now doing another year just training with all academics finalised. If she doesnt get a job in the dance world at least she has her ARAD to teach and BA Hons to either carry on at Royal Academy of Dance to further her qualification on go into something new. Its a cruel world out there and not everyone makes it. Have a back up plan. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swanprincess Posted July 24, 2015 Share Posted July 24, 2015 Spax, from your post am I correct in thinking that your dd is doing a 4th year at ballet west? And also is the ARAD a teaching qualification in itself? (Sorry to deviate slightly from the topic of this thread!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hfbrew Posted July 24, 2015 Share Posted July 24, 2015 ARAD is not a teaching qualification in itself. That takes further training, for example Certificate of Ballet Teaching Studies. ARAD usually means you have passed your Advanced 2 and been accepted as an Associate of the Royal Academy of Dance. (You apply in writing.) Although not a teaching qualification its still a special thing to have! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxi4ballet Posted July 24, 2015 Share Posted July 24, 2015 ARAD usually means you have passed your Advanced 2 and been accepted as an Associate of the Royal Academy of Dance. (You apply in writing.) Although not a teaching qualification its still a special thing to have! Yes, my dd passed Adv 2 at 15, and she can apply for ARAD when she turns 18 - she can't use the letters after her name until then! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spax Posted July 24, 2015 Share Posted July 24, 2015 She helps out with teaching and has been offered a job in Glasgow teaching. There are more exams to do but you need to pass Adv 2 with distinction first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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