glowlight

So sorry to hear your news @LyndseyJ.

Nothing to be lost by sending a late application. The worst that can happen is they ignore it!

My DD did GCSE Dance many years ago. For her it was simply a chance to fill some of her school time table with something she loved doing. There was a definite mix in her class between those with little experience who had chosen it because they saw it as a soft option, and those who danced regularly. Although I think she found the 'free-riders' a bit frustrating at times, it didn't deter her and it gave her a chance to learn more about and explore contemporary dance, which she wasn't doing much of at the time. She did a solo choreography on the subject to Guantanamo bay for her exam piece, which she really enjoyed. I think we've still got the orange boiler suit somewhere!

So hard for you and your dc's who are getting their first "no thankyou's". The way I framed this to my dd the first time was..It just means it's not the right thing for you at this time. Maybe life is lining you up for a different opportunity which is better suited for you. Learning how to handle knock backs at this early age is valuable too, even though you and they may not think so now. But if they keep dancing there will probably be more 'No's' than 'Yes's' down the road, and learning how to handle these positively is of great value. They're bound to be upset and that's OK. It can help them to build the determination to keep going. Keep looking out for new opportunities for them. Try to have some non-dance fun in between so their life isn't all about ballet. And @LyndseyJ - if part of the problem is that she is unhappy at her local school - perhaps you could look at other options locally. If it's not working for her maybe another move would be for the best.

Brilliantly put.

Perhaps...'Ballet provides a solid foundation for many other types of dance'?

@LyndseyJ - please don't stress about it. Even if it did make a difference they'll know that people are nervous.

My dd absolutely loved her training with Northern Ballet associates many years ago. It was a programme of training which suited her and challenged her. I don't think she would have become a professional dancer without it.

Surely if they are picking people at random for an interview they can't use it in the selection process. That would just be unfair. Maybe the interview has some other purpose for the school.

When dd was at Northern Ballet School there were several boys who had started dance in their teens, one in his early twenties. Most of them went on to get work on cruise ships. I've also heard of late starter boys having successful careers in contemporary dance. But your lad isn't even a late starter - he's had a good grounding so hopefully he'd be able to pick up even better than these boys who didn't start until their teens. NBS take students at 18 or older, so he could consider applying for when he's finished his A levels.

I have no experience of Dutch National Ballet, but I would suggest another question to be prepared for is an offer to start immediately. In February of graduate year my dd was down to the last 3 for 2 places with a contemporary company and was asked if she could start next week. She said no because she hadn't completed her course and because it was her first audition. She then regretted it because it was a long wait through lots of auditions before the next offer came. In retrospect I think she made the right choice because the contract may not have lasted more than month or so, but I think it would have helped her if she had been prepared for the question in advance.

Merry Christmas everyone. And thankyou Moderators for making this forum possible.

I am personally pleased to see discussion on this subject, because if we talk about it maybe things will change. It is good to see people posting both positive and negative experiences, that is what discussion is about. It doesn't undermine the horrendous experiences that some students have gone through. If anything it highlights that in some cases this can go on against a backdrop where other students are very happy. If anything this is even more shocking. I hope this will encourage parents with young people training now to have open conversations, to be very aware that bullying happens, that abuse happens, that eating disorders happen and the sooner it is dealt with the better the chances of a happy outcome.

Wonderful news @Sparks82 - congratulations to your daughter.

Congratulations to your DD @Sparks82. What a great start for her. I have no personal experience of either school, but would say there is a lot to be said for going with your gut feeling and what made you 'buzz'. I would add that 4 years is a long time. I know that my dd was very ready to be out in the world earning her living by the time she came to the end of a three year course.

Try not to feel like Tring is 'all or nothing'. You might find you like another school better when you go for the audition. That certainly was true for my daughter, who ended up going to Northern Ballet School. She too was at a state school and only dancing evenings and weekends when she auditioned at 16.

Things may have changed, but I'm pretty certain that when my DD was at NBS, if someone on a DADA left, that funding was sometimes then passed to another student, or a student joining in a later year. I may be wrong though. The government guidance for schools about DADAs is published https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dance-and-drama-awards-guide-2023-to-2024-academic-year/dance-and-drama-awards-guide It is up to the institution how they spend the funds that they are allocated. It doesn't specify that the funding has to go to first year students only, but it does say that it should be used to support continuing students already in receipt of DADA funding ahead of students applying for the first time.

@Autumn - have you asked Northern Ballet if she could stay on? Or if not if they have any suggestions?

@So-not-a-Dancemom and @marmot2023 - if your DCs are set on leaving school at 16 and not doing A levels I think it would be a waste of everyone's time and energy to force them down this route. My dd, although academically bright, was adamant she didn't want to stay on at school. We agreed that as long as she got at least 5 GCSEs including Maths and English (she got 9) she could go to dance school at 16 and not do A levels. It was the best thing for her. After graduating from Northern Ballet School she worked for 6 years on cruise ships. She now has a successful career as an IT manager. Still no A Levels or degree, but that hasn't held her back. If she had decided she wanted to pursue a career which required further academic qualifications she would have gone to college.

I think that it's great that you are starting to look into this now, so that you are ahead of the curve for next year. It is a long time since my dd was auditioning, so my advice may be out of date, but here are a few thoughts: 1. Firstly and I think most importantly - apply for / audition for as many things as he can. Firstly the more audition experience he has the easier they should become, secondly the competition is tough, so the more you try for the greater the chances. Also if you've got other irons in the fire the rejections are a little easier (not saying he's definitely going to get lots of rejections, but it's as well to be prepared!) 2. Some companies advertise their auditions on their website. I think Northern Ballet usually do this - with the advert going up in October for auditions in January / February. Rambert Dance Company currently have audition advert up for auditions which were over last weekend. 3. Some companies advertise in magazines such as Dance Europe, or The Stage. Both of these have web versions so you don't need to buy the actual magazine, but you may need to subscribe, I'm not sure. I expect these days a lot gets advertised on social media as well. 4. For some companies there is a pre-selection process where you send a CV and photos (sometimes a show reel) and they chose who they want to see. Some are open auditions which can be quite daunting at first I think. My dd went to one open audition where after the pliés the artistic director declared there were too many people in the studio and told everyone on the left hand side to leave. She jumped on a tube and went to another open audition the same day. 5. Definitely look at overseas companies, although getting work permits for European companies may not be as easy as it used to be. Getting a work visa to dance onland in the USA has always been very difficult (not a problem for cruise ships as they need a different type of visa) 6. Suggest that he thinks about whether he would consider jobs which aren't pure ballet eg Musicals, Cruise Ships, Commercial Dance, Cirque du Soleil, Disney. 7. Consider whether a Graduate Programme such as the one run by Northern Ballet could be a good thing for him, and whether you could afford it. 8. He will need to create a dance CV, have professional photos done and make a film. It's worth planning these well in advance (maybe during next summer) so he is all set to go as soon as he sees things he wants to apply for. As an indication of what companies are likely to ask for take a look at :https://iapguidelines.squarespace.com 9. Be prepared that audition year can be expensive in terms of travel. My dd did auditions in The Netherlands, Portugal, Italy, Germany and many in London. My dd had a part time job and saved hard in her 2nd year, and had enough saved for all the auditions she wanted to go to. Some of her friends had to restrict what they applied for because they couldn't afford to travel to the auditions. I hope this helps. Good luck to your son.

It would be worth looking at this thread, although your dd will be too young for some of the programmes mentioned at the moment.

I don't have recent experience, but Northern Ballet associates were great for my dd, many years ago. She also went to https://www.yorkshireballetscholarshipcentre.com for a while.

Ooo - such a tricky one, especially as you and your dc have been moving towards this new round of auditions since the end of the last round, so you are probably as invested in it as they are. My thought is that it HAS to be their decision - if not they will go into it in a half hearted way, they may not get through to the second round, and it will taint the fairly positive memory of last year's achievements, when your dc was in control of their decisions. My dd had many examples of where she was successful in an audition the second time she tried. For her the familiarity the second time around seemed to help her relax. As others have said it is very much about who the panel are, and who else is auditioning at the time, as well as your dc's performance in the audition. Having said that there is also the possibility that it could go the other way, that they might not get through to second round, which might be an even bigger knock to them psychologically. It sounds as if this is a good time to have a conversation about whether they still want a career in ballet. Or maybe in some other form of dance? And what the best way is to achieve that. And if they want to step off the professional training treadmill....well there's nothing wrong with that, and it's probably better to make that choice now rather than half way through a course that they really didn't want to do. I also wonder if they don't feel quite ready to move away from home yet. If that's the case maybe leaving it another year might be a good idea. It may shut down some options, but open up others.

Brilliantly put @Allwrong

I totally agree with you @Emeralds. What I am hoping is that NB will come up with some kind of creative solution to this problem, which doesn't bring us to dancers performing to a 'backing track.'