Pas de Quatre

I believe the fact that it is an open forum is extremely valuable. It allow parents past and present to exchange views and compare experiences at different schools. Otherwise there is often a tendency for a school to feign surprise at any criticism and maintain that everyone else is perfectly happy. If modern communications can topple Arab dictators in the "Arab Spring", just possibly they may help to ensure fair and equal treatment for all pupils at a Vocational school. Aileen - your post appeared as I was typing, we seem to be thinking along the same lines.

http://www.chanhongoh.com/images/diamond_xray.jpg This is a link to an x-ray of a dancer's foot in the ideal position on pointe, the line through the metatarsals is straight.

Students with a strong classical background are always in demand and find it easy to add other styles. Many of the girls from WL who don't get into RBS Upper School at 16 go to Laines. I can see no reason why a student couldn't change direction after 6th form either. Also, we need to be careful about terminology here. Musical Theatre courses do have a strong voice element, alongside a lesser requirement for dance. Jazz courses have a strong dance requirement alongside a lesser voice element.

As a recent ex-Tring parent I know more people who were unhappy there, than were happy. In 6th form people voted with their feet. As discussed on a previous thread not that many stayed for the 3rd year, the majority left at the end of 2nd year. Some 3rd years have found employment - congratulations to them - but others in 3rd year have simply dropped out during the year, leaving a mere handful of 3rd years now.

I don't think anyone is obliged to take academic A-levels at Vocational schools if they are not strong enough academically. There are often other options such as Dance or Theatre Studies available. However I do think it is a good idea to get the best non-dance qualifications possible even if totally commited to dance. The reality is that ONLY the Royal Ballet School has 100% employment record in recent years. You really do have to think of the alternatives as not all of those at Vocational school will get jobs. The article linked in the New English Ballet Theatre thread is relevant. Edited for typo

It sounds as if she hasn't been taught to straighten her toes correctly on pointe. Everyone's "break point" i.e. where the curve on the sole of the shoe occurs is different. However it should be nearer the heel than the metatarsals - they should be straight. Have a look at Lisa Howells videos on YouTube they are very helpful. Edited for spelling

They'd need jumbo sized plates!

Does it have to be the Kirov version? I have a DVD "Alicia Alonso, Prima Ballerina Assoluta" which actually has the Pas de Quatre danced by Alicia Alonso, Melissa Hayden, Nora Kaye & Mia Slavenska - it is a very good version, and I would imagine authentic. The version danced by students (was is Royal Danish Ballet School) during the jury's deliberations at the Prix de Lausanne was painfully slow and I felt was not in the real Romantic style. cabriole, your post just appeared up as I was writing this - we obviously agree.

I had a student who had an ongoing problem a few years ago. After seeing her GP she was told she needed to have the whole nail removed - the appointment for the procedure was months later. One of her mother's family friends recommended a chiropodist who sorted the problem out in days (removed a slice of nail) and taught the student how to take care of it. She had no further problems.

Kitschqueen_1, I can't be sure this applies every year, but dd said that in their first week they had "levelling" classes to decide who should be placed where in each of four groups. This was for both contemporary and classical ballet (i.e. people may be in different groups in each discipline.) Those with a strong classical background were placed together for classical work and the teacher asked if they wanted pointework included. This group said yes, I suppose another year they might say no.

Dancersdad - I understand completely. My dd was at the same school, same year group and suffered in a similar manner (our dks know each other). She decided to look elsewhere for after A-levels and has now just completed the 1st year at Laban. She is completely happy, feels appreciated and has made loads of progress. Ironically, although Laban is always thought of as mainly contemporary, she reckons she is getting better classical classes and more pointework than at Tring.

Congratulations to your dd - my dd knew her from various courses. There is also magazine called Dance Europe which lists auditions. There is an on-line version and every couple of years they publish a small book listing all companies and their details.

At least in Europe jobs usually pay enough to live on. I hear horror stories from USA where hardly any contracts are full year and often dancers have to join as an unpaid trainee or apprentice. Their parents end up supporting them through their twenties!

Sorry to hear about your son's problems with his talent being ignored at school. Sadly this seems to have happened to dks of several members of this board, including my own. It felt as though only a few dancers were considered talented and the rest were treated as 2nd class citizens.

It just occured to me that it is quite a delicate position re funding - are these dancers still receiving funding through DADAs although they are now also professional and presumably receiving salaries?

I have had pupils on both and think they are both are excellent. Many people audition and they are both hard to get into, and students from both programmes go on to further top notch training. It seems that Central possibly ranks slightly higher in some people's minds - maybe because they have their own Senior school. On the other hand at present London Senior ballet continues until 18 which can be a benefit for those who want to take A-levels at home before going on to further training.

Exam session dates are set by the exam boards. In general I stick to a summer session for practical reasons. After a long summer holiday, it can take quite a while for students to regain technique so end of Autumn term exams can be a rush, and also the children have lots on in the run up to Christmas, such as extra choir practice for carol concerts, nativity plays, school discos etc. Spring term is when the viruses hit, so most children seem to miss some classes. So in spite of sports days and school exams, I find summer works best.

That sounds delicious. Is anyone interested in healthy banana ice cream? I recently spotted this recipe in a newspaper and it works! Uses up bananas that are going over-ripe. Slice and freeze bananas - as many as you want. When frozen, put into a food processor with a tablespoon of milk for each banana. Blitz until it is of ice cream consistency. It can be eaten straight away or put back into the freezer and portions scooped out as needed. Suggested additions to serve (makes it a bit less healthy) were, nuts, chopped fresh or dried fruits, honey, maple syrup, or for grown-ups a dash of Baileys.

I don't think it is the swayback knees themselves which are the problem. It is more likely that they are a visible sign that she has long, soft tendons and hypermoblility. This most likely is also the case for her feet too. Therefore it is the intrinsic muscles in her feet which need strengthening so that she can catch herself with the pads of the toes and roll down with resistance though the foot when landing from jumps. Then she will be able to release her calf muscles and achilles tendon to go fully into demi plié with the heels down. All the exercises for strengthening metatarsals, those for rolling through the foot, and correct use of pressure against the floor in battements tendus should help.

I've just read the article in the ST Culture section. A breath of fresh air. Sounds as if there are interesting times ahead - go for it Miss Rojo!

Their quality control is non-existent. Spoilt, marked shoes should only be sold as "seconds" with an appropriate price reduction.

I'm sure they'd get a good response if they came down to Hants/Dorset. Unless I misread the website, I couldn't see any dates in this area.

Actually he comes from Ukraine.

That pretty much confirms what my DD has always complained about in GCSEs and A-levels, you aren't supposed to think independently, just regurgitate certain facts or key words, so the marker can tick them off on the mark scheme!

I can understand how it must have been frustrating finding sources for information that your DS already knew, but I do think in this age of cut and paste from the Internet, it is essential that serious written work has its sources properly attributed.