Dance*is*life

I booked the performance as soon as I found out about it and don't really care too much what's on the programme. I am just so thrilled to be able to attend a performance at my most beloved Opera House with my favourite company, whilst in lockdown at my home in Israel! I adored Dances at a Gathering and I am sure this Gala will live up to my expectations. It's wonderful that they've made it available worldwide - I was really disappointed not to be able to see BRB's Cinderella - copyright reasons I gather. I just really hope that they won't be in masks, because that would totally spoil it all. If they're concerned, surely they can test the dancers who are performing pdds?

Thank you Janet - so I noticed the mistakes too late! I'll know in future to check immediately!

Just wanted to say that I see I made several typos in my previous post, but can't find a way to edit. Can someone advise please! Also this is what I told my students when we finally had exams in June instead of March! If you get a lower mark than we hoped for - you can blame it on Corona. If you get a good mark you can be doubly pleased because Wow! In spite of Corona you got a good mark! 😅

That's really interesting - I actually didn't know that and I'm a teacher! I am used to teaching with a pianist so now that I am having to use the CD to teach via zoom, I am finding a lot of the music to have ben recorded at impossible tempos. In the studio we have a control to allow adjustment of tempo but I don't have that at home. If you can practise aith a pianist before an exam that's okay, but even if the CD is sometimes a challenge - you're expecting it! DeveloppeD - just wanted to give you my two cents worth from a teacher's point of view about exams. Exam markings are unpredictable. You may well deserve a high Distinction, but on the day, for whatever reason, it may not go well and you end up with a much lower mark. Don't forget that the examiner has to mark what she sees on the day and it may not be a good day. In the last session, my four best Intermediates didn't do nearly as well as I expected, because something went wrong with the air condiitoning and the floor was very slippery. I explained to them that it couldn't be helped and that their hard work was in no way wasted - to the contrary they have advanced because of working for their Inter exam and will go on to the Advanced levels easily. I see them in class every day and I know what they are capable of. Not to imply that the examiners are wrong in their assessments, but I know that they are judging on what they see on a certain day, which may well not be that particular student's best effort. The important thing is to keep on advancing and not to get stuck trying to perfect a lower level, rather than developing and learning new more challenging work. If your teacher thinks you're ready, do trust her! And don't get tied up with tryng to get an extra point per category, which is sometimes the difference between one mark and another. It honestly doesn't matter. The process of training with an exam as your goal gives you extra insentive to work harder and that is very important!

I know this thread is about upper schools, which are very expensive, but it's also really problematic for the afternoon ballet schools to make it work financially. We started the term and then were put back into lockdown. Very few classes agreed to learn via zoom, so the parents aren't paying anything and the ones who did agree are paying a reduced rate. Teachers need to be paid though, so it's a real struggle for the management to balance the payments. Many of my colleagues, who are teachers with their own schools, are not prepared or able to teach via zoom and may end up losing their schools.I think our school is being very considerate of the parents - the question is at what cost? Teachers need to survive too...........?

JohnS - you are right of course and she was excellent. No defence for leaving her out, when I mentioned the other women. I don't think I mentionned the men by name either and they were all superb!

Definitely agree LinMM! Whenever I feel depressed this coming month in lockdown I shall link up and watch it again!!!!!!

Thank you for moving my post to the correct thread!

Did anyone see Dances at a Gathering this evening? I thought it was beautiful! I saw it some years ago by NYC ballet on a holiday in the States and enjoyed it very much then, but even though this was just on my computer, I think the Royal's production was the better interpretation. Maybe it was because I could see their expressions close up, perhaps it was because it was such a wonderful escape from Corona lockdown, but I was entranced by it. The dancers were outstanding! Such a talented cast! I thought that Francesca Hayward was particularly lovely! But of course Naghdi, Nuñez and Kaneko were too. Loved the guys as well of course - fantastic technique and quality. The interaction betwen the dancers was very special and the fluidity and musicality of both choreography and dancing was exceptional. I have bought access to the live stream of the Royal Ballet - Back on Stage performance on October 9th and can't wait. It broke my heart when I read that the Opera House had had to close. I do so hope that the performance will be able to go ahead. This dreadful pandemic is making the world a sad, sad place......

Very interesting discussion. I just wanted to add that in rep class at RBS in the mid 60s, we were taught the traditional choreography for both Beauty and Swan Lake Act 2. When I danced with a ballet company in Germany after I left the school, I was thrown on stage my first week there as a swan in Act 2, because they used exactly the same choreography and I was able to fit in with little rehearsal time. We performed Beauty for the school matinee in 1964, so we all learnt that in rep classes. Most versions I've seen of Beauty recently bear almost no resemblance to the dances we learnt for the Fairy variations and Garland Dance. What does sometimes seem pretty much the same is the choreography for the Nymphs. I wonder why some parts are changed and some remain the same?

I am totally an Eifman groupie! They are an amazing company!! The dancers are incredible and appear to be able to dance anything that Eifman throws at them brilliantly. The girls are indeed very tall with gorgeously long legs. Eifman choeographs his ballets usually in two acts, with a lot of drama and different styles of dance, although it is obvious that they are all classically trained in Vaganova. The music is always a collage from a mixture of composers. He brings new ballets every time his company tours and I think I've seen them all so far! I imagine they're not touring this year for obvious reasons- just hope they're surviving............

I agree with first talking to her current teacher to see what she suggests,but honestly 30 minutes a week??? My 9 year old Great Niece is currently taking two 60 minute classes a week in RAD Grade 3 ballet, plus a 60 minute Flamenco class. At the very least your daughter should be having 2 x 45 minute classes a week. Is the 45 minute class on Saturdays also in Grade 2? That could help substantially. Also a 30 minute private lesson could be good. Whatever you decide about the other school I think you should tell your current teacher that you're considering it in order to get extra hours. That might give her an added incentive to find a solution for you!

When I left my grammar school to go to a performing arts day school with an emphasis on ballet and dance, my headmistress tried to dissuade me by telling me that I wouldn't be able to go on to university from there. Maybe not, but when I was 50 I got a first class honours degree in Ballet and Contextual Studies through the RAD, which rather proves that it's never too late! Many people have told me that they envy me for having spent my working life in a field that I love. Too many get stuck in jobs they hate. Of course it's important to make a living, but job satisfaction is also very important!

I have been dedicated to ballet since I started at the age of 3.5 many decades ago! Did I succeed in fulfilling both mine and my parents expectations? Probably not, although I think I did achieve a great deal in my varied careers as a dancer and teacher! I can honestly say that looking back I wouldn't change a thing - life has a funny way of working out. And certainly if I had had a different perfoorming career, I wouldn't have met my wonderful husband or now have a five year old granddaughter who wants to be a ballerina like Grandma! My life has been filled with ballet - dancing, watching and teaching. My parents believed in me and I will always bless them for that even if I didn't become a world famous ballerina! On a final note, speaking as a ballet teacher of many years, never underestimate the power of determination and encouragement! I have had students who were obviously talented from the word go and those who surprised me along the way. It is very rare that I totally give up on a child and it's usually not until they're at least 14. Sometimes physique is the problem and sometimes it's their own lack of desire in spite of having everything going for them! Many are talented in other dance genres. I believe that in general children who learn ballet have an advantage in terms of development of work ethics, which is invaluable in these days of instant gratification!!

I really wanted to see it because Iain Mackay danced the Prince. I am acquainted with him through the Yorkshire Ballet Summer School and he is lovely! Maybe they'll release it on DVD.......?.

I was very disappointed that this wasn't available worldwide, so much so that I wrote to them! I got a sympathetic and most apologetic reply back -it's apparently copyright issues! No idea why Scandinavia doesn't appear to have copyright issues

I haven't watched Athlete A but I did partially watch a film about a very abusive Russian teacher, which disturbed me so much that I could hardly watch -hence the partially....... She was apparently brilliant and very famous and taught many wondefful dancers, but I just couldn't bear to see these poor pupils of hers in tears from her verbal abuse. As a ballet teacher myself, I may not have students with the same potential as she did , but honestly I'd rather see them work hard and advance because of my encouragement and their desire to become the best they can be than otherwise. I don't believe that by degrading them they'll work harder -on the contrary....... i have never forgotten watching a summer intensive in the US. A Russian teacher was teaching a character class. One of the girls (an absolutely lovely dancer) made a mistake and the teacher just yelled at her with abuse until the poor girl broke down in tears. She made her do it again and again, without showing her what she had done wrong! Total waste of everyone's time. Eventually in sheer exasperation the teacher showed her the step again (she hadn't transferred her weight so as to be able to use the other foot -a very simple correction to explain) and this time thank goodness the girl saw what she had been doing wrong and the class continued. I found it traumatic to watch - how must that poor girl have felt?

I adore David Plumpton's CDs and although we normally work with pianists, my students are always delighted when I use his discs! He actually plays at Yorkshire Ballet summer school. I went to watch there and the music sounded familiar so when the teacher called the pianist David, I realisd that it was actually him!. I felt like I was in the presence of royalty! It was fantastic to hear him play live! I particularly like his West End to Broadway series. He has a lot of stuff available on Youtube if you want to check him out. His CDs are great because they give you several pieces for each type of exercise aand they are generally long enough for both sides at the barre and for a number of students to take turns doing exercises in the centre.

DeveloppeD - are you taking a vocational exam or like the Red Shoes a grade exam? There is a huge difference between the importance of the two streams of exams with regard to planning for the future. I'll give you an example - I have some really good Intermediates, whom I am planning to enter for an Advanced exam next year, so it was very important for me that they take their exam before we break up here. I told them that basically it's a win win situation -if they don't get the mark they hoped for they can blame it on Corona and if they do get a good mark, they can be even prouder than usual that inspite of Corona they succeeded!!! If we hadn't been allowed to return to our studios, so that they could get back into shape, I don't honestly know what I would have done - possibly wait till we did get back and film them - but in your case after a longer break, I can understand your hesitation. I suppose it depends on whether or not you need to pass and get on with it or if it's important for you to get a good mark.

I saw a Youtube video where someone was trying to teach how to become a better dancer by having higher extensions. She showed two photos of before and after and I suppose we were supposed to say Wow at the after photo. However, I definitely preferred the before photo! The student held her leg high, beautifully turned out and with perfect hip placement. On the other hand in the second photo, the "after" one , her leg was by her ear, but her hips and torso were displaced and I didn't see anything aesthetically pleasing about the line. So no thank you!

No need for apologies at all! You actually gave me a laugh thinking of the contrast in size and population density between the two countries! Mind you I can think some things we have in common - beach lovers, sea and wind surfers etc!!!

Elmhurst have cancelled their summer school now, but perhaps you knew that?

The RAD also differentiate between the two, although for the life of me I can't think of the actual terms! However, there is also a difference in RAD between regular grand jetés, those which start with a grands battement but still show an arc, and their jeté élancé (darting jeté) which also starts with a straight legged extension, but is straighter in shape.

No I don't live in Australia!!!! Quite the opposite! I live in tiny Israel which is 373 times smaller than Australia - their population density is 3 people per sq.km and ours is about 400 per sq.km! The UK has a population density of about 280. So yes you're quite right - it's impossible to compare figures in Australia with the situation in the UK. I think the problem in the UK was that flights continued from the problem countries for a long time and lockdown started later too. I have a lot of family and friends in the UK, so naturally I am very concerned for them. After two months plus lockdown, our figures in Israel were pretty low with only a few new cases, so they decided to gradually open schools and kindergartens and are slowly getting back to what is now the new normal everywhere. Unfortunately, it only takes a single student or teacher to test positive to see dozens being placed in quarantine, so it is still a bit scary. I'm really happy to have started teaching again, but I keep well away from all the students and really just hope for the best.

I do hope you can start before September - that is a long gap! We only stopped for just over two calendar months. I was very frustrated trying to teach on zoom. The majority of our students live in apartments and the floors are tile on cement, so no space and impossible to jump at all! We do have aĺl sorts of regulations, but we're coping. What I do think is that children are resilient and once they start again, I'm sure their enthusiasm will return. Their sudden disinterest is probably a protective measure to keep them from agonising too much about missing dance.........