LinMM

Lots of points there Anjuli......have to dash out to class now but would like to go through some when more time.

Just to say that enquiring about injuries joint probs etc is very important with older people especially the 50+ and 60+.

I did have one teacher who when I first went back didn't seem to understand why I wouldn't attempt a full plié in the centre.....I had just about started again at the barre with these.....but (and in a nice way) I held my ground and refused to do them!

I think if the centre is still at a fairly simple it's okay to keep changing the way steps are presented etc slightly each week however once just a little more complex routines are being learned it does help to run them over a few weeks I think.

In other words am likely to be hoofing it a bit on the day so will probably only do one. I'll keep looking at video and keep wishing I was Darcey no doubt! Also haven't much space here to practice at home at the moment.....my once clearer room is clogged up with things from the garage at the mo while that is undergoing an overhaul!!

One of the apple trees we grow is called Darcey Spice which I chose because of its name.

That's very well put Moomin.

Yes I suppose even in an Amateur production there is a difference (fine line as you put it) between someone who has left the choreography till the last minute because they just haven't thought about it(or maybe haven't had time to.....as amateurs do have other jobs etc) and someone who has thought a lot about it but may be agonising over a certain section etc and whether to change or not......sometimes in amateur situation because dancers may not be coping with it that well! Professional dancers will be much better and quicker in picking up new steps etc.....and should be ......they do an awful lot more dancing!

Having enough rehearsal time in the actual place you are performing is often a problem for amateur productions but I guess.....for different reasons....this can be a prob in professional world too.

Really sorry to misquote you Michelle but I think I got the gist of what you were saying and that you like to be very well prepared for courses and teachers are not giving you enough info. and quickly enough.

Apart from weekly classes Ive done very few extra courses since returning to ballet as its only now have felt strong enough.....and these with Franziska who is extremely well organised as you can see so have not experienced so far what you have about lack of response and organisational skills etc.

Will PM you nearer the next course date in July so we can meet up properly perhaps for a coffee before course starts?

As for the August one do you think you will be able to,memorise those solos from just seeing the videos.....it's helpful to see the variations of course but not sure I'm up to it!! I tend to memorise by doing in the end and certainly won't be able to write all the steps down!!

Another useful aid in a non syllabus class is where in the centre practice for say an adagio or allegro section is repeated over a number of weeks (4 seems about right) before it is changed. This gives one time to get to grips with the sequences and to give it ones best shot at attempting to actually "dance".

Yes being moved into correct position can be very helpful. I remember a teacher moving my body back (I had not realised I was so far forward even though had been told) at the barre. It felt very strange at first as felt as though I was leaning back now but the rest of the class was asked to confirm that I was now actually straight up (in a nice way) so this helped a lot in being more aware of being correctly placed over ones hips etc.

Forgot to say the robins are now fledged saw two babies in garden this morning. At least now the starlings re getting a bit more independent it's not quite so noisy at 5am!!

So true about peonies such a nuisance! And worse with tree peonies which tend to have just one or two very large blooms.

The ones in the front garden have just started coming out so guess the wet and windy scene will be in full force by the end of week!!

Well probably most cat lovers wouldn't have been that surprised by most of the info in this prog....anyone with a cat flap I'm sure will have experienced a stranger in the kitchen nicking the cat food!!

I was a little surprised at the suggestion that cats didn't actually catch that much in a whole week....as I'm sure not all "kills" are brought home for owners to see. But although this does vary from cat to cat I'd pretty much bet on a longer experiment it would be more than half a mouse a week!

Ive observed many times that cats try to avoid confrontation whenever possible though if they don't its always at three O clock in the morning in YOUR garden!!

When I lived in London in the wilds of Islington along our road there was a huge uncut Tom ....big black and bit of white cat who did have a bit of an evil look about him.....I wouldn't like to have bumped into him in dark alley anyway......On one occasion I saw my then cat Toscar meet up with this Tom and thought....oh no....Toscars pain....and vet bills etc...however although there was a lot of yowling going on Toscar eventually just lay down and (rather wisely I thought) and the Tom went on his way! I also saw this repeated with other cats....this lying down in submission ...it does prevent a lot of fights I think.

The "timeshare" on territory was interesting though.

Balleteacher will give this some thought as want to make an effort to keep my posts a bit shorter. But would like to say at this point that I agree with Just Ballet on her experience of having to repeat often physically to remember an enchainement and that sometimes in a newish piece it's not until I hear the music that the memory of the steps kicks in. Body and music together seems to ingrain the memory.

Naomi M

Yes I forgot the Royal Ballet on tour to Japan!! You can keep us updated with any performances you see. Who knows there may be some such stunning performances from the younger dancers that they'll earn their promotion over there!!

Until you know what is actually causing these nodules to form a supplement will be of little use. Once you have sought professional help and have some idea of the cause then future supplements or dietary advice might be of benefit in a preventative sense.

Is there anyone else in your family who has something similar and does NOT do ballet?

Balletteacher your post is very apt.....I was so long winded doing my post we sort of overlapped!

Michelle I hope you've managed to find the link now for the August course.

Well this teacher certainly couldn't be more helpful......you can see what you'll be learning on Youtube!! Very explicit!! I'm looking forward to it though the variations are hard......I can still see Fonteyn doing that solo.....with her wonderful arms and just seeing that clip of Darcey reminded me of how effortless and graceful her dancing is!! I fear mine will definitely be a bit of a clod hoppy version of that!! But just having a chance to have a go with that music should be pretty energising....hopefully.

I do understand your concern about changes to choreography etc at the last minute and this is because us Going Back to Ballet lot are AMATEURS! It is much easier for PROFESSIONAL dancers to cope with this sort of thing!!

However there is nothing like an audience out there to drive home respect and you think....crikey they've just PAID to see me dance HELP!! And of course you want to do your very best for them and your own self respect! And it is this that makes you want to be able to perform to the best of your ability and hence the security of knowing the choreography etc. So in one sense it's commendable to want to be on top of your game. On the other hand the audience also know you are AMATEUR performers and will probably forgive you the odd mistake!!

However dancing is in the creative field and of all the Arts is the least written in stone!! Sometimes the choreographer has ideas in mind but its not till they're actually seen and with the particular dancers in front of him/her that it is seen whether it works.....and sometimes one change leads to another.....

Just to share(Chelsea Ballet again) ....sometimes even if you do know the choreography backwards and have performed a particular dance several times before unexpected things can happen in performance like....well...your mind just suddenly goes blank! We were doing our version of The Nutcracker one year and I was in the middle of a Spanish dance which I had done before when suddenly my mind just blanked.....but somehow sheer fear kept me going making it up as I went along.....I had to do SOMETHING to the music!! I just hoped it was a bit Spanishy. I suddenly got back on track again towards the end. Probably only Thelma(who founded and ran The Chelsea Ballet) and one or two others realised what had happened though.

I am pretty sure though the vast majority of ballet teachers who put on courses are not trying to keep their attendees down! (I think you said Michelle they were "trying to steel your thunder"). That smacks more to me of attitudes in the big business world and the horrible insecurity of people trying to protect their jobs by always having to be ahead of the game.

The last you thing you want as a ballet teacher is people struggling abjectedly in front of you! As it is no good for your own self respect. You want to see people striving but thriving and happy in front of you as that makes you feel happy and successful as well.

Dont worry about having the odd thing go wrong Michelle as these are the memories that will make you laugh years later anyway!

But again very good luck with your coming performance!

Sorry this does go on a bit.

Really hope you can make it Just Ballet!! Especially as you like pointe work so both these will be great for that. Franziska says you can learn both if you want so will see how Im feeling on the day! Which one do you most fancy?!

She usually does her workshops nicely secluded away in a big studio near Old Street......this is first one at The Place where most studios are nice and airy too and its easy to get to.

We don't usually get much of a break on the day (about 15-20 mins for lunch usually) so if you come make sure you have a big breakfast!!!

If you can't make that one she has another one towards the end of September but like the Pirouette one in July this is not so repertoire based which is why this August one will be particularly enjoyable I think as the last one I did like this was really good fun....learning one of the Odalisque variations from Le Corsaire.

Franziskas website is www.holisticballet.com

If you go here there is a link on the page to the latest August workshop. This is to be held at The Place.

For info on work at her studio www.shoreditchstudio.co.uk

Both pieces look quite hard and with my angel wing arms not sure about the Sleeping Beauty one

But the Darcey solo I quite like so will probably opt for that one myself......so better start working on speed of delivery as it sure is fast!!

Thanks for that Naomi M!

I understand how you would feel to lose her but hope she comes to UK!! I would like to see her dance!!

Perhaps as in the Greek Myth like Persephone, she can do six months in UK and six months in Japan!!

It's lovely to have someone from so far away posting on the Forum. Have you seen The Royal Ballet perform?

Just had an email from Franziska Rosenzweig who has a pirouette workshop coming up on July 13th.

She has just added an additional workshop in August.....which will be again more repertoire based. This is to be on August 24th which admittedly is the sat of the Bank Holiday w/e. so could be difficult for some.

On her Holistic Ballet website page she has posted links to YouTube so can see the two female and male solos will be learning that day. Wish I could post links but will be learning soon.

These can be learned on pointe or demi. As this is a level 2 workshop even some of her regular on pointe people(from her classes at Danceworks) do the repertoire bit on demi......last time there were about 6-8 strong pointers,not that many, so when see on Youtube can judge for yourself what you can cope with!!

I can thoroughly recommend her workshops which are from 10-2.30 so don't take up the whole day. She charges £40 if paid a month in advance (July 23rd) this time.

It's a good day with 45-50 mins of Pilates as warm up; 50-60 min barre; short centre practice and then the focus of the day which will be learning these two solos.

I don't want to get into a discussion about who is the best "Japonese " dancer etc but would like to thank you for the clips lifeisnotdance as Ayako Ono looks to be a lovely dancer.......and haven't yet seen Aladdin either so must go. Did you say she is no longer with BRB company.....I have never heard of The New National Theatre.....where are they based? Is this back in Japan?

I don't have much knowledge of the acting skills of any of the other 4 mentioned unfortunately which could well play a part in the promotion stakes. We don't see them in rehearsals etc when strengths and weaknesses may come out but they all seem promising young dancers. Anyway I'm sure the RBC management are not going to take any notice of the opinions of people on this forum about who they want to promote to Principal level! So exchanging who your personal preferences are......as long as you are not making destructive comments about any particular dancer seems harmless enough to me.

I quite like your list Jamesrhblack. Would definitely like to see more of Claudia Dean and Olivia Cowley. I had no idea that Beatriz Stix Brunell has been injured as I would also like to see more of her.

I like what Ive seen of Yuhui Choe and to me she seems generally more confident than Kobayashi so sorry to hear she is not being offered more.

Ive only recently seen Fumi Kaneko but she was one of the ones who stood out for me in Symphony in C last week along with Olivia and Emma Maguire.

I think the Company seems strong at the moment inspite of the recent Principal losses and with Osipova joining too I'm sure it will be an interesting and successful season.

Yes I do seem to remember a few hair raising occasions when danced with Chelsea Ballet in 70's and 80's when had to learn a role at last minute because somebody was ill or injured! And then hoping the costume would fit!! In for a penny in for a pound as the saying goes

And it's not just bits of last minute choreography being changed/added etc there are other unexpected things that can happen right in the middle of the performance!

Once performing at Harlow Theatre there had just been a terrific thunderstorm and we were about to perform our next dance. Well first the tape wouldn't play so we were standing on the stage like lemons wondering whether to just run off again. That got sorted and then as we finally began our dance water started streaming down from the roof and onto the stage. It took all our reserves and a lot of avoiding eye contact to finish piece without collapsing into attacks of hysterical giggles.

Ironically enough the piece was called "Spring Romance".

But good luck with your performance Michelle!

Sorry it's a no this time KatyCustard but wishing your DD every success in the future

Yes groups of mums appearing to be standing around and gossiping in playgrounds can seem intimidating at times!! But in most cases are usually absolutely fine on individual level!!

Sometimes it is the parents who do keep animosities going though when the children would like to be friends again.

One of the most difficult things I was asked to do .....on the demands of one parent in particular....was to try to keep two boys apart!! One was Turkish and one Kurdish. The trouble was during the day they got on fine and often played together but I had been warned on no account must they sit next to each other in class!! But then they often chose to be partners......and I didn't stop them.

One of the sets of parents I discovered didn't really feel that strongly about it....to my relief. But the other lady was incensed and went off to see the Head with threats of withdrawing the child and so on. Luckily the Head backed me up and in fact to his credit reminded her she had signed an initial agreement about general school policy and said if she didn't now agree with this perhaps it would be better to withdraw her child. Well no more was said after that and I like to think the boys remained good friends at Junior level at last before the sometimes rather more vicious values of the adult world started to impinge.

I know this is not about ballet but I think could be relevant in the context. Sometimes children can be wiser than adults on occasions and solve their own problems and at other times they need our help and it is hopefully the life experience and knowledge of us adults to discern when to intervene and when leave well alone.

I recognise from my years as a teacher some of the posts which say girls who were once not good friends eventually become so. This happens more often than one might think.

Sometimes one child really wants to be friends with or in the friendship group of another....who does not recognise this equally......and this can be at the route of problems between the two. Once some sort of rapprochement between the two is made the problems disappear.

I like the post where the parent gave strategies to her daughter....approaching the fringes of a hostile group and making an effort to link in with them.....this probably took the power away from the main instigator....It was nice to know they then later became friends.

It is important I think to try to give empowerment to children whenever possible in difficult situations (as above). Even as adults

We can all become victims at times in life but soon learn that this is not a particular productive position to be in so develop the resources

to avoid this and children need a little help from us with this too.

Is this RAD Lilac?

You may find it interesting that I think just recently RAD are making either a minimum age for some of the more advanced exams or a maximum time spent in the grade(sorry not sure which) so pupils can't be rushed through the system unnecessarily fast.

My friends daughter who was 13 in March is at RAD Advanced one foundation. In theory she could be ready to take the exam at end of July but may have to wait till January under the new rules.

It does sound like a good idea in some ways so teachers are not just teaching pupils to pass exams (would also be appropriate in the non ballet world!!)

If she could at least go into an Intermediate ballet class now I would think she is still on track.....probably good to have passed an exam in.....or have good knowledge of Advanced level by 16 but there is no hard and fast rule and depends of course how much she wants to concentrate on a classical ballet career. But often if girls are just a little bit older when getting into vocational level grades they are also stronger physically and so can cope a little better with the material.

What a weirdo examiner your brothers friend must have had 2dancersmum......what did he expect him to do carry on and plough into all these silly cyclists(in this instance)!

Balletbun I hadn't realised your daughter was leaving....and due to financial reasons....so so difficult all this. But in fact to me makes your daughter's situation even worse. To have to take a final leave in this way.......what should be a cherished memory ruined like this. Is there no way before the end of term that anything can be rectified so she can say goodbye to her real friends properly?

I have no idea what the pastoral care is like at any of these vocational schools but it should be of particular good quality when children are boarding in this way. However some children can be very self contained and not want to make a fuss etc so some things may get missed by the teachers or house staff. Though again one hopes there is an atmosphere deliberately set up that would encourage children to quietly share their problems with a trusted staff member who can then hopefully deal sensitively with the situation.

I really hope this gets sorted to suit all.