Flora

Harwel/All4dancers- I agree exeats are a killer for the parents but as the parent of a boarder of 7 yrs now, it does get so much easier eventually, I promise you. Hang in there! I shed many a tear in the first year especially, usually trying not to let her see! At one point I thought we had made the worst decision of our lives. But when they turn into a happy, independent and self assured young person with a life long support network of boarding friends you can't help but be happy for them and accept (with both head and heart!) that your job is to equip them for life and to let them go, no more no less.... As a parent with boarders/non-boarders and mix of co-ed/single sex I honestly don't believe there is only one right way of educating a child. I bet you are both doing a good job for yours otherwise you wouldn't be finding it so tough...

I would suggest West London School of Dance but it is ballet not contemporary although they have other classes too eg jazz and tap. WLSD do not prepare for exams and the standard of teaching is very high. If you google West London School of Dance the website should come up

Thanks all- interesting debate... Could I add one thing: unfortunately I do think the speculation/"silly season" is inevitable - and actually very understandable - because when it comes to your own child you really have no idea and have to depend on other people telling you whether your child can dance or not. I always find my DD amazing to watch so it's pointless asking me if she is any good. I'm not sure why I am so biased because I have no allusions that she is hopeless at her Maths homework and quite good but far from brilliant at her French homework... The other thing is I think many on this forum have examples of strange decisions having been made for other people's children, where the passage of time (and the fact the dancer later gets in plus immediately does amazingly or doesn't do well and is more or less immediately thrown out) proves a bad call must have been made initially. For a non-dancer like me that is a bit hard to understand because even though I appreciate mistakes happen in all walks of life you do tend to think looking back "if I could so obviously tell she is great/awful and I know nothing about ballet relatively speaking why couldn't they?"...

I hope/thought it was probably only a rumour too. I guess there is always just a lot of speculation I can also imagine the best dancer in technical terms may not be the one with the most potential having said that.

I heard a rumour that some of the top schools may ear-mark places at US for one or two dancers who have not trained at vocational school but come up through other routes. Does anyone know if this is true or if it is just another case of mis-information circulating on the parent/ballet grapevine?! If it is true, I wonder if these places would be allocated on a positive discrimination basis - so the dancer would not need or be expected to be as advanced as another dancer who has trained vocationally.

My experience has been associate teachers are guarded about giving feedback on a child's chances I assume because they don't really know if they're not on the panel and they don't know who else will be auditioning.

Mae989 I really hope I won't offend anyone with this post but my impression has always been some schools pick 'bodies' and not 'dancers' at the yr 7 etc stage. If your DD is a JA she obviously still has a good body for ballet despite not getting through to all schools so I really wouldn't worry about it. From what I can see some of those taken at yr 7 don't last the course (and are assessed out in yr 9, sometimes replaced by those who didn't get in in the first place) so clearly the selection process is a bit hit and miss- or perhaps fairer to say there is some subjectivity/an art not a science etc. If those who know her (eg her teacher and any other pros who see her dance outside auditions) are enthusiastic about her then that's the only thing you should listen to imho.

Angel Thanks v much for checking this with RBS. The priority list email explains there will be another email in March so hopefully it will be clearer then if there is a space.

Balletqs - a bit off thread but I agree schools like RBS don't necessarily have the monopoly of best teachers. A dancer doing many hours with privates and group training/excellent teachers and performing and competing regularly is receiving what I would call vocational training though... If my DD was just dancing just a couple of hours a week between 11-16 it wouldn't really be realistic for her to apply to RBS Upper, ENBS or Elmhurst at 16 and I doubt her teacher would let her to be fair.

Child may not be the word for a 16 year old but you know what I mean

Agreed that each child is different. My DD would freely admit she is not talented enough to go for RBS Upper on just a couple of hours of ballet pw. It's a huge long shot even taking into account all the great teaching she gets. This summer she will be doing 2 short-ish summer schools (if I can now sign her up to something other than RBS) but no more than that. Last year she was at summer school wall to wall and it was a bit too much....

Thanks Kat09: are some of these working their socks off though with private lessons before and after school and intensive training throughout the school holidays?

Snowflake - she's really really brave at just 10 and I agree with Tabitha waiting list at that age with so many hopefuls is a genuinely good sign - she must have the look.. My DD is 13, dancing 16 hours a week at least. Even though she's doing well at vocational school so far as I can see and has had so many amazing dance opportunities she doesn't succeed in all her applications. Plus you never know as they go through puberty quite how the body will change. Sadly though I think 16 is a bit late to start training vocationally even if doing JAs and MAs before then. A couple of hours on a Saturday and a few local classes mid-week is not enough to compete at 16, when everything broadens out and there are girls auditioning for the UK schools from all over the world.

Snowflake I feel for your DD. It's so horrible seeing their tears. If I were you I'd assure her waiting list for the Royal SS is no poor reflection on her. In our time on the ballet circuit I have known of some lovely dancers not get in who have gone on to be coveted for other great dancing opportunities/roles. Selecting from photos is a bit of a blunt instrument surely - I understand all professional dancers have decent ballet bodies but you wouldn't be able to tell from ranking their audition photos which ones have the amazing musicality, love of dance and ability to perform and act that make them progress to Principals and which ones will languish in the corps because they really don't have it.

My DD is an MA at CG and our letter said Mr Annear is offering Priority Waiting List (which if we don't accept will be made to someone on the waiting list). I'd also find it useful to know the difference between these lists. Eitherway if you accept I assume you don't have to take up the place in the unlikely event one becomes available?

My DD is at YDA in London. It was our school of choice - we applied nowhere else for our DD and we haven't been disappointed. There are obviously bigger brand names in dance training but if you are looking for small class sizes, very clearly excellent classical ballet training, a happy child loving their dancing and the second to none pastoral care, YDA is a good choice in its own right (not just as a stepping stone to apply to RBS). Having seen YDA children dance alongside other vocational children their age at summer schools etc YDA are very advanced and have great musicality (what my DD calls "dancer quality") but YDA does not always have the pick of the perfect ballet physiques among 11 year olds and that impacts upon exiting destinations. All seem to go to good vocational schools but not usually RBS Upper. However appreciate that's very subjective and others may disagree with my view here... Academically there is not a big range of subjects but most of the academic teachers are top notch. One downside: extremely limited science facilities but you do get the jaw droppingly good Mr Hill. Fees are out of the range of many but they are significantly lower than other London private day schools. Our DD fees' are the cheapest of our children. There is also some financial assistance so not to be ruled out even for those who cannot afford the fees.