Anna C

If it's not a silly question, why not just join a beginners' class? London has plenty of options at Pineapple, Danceworks etc. Is it necessary to take what is essentially a pre-beginners' class? Welcome to the forum, by the way. :-) (edited for typo)

She'll probably grow out of them before she kills them, Lemongirl! :-) Dd's feet seem to have stopped growing for now (hopefully!) so now the shoes just die when they've had enough. The Blochs started to creak horrendously like an old door, and Bloch checked them and said the shank had just about had it. The Freeds were easier to spot as it was suddenly really easy to bend the shank and you could feel that there was no support there. But if you're not sure, the shops (or your teacher) will check them for you.

When you pour hardener in them, does it make them uncomfortable? Or can't you feel it? My dd wears ouch pouch pro pads which only have padding on top, not underneath - would she feel the hardener? Sorry if that's a silly question! :-)

Well you know all feet are different; my dd has strong feet but not very high arches. Plus her feet kept having growth spurts so combined with not doing much pointe to start with, she would outgrow pointe shoes before she killed them. She did manage to make her Freed Classic Pro (hard shank) shoes last for the entire run of EYB rehearsals and performances, but a week later the shanks broke. Bloch Jetstreams were a nice fit on her but she killed them within a couple of months. The longest lasting shank was actually her Grishko 2007 Pro-Flex - sadly the box and vamp of that model didn't suit her feet at all, but I was impressed with the longevity and endurance of the shoe! We're back in Freed Classic Pro now; I don't think they'll last very long but like the Bloch Jetstreams they do look nice on her feet. Edited to add 30 minutes pointework at Associates, plus Inter and Adv. 1 classes in the week and some pointework in her private lessons.

I particularly like Olga Evreinoff. We were fortunate enough to watch RB Company Class a few years ago and Olga was teaching. She'd reel off long combinations at lightning speed, say "Was I clear?" and about a nanosecond later, "And...1". Fortunately, she obviously was clear! :-)

Famcandance, how far from you are the Scottish Associate schemes, if you don't mind me asking? Would one be at all possible?

Well we've had this discussion before... :-) There are so few funded places in the UK that it can't be the case that no funding = not talented enough. What it means is that those who can shine on the day, and who have the right physique and potential at that time, are in with a chance of a funded place. It does not allow for having an off day, going through a growth spurt, or simply developing physique/technique/confidence/performance at a different rate! Some children are ready to shine at 10, others at 12, 14 or 15. For those later developers it's vital to keep up enough good quality training if they are to have any hope of training at 16. If that is not possible, then sadly, yes, it might be time for a re-think.

As admirable as that is, it leaves no scope for injury, change in physique, being assessed out, or even "Mum, Dad, I don't want to be a singer/dancer/actor any more, I actually want to be a Doctor/Zookeeper/whatever". It's such a huge amount of pressure on young shoulders! In effect you're saying "We sold our house so you can do this, you HAVE to succeed".

Good question! I googled it and it seems to be some kind of health and fitness qualification...?

Thanks Jane, that's really helpful. Dd's favourite subjects are German, Music, and the chemistry strand of science, which I guess explains why she is so keen to do her GCSEs at her current school! :-)

Exactly right. I'd absolutely love to let my dd audition for YDA but even with a scholarship (unless they could offer a full scholarship!) it would be completely beyond us. I do hope they consider applying to be included on the MDS scheme as they obviously get super results. I would be interested in how many GCSEs you can take there though.

Balletmadmom, how many GCSEs do the children take at YDA? My dd is very academic and her GCSEs are a real priority for her. She's looking to take 12 or so including music and Russian. She has a friend who is very happy at YDA but loves the range of GCSEs she can study at her academic school.

Thanks for this, I must get round to booking as my Aunt always sends us money for Christmas which we usually use to see Nutcracker. Having done Nutcracker for the past two years we're going to have a change and see Beauty after Christmas.

That's wonderful news Lil! So pleased for your lovely dd. :-)

Yes, as far as I know Tring only has MDS places for the Dance Course, but has a few scholarships for Theatre Arts (the lower school Musical Theatre course). It should be remembered though that Tring has far fewer MDS places than Royal Ballet School!

Sounds like you might end up elsewhere Fiz; what a shame. :-((

Even if you receive disability benefits you have to get a doctor's letter proving that you cannot go to the ROH without a companion, otherwise you just get a small discount. The Coliseum's Access Scheme is fantastic AND it's easier to book because even though (like almost all venues) disabled customers can't book online, it's a million times easier to book at the Coli. Last time I booked ROH tickets I had to hold on the phone for over 3 hours because Access bookings go through the main box office number!

Thank you x

That's a great idea Klaris. The only thing that has put me off watching ballet at the cinema is that so far, the screenings have been on a weeknight and finished late. We're 30 minutes drive from the nearest cinema which would have meant a very late schoolnight. As dd gets older that becomes less of a problem. With regards to the cheap seats at ROH, do remember that not everyone is physically able to make use of them. I need minimal stairs, extra legroom and the most comfortable and padded seat I can afford, just to be able to get through a performance. The ROH do give a small discount to Access Members but I still find I need an expensive seat there regardless. Hence we tend to see ENB more often than RB as the Access discounts are better at the Coliseum. :-)

I was shocked only yesterday when my dd told me that one of the girls in her year (year 9) has had a party where there was alcohol involved. I did try alcohol at home when I was 15 but certainly would not have done at 13! She thinks that smoking is a "stupid and bizarre" thing to want to do, and if offered/pressured, she plans to say "No thanks, my ballet teacher would murder me!" so we can only hope that works. I'll be checking out any party invitations from now on though. I know teenagers will inevitably try alcohol at some point but not in Year 9 if I have anything to do with it!

Thanks hfbrew. :-) Hopefully she'd be going with a friend who's at Vocational School so at least would have the reassurance of a familiar face. How are the children grouped, do you know? By age and/or ability?

Sorry if this has been answered before but are the classes very big at YBSS? Thinking about it for next year, my dd will be 14 and have (hopefully) taken Intermediate in the Spring. She's very shy though so I would worry a bit about her shrinking into the background in a very large class.

Ah, it wouldn't load for me at 7.45 this morning but I thought it was just the ipad being slow.

Well, the first thing you need to do is to go to look at all the secondary schools in your area, and apply for the ones you like the most, because as you know, vocational school places are sadly very limited. Even if you let her audition, funded places are so rare so you need a Plan B. I would suggest going to as many open days at Voc. schools as you can, having explained to your dd first that this doesn't constitute a promise to let her audition. If you all like the schools (and take your dh along too!), then you can have a talk about which school(s) you might apply to. Also, what does your dd's teacher think? Does she think she would be suited to vocational training? Would she support the applications and be happy to write reports if necessary? If after all this you are happy to let your dd audition, I would let her under the proviso that to accept a place, it would have to be funded. She may agree to this quickly, but the reality of having to turn down an unfunded place can be very very difficult in practice. How do you think she would handle rejection, if the worst came to the worst? Would it eventually spur her on to try again, or would it make her want to stop dancing?

If I were you, I would definitely audition for there and Hammond again inthe next few months and hope for a place for next year, as sadly it doesn't sound as if this year's going to be possible. Am I right in thinking that even if boarding could be arranged, funding for Hammond was still a problem?