Thecatsmother

I think ENBS are back at Hortensia Rd site just now. It might be worth finding out when they will move back in with the company as I imagine the journey from S Kensington to City Island might be a bit of a trek and take more time than the current set up.

This article might be useful https://www.pointemagazine.com/ballet-audition-rejection-2544971876.html

The problem with this approach is the focus upon catching and measuring symptoms. The ‘symptoms’ are a sign of something much bigger that requires treatment and no doubt systemic changes within schools/companies if there is to be any hope of long term change. Additionally, students would need to feel safe to ‘self disclose’ and there would also need to be treatment available which would include psychologists/psychotherapists with experience of working with ED’s and other associated difficulties rather than just safeguarding and a measuring system which no doubt is exacerbating the problem. If you talk to or work with patients with ED’s it becomes apparent just how much headspace regular weighing takes up. It is not as simple as ‘making it quick and low key’. No doubt the knowledge of impending mass weight checks triggers a whole host of compensatory behaviours within a competitive school system which then also has the potential to trigger those whom eating ‘distress’ was not a concern initially. It is very true that often young dancers with eating issues are often favoured, featured in photos etc. In terms of modelling to a group of young students, perhaps this is something that schools could consider-what messages does staff/management behaviour towards dancers with eating disorders communicate to other students/professionals. For example, if someone who is known to be suffering from an eating disorder is used as a regular poster dancer for the organisation, what does this communicate to other dancers? I am not saying we should discriminate against those with mental health conditions but perhaps we should consider whether certain practices discriminate against those without eating disorders. We need to change the system to help dancers long term and develop more effective ways that the system can be accepting and supportive of those experiencing mental health difficulties.

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng69/chapter/Recommendations#identification-and-assessment

This does not relate to any dance school in particular but there is a file with the NSPCC logging incidents/concerns in dance schools which can be added to in confidence.

Teaching resilience is important but certain basic things need to be in place in order to be able to reach this point. If a dancer feels threatened or is unable to trust the system (understandably in many cases) then I very much doubt they would ever get near looking a issues such as resilience. When anyone is in a great state of fear as a result of a systemic dynamics or past experiences then it is clear in the hierarchy of emotions that fear will top anything else as a young person is trying to keep themselves physically and emotionally protected. The problem is that this really needs to be addressed at a systemic level amongst staff in schools as so many teachers are actually re-enacting what was done to them even if on an unconscious level. Perhaps if we could start to help the teachers, directors etc to heal emotionally then they can be in a better place to hep dancers. There is a culture of ‘we had if much tougher than you’ that still exists and reinforces the problem.

I am not sure if there is input from psychologists or psychotherapists in this school? I work professionally with young people who have eating disorders. The weight of a young person is a symptom of the problem but this needs to be addressed from multiple angles. Accessible counselling/psychology services out of school are extremely important to provide early intervention before someone resorts to expressing distress through eating. Young people don’t just wake up one morning and decide not to eat etc for no reason. The ‘distress’ part is what really needs to be heard here. If a school provides a route where students know that their distress will only be noticed by the school through their weight then it ‘can’ provide a very accessible non-verbal route for expressing distress. Unfortunately, it can be a bit too convenient for some dancers who have already chosen a non verbal form of self expression from an early age through their art form. The reason I say that therapy should be available to students out of school is that it perhaps provides an environment where they are more likely to open up and it reduces fear of feeding back into a school unless there are safeguarding issues. It also helps to safeguard young people as there is more of a possibility for a dialogue if the distress is caused by something/someone within school. My comments are not levelled at any school in particular. They are based upon what I have seen ‘can’ work in some schools in addition to what I hear reported by dance students. Eating disorders can become ‘contagious’ within a dance school but there is alot that schools can do to look at how they respond to eating disorders that can help. Is the thinnest dancer featured in all advertising? Are the thinnest dancers given all the best parts? How do students see the school responding to eating disorders? Is it ignored, praised or something which is seen as a restriction? The unconscious biases of a dance school and its teachers will also come into play here. Work with the teachers in addition to the students as no doubt many are replicating their own past experiences.

They have the most in depth eating disorder policy of any dance school I have seen which suggests they have had a need to have this maybe? I agree that weighing 6 times a year will generate problems in and of itself.

I would imagine it would be hard to control for other variables like calorie restriction, training load, age, teaching style, rep of a company to make claims about changes in size being due to one or two variables only. What is all too apparent is that words of teaching staff etc stick in the heads of young dancers hence the need for huge care when addressing issues like this and a lot of appropriate steering from parents/carers when these type of messages are identified. Some pretend that eating disorders are no longer a problem in dance schools. This is simply not the case but some places are better than others at not driving it underground.

Not in anyway to be linked to the names mentioned in this thread but just to make people that do not know this aware that if anyone has any concerns re abusive treatment and young people etc this can be reported in confidence through the NSPCC helpline. So often people feel unable to say anything at the time and it comes out later so it is useful to know you can do this anonymously.

Yes, I remember Jonathan’s mother who I believe taught Jonathan up until entering RBS upper school. You would need to be a vocational student or someone with years of dance experience to do credit to the work. I did Elementary and Intermediate at ballet school. It is v different from the RAD style. A lot of the old school Royal Ballet dancers like Anita Young etc were trained using this method. I remember finding the Advanced hard but syllabus has no doubt changed since then.

An additional factor to be considered when addressing the training of British dancers is the nature of teaching prior to entering vocational training. These are key years of emotional and physical development for young people where a lot of good or indeed damage can be done. The culture of fear based training needs to be stopped at any level. When the emotion of fear is online in a young dancer you will NEVER get the best out of a student. High levels of fear actually cause changes in functioning of the brain and regulation of levels of arousal. Over prolonged periods this can cause damage. There is no way you will get or even ‘aspire’ to get the best from a student when they are more terrified by the response of their teacher than anything else. This culture and throw away comments like “it’s just the ballet world” MUST stop or be stopped. Unfortunately, teachers who are guilty of such practices will be the last to admit this is the case. As a result, more needs to be put in place to safeguard students, inform parents/carers of their rights and encourage other teachers to whistleblow when they see this happening. Unfortunately, there is a huge hole in the dance world when teachers are not registered or accredited teachers. I am not going down the line of who makes a better teacher (ex pro dancers vs trained teacher etc) but instead addressing this from the perspective of how do we safeguard students and indeed professional dancers if there is no regulating body to which a teacher is accountable. This leaves a cohort of teachers who are not obliged to practice via any code of teaching standards, ethics, safeguarding practices etc. Some may say it is up to a school/company etc to deal with situations like this but what if they do not? What if they deny there is a problem or, worst still, blame the dancer. It is not uncommon for faculty to act in a similar manner or become imbedded in a school/company where there are inadequate safeguarding/anti bullying policies in place in the first place? This is a tricky and heartbreaking dynamic as it results in a situation where there is the potential for abusive teachers to become untouchable. Most will know that social care will show very little interest in incidents of this level. How can this ‘loophole be addressed’? Additionally, how can parents/carers/teachers etc have more confidence in systems put in place by teaching regulating bodies and schools. Students need to be nurtured from a young age to give the best opportunities of a successful career. Surely, the emotional aspects of teaching must also be addressed alongside the technical standard of teaching the next generation of UK students. I have no doubt that the talent is there but the formula is much in need of an ‘honest’ and indepth review.

I have been 3 times and sat on all levels now. Pretty good legroom in stalls. What I would warn is the centre of the front row in circle and upper circle especially the middle 10-12 seats has appalling legroom. As it starts to curve round at the sides this improves notably. Be warned. Take a torch to find the number on your seat too😊

I did have a look online but did not find anything. Does anyone know where she trained as a teacher as that might be linked to MA maybe?

Very true Ballet4Boyz. Not a teacher I have encountered during my training. Out of interest, where did Miss Rist do her Masters degree?

V small things like buying a Theraband and doing some foot exercises plus even some gentle stretching at home will help. Feet and calf strength always takes time to come back. Good luck

Have you made it clear to the teacher that your reason for having to stop extra lessons is not a lack of interest but for financial reasons?

Me again. I would also check out Kathryn Morgan's you tube resources. I believe she does some online classes you can access too.

Here it is. http://www.balletcoforum.com/index.php?/topic/7252-free-resources-for-dancers-who-are-unable-to-attend-summer-schools/?fromsearch=1

Not sure if you can access the free resources thread I posted in the summer?

I personally enjoyed Osipova's performance but agree that with more exposure to the nuances of Ashton she will grow into the role further. She seemed ill at ease in the tricky solo in act one but seemed to relax into the role as the performance progressed. I enjoyed the vitality and power which McRae brought to the role but as I have not seen other performances it's hard to compare with other pairings. Technically he was on strong form. I would agree with comments re the clog dance. Although I enjoyed Moseley's interpretation of Widow Simone, the clog dance seemed slightly out of time with the orchestra until the friends joined in. Even then there seemed as if something was missing in terms of chemistry and it lacked polish and the strong sense of rhythm needed to carry it off. The friends performed well but the discrepancy in height of some of the dancers seemed to spoil the look in certain parts. Despite these small issues, the company seemed on strong form and the performance was clearly enjoyed by the audience.

That takes me back to a memory of my mother making a red tutu for me about aged 10. She was on the phone but piles of net on the floor and me jumping around as usual. Managed to land on a needle which went right through my big toe and out the other side. Not sure how it happened but still remember my mum having to leave mid phone call and pulling the needle out my toe. I think I was a bit in shock by the sight at the time but no major damage done. I was more careful with shoes after that though!

Sounds as if it's a case where the proposed course of treatment not funded by medical insurance maybe?

Am wondering if treatment is classed as 'evidence-based' as in a lot of cases it would have to be self funded as insurance or nhs might not pay or carry out. Not to say it might not work just an additional factor re some treatments in terms of there being insufficient evidence at present for it to be funded. Hope your friend is able to get whatever she needs to move towards recovery as it can be a slow and frustrating process.

Try the Lisa Howell flexibilty program mentioned on forum before