Clara

Ooh and just another quick question for those of you who have had children dance with NYB previously (By previously I mean a lot more recently than when I last did!!) Do any of you have a rough idea of how many dancers are recalled and how many usually make final cast? Is it still around the 100 mark?

That's brilliant news! Well done to your dd! Yes it's a really exciting opportunity. I loved every minute of it when I was with them. We were the very first year they trialled a summer school I think back in 1995! It is great fun and I made lots of friends. A couple of whom I'm still in touch with! Yes dd has a JA recall on the 21st but also the following Sunday....I was thinking this is because I requested for her to be considered for a residential place on her original application owing to our location?....But I'm not 100% sure what the difference is between the 2 auditions to be honest. It has changed a lot since I was last involved with NYB! Wow 5 hours away? Yes I don't blame you for looking into residential too!!

Just reading this thread as my 10 year old has auditioned for NYB this year and I'm already feeling exceptionally nervous about the recalls for her as I danced with NYB nearly 20 years ago myself (Only in small group parts) and I remember how high the standard was even back then! Lettiesmum we too live a couple of hours drive away so have asked to be considered for a residential place. Although I am trying to tell myself the possibility of this will probably be quite low given her age and knowing that generally many towns out in the suburbs are sometimes a bit behind the big London schools so she may not be as advanced as some of the other girls auditioning of a similar age. I’m so proud she's made the recalls though! Even if she doesn't make the cast after the finals this time, I think I'll let her try again when she's 12 if she still loves her dancing as much as she does now. Good luck to everyone who will be attending recalls at the end of April!

Thanks all! I do use Primark, especially for hair accessories but I will check out the IDS site too!

Hi everyone! On a slightly different note to my last post.......... I run my own dance school which is a non-exam, performance based school aimed at students who are maybe not technically skilled dancers but would still like the opportunity to participate in shows and experience the thrill of performing at great local theatres. (Although I am lucky to have a handful of exceptionally talented dancers who attend lots of other classes including ballet, modern, hip-hop etc!) Dancers work towards one or two shows annually and enjoy a variety of different dance styles including modern, street, lyrical, hip-hop and musical theatre. Basically, I was wondering if any of you can recommend any decent companies that provide good deals for ordering dancewear in bulk as I purchase approximately 150 dance garments a year for show costumes. I'm especially interested if anyone can recommend any companies that provide a custom made service and are reasonably priced! I already use the likes of Dance Direct and Dance Gear Direct but I'm always looking for new suppliers who can provide new and exciting costumes for my dancers! Thank you!

Thank you all for the feedback! The info and suggestions you have all provided has given me plenty of options to think about! I will definitely send her to a residential summer school next year. I will probably try for the RBS one just to see whether she is accepted based on her posture and physique within photos, but I am sure there are a lot of fantastic alternatives that some of you have suggested if she isn't successful. I may well see if she would like to audition for JA's too. I am quite familiar with Dance East as I had a ballet scholarship with them myself years ago before they scrapped the scheme in favour of the academy. There are a couple of students at the ballet school I assist at who have places with them and are both lovely dancers. But just from a personal perspective and it is just my opinion, I'm not a massive fan of the scheme and I know a lot of the top ballet teachers in Suffolk who taught at the original scholarship scheme do not endorse it which is why I would like to consider other options for dd. They are particularly strong in the training they provide in contemporary but classical ballet is a lot weaker by comparison with the exception of a few top guest teachers. For those wondering how dancers are selected from photos, they are looking at a lot of things from turnout, through to the arch of the dancers foot, their body proportions, fluidity of lines in arabesque, posture, body shape......a multitude of things! Unfortunately sometimes even if you are a lovely dancer, if your body is working against you, it's almost game over before you've started! Thanks again for everyone’s help and advice! Much appreciated!!

Brilliant thank you and yes that does all make sense! My dd is very fortunate as she has naturally strong, good feet (A family trait! ) and powerful legs. However, her arms are sometimes a little rigid and carry a bit of tension when she dances, but it is something which is improving. She hasn't got a naturally perfect turn out (although not bad by any means!) either but works very hard at it and it obviously hasn't detracted from her exam results. I guess they will be able to tell whether she has enough potential to work with and whether her strengths outweigh her weaknesses allowing them to iron out anything which isn't in line with their training! She is with a theatre company which she loves but I do worry slightly that she will have picked up some of those 'stylised' dance habits (E.g. the forced show smile!) that come with the territory! Although that said, I know several dancers from the company past and present who have successfully auditioned for JA's, White Lodge and other renowned schools with no problems so fingers crossed! You have reassured me that she isn't way too behind to consider auditioning though, so thank you! DD is 10 in September so does that mean if she auditioned for the next session of JA's she'd be in the next age group or would she still be the right age for them? Does anyone know when to apply for next season including summer schools as I know I've totally missed out on it all for this year!

Which summer schools are you going to apply to for your dd? Will you come over and stay here with her or opt for a residential school? It's difficult to decipher whether the standard which I deem to be very high regionally is high enough to cut it nationally!! This forum is great though and I'm really glad I stumbled across it!

Thank you so much for all of the info. It's so difficult to know which road to direct her towards! She just knows she wants to dance! My dd is in a bit of a strange situation I suppose because she has been dancing at the school I was with since she was 3 which is Janet's old school and is the Cecchetti syllabus. However, because the ability of the school is incredibly varied and it's a relatively small school where the emphasis is on the enjoyment of dance, not necessarily achievement and the pursuit of a career (Unlike in Janet's day!!) she is very behind for her age because they take both standard and class exams i.e. standard 1, grade 1, standard 2, grade 2 etc and they also wait for the least capable student in the class to have reached an acceptable exam standard so the process can be quite slow. However, since successfully auditioning for a local theatre company who work in association with another ballet school she has had to move over to the affiliated school to train with them which is the ISTD syllabus. She has only just taken her grade 2 with them but should now progress a lot quicker as they submit students for exams as and when they are ready. She has a lot of catching up to do, but that said she has just taken her first ISTD ballet grade 2 exam with them and was only one of 2 who are school year 4 whilst the majority were school year's 5 and 6. She received a distinction with a mark of 87 and her previous Cecchetti class standard 2 exam with distinction and a 97. She also only started modern and tap classes last September and had her first exams (Grade 1 tap & 2 modern) almost a month ago. We’re just waiting on results for those! I guess I’m just concerned that she is behind grade wise and should be more like a grade 4, but fingers crossed she has a couple of years to make up some of the ground work and then like you say, auditions can be based on that elusive 'potential' more than anything else! You must be understandably bursting with pride regarding your dd! It sounds like she has the making of a fabulous little dancer and hopefully a good chance of a successful future in the industry if she maintains the passion and drive she currently has for it!

Oh and massive congrats to your dd on her place at Elmhurst! She must be very excited and you must be extremely proud of her!

Yes, she is a fantastic teacher and has choreographed many wonderful pieces for NYB. What ballet grade had your dd reached by the time she auditioned for Elmhurst and what sort of exam results has she achieved if you don't mind me asking? I don't want to give my dd false expectations but she is very keen to pursue this, so trying to do the background research first! Also how long has your daughter been a ja and what is required of them as far as classes are concerned? Sorry for all the questions! Although I have quite a lot of knowledge of the dance world and I had a ballet scholarship for my county and successfully auditioned for NYB several times; I was only ever a 'nice' dancer, not excellent or exceptional! My dd has a lot more confidence than I had at her age and absolutely loves to perform. She is also stronger at ballet and more advanced than I was at 9, so if it's something she is serious about she's probably now at the age where I need to be looking ahead for her to see what her options may be! Unfortunately the ballet scholarship scheme in Suffolk where Janet was also a teacher is no longer running, so it's difficult to decide the best route to strengthen my dd's ballet in order for her to progress further.

Great thank you Lottie, I will definitely take a look at that one too as it's not one I was aware of. I would like my dd to go to a residential summer school as it will give her a taste of what it will be like to be away from home and the opportunity to see if she likes and copes with the amount of dancing involved. She already does between 6-9 various dance lessons a week (6 regularly and up to 9 when it's show season for the theatre company she's with) She's always enjoyed her dancing but in the last year and a half she's just really leaped forward with it and absolutely loves and thrives on it. Well done to your ds, he must be thrilled to have done so well! With my dd I know she's very talented but I don't know how she'd compare with ja's and those already receiving far more advanced training, so I guess I'll just have to see!

Brilliant thank you. The standard of NYB has always been exceptionally high. I loved it, although I was never actually strong enough to secure solo roles, I was just pleased to be a part of it! The last ballet I was in with them was Little Women many years ago! I've often thought my dd would love it. Rehearsals used to be weekly and my Dad had to drive to me to London every Sunday for weeks on end so the 2 week summer school is most definitely a good idea! Janet Kinson who I believe it still involved was my dance teacher for many years. I think I will apply for rb White Lodge just to see and if she doesn't get selected I'll send her to another one as it's all good experience for her. Thank you again!

Morning, Thank you both so much for your replies. My daughter is going into year 5 this September so would be the right age to apply for next year's White Lodge summer school. Do they specify a number of photos or positions they would like them photographed in? Failing that, can you recommend any other non-audition/pre-selection summer schools? I attended Chingford when I was younger and later on the first NYB residential summer school at Sevenoaks but I'm probably a bit out of touch now!

Hi all! Although I've danced myself since the age of 3, I've only just come across this forum as I am seeking some advice for my 9 year old daughter! She is a really keen and talented little dancer often obtaining the highest exam grades in her class....but as I'm aware being the top of your school is an entirely different thing to being at the top of your country! Having been an assistant teacher to my own ballet teacher for over 15 years I know my daughter has a lot of potential, but I also know her dancing is not flawless. I was just wondering if anyone could help me with the criteria schools such as White Lodge and Elmhurst look for when selecting applicants for their summer schools? Although I think Elmhurst is aimed at older students? I thought I'd apply for my daughter to attend summer school next year to see how she gets on and then take it from there. Is the selection process based on age versus grade? Exam results? Or are places usually offered to their associate dancers? Any information or advice you can give would be greatly appreciated! Thank you! Clara