swanprincess

No, i dont think so but will check tomorrow

How exciting!! My mum has forever been saying how she wishes i could do an Associate sheme in leicester rather than Birmingham or London because its so much closer- i' ll definitely apply (if it can fit in to my already packed schedule!!).

Thanks Lil! Heard your dd got an amazing exam result!! Huge congrats to her & hope she's having a fab time at Tring!

Ah, thanks Taximom! On the schedule for Oxford, there were quite a few dates that were obvious school days (ie September 16th-18th) but only some dates have 'After School' written by them, which is why I asked. On the Friday of the performances for both Oxford and York, it says 'Dress Rehearsal and Performance.' Would this all be after-school then?

is the format similar for 6th Form auditions too?

On the subject of EYB, I have just recieved an Audition Pack for the York and Oxford 2013 auditions. I was suprised to find that at least 2 York rehearsals, and 4 for Oxford, are on school days. Do EYB generally expect for young dancers to take a day or more off school in order to attend rehearsals, despite that many, like me, will be studying for GCSE's? I don't think my parents would be too fond of the idea of me having to take time off school to dance, the school even less so!

ahh, thanks a lot, folks, i blamed this irritating cough and sore throat on my sister hope everyones feeling better soon tho!! and aww, poor little bunny!

its a shame Elmhurst don't have an open day- i'd love to get a look around!!

ah i saw that book in the library at school, JaneL, it does look good! Just started Jodi Picoult's Salem Falls- am captivated already!

aww, so glad it all worked out well for you, Fiz! :-D

Is it possible to audition for year 11 White Lodge? Or would they not give anyone a place because of problems with changing schools midway through GCSE's etc?

No, Spanner- as the box of a pair of my pointes is reasonably soft, I dont use ouch-pouches. I put hardener in them a week or so ago, and they're definitely not uncomfortable, and I can't feel anything different on the underneath of my foot, but the box is a lot better i used Papillon pointe hardener, the stuff from Dance Direct.

Thankyou everyone for all your lovely responses, it's really helpful How strict are they with regards to physique? Although I have quite long legs etc, I do have a mild (10 degree) curvature of the spine. It is barely noticeable, except one of my hips/shoulders is minutely higher than the other-. Is it unheard of for a dancer with a spinal curvature to be accepted on to any RBS course?

Edited to add- Thanks Amythyst, that's interesting, as I'm currently studying Intermediate; i'm glad to know that RBS don't always look for incredibly high grades etc!!

aww, congratulations to her!! so glad she's doing well xx

Hi everyone! I'm thinking about auditioning for the 2nd year of RBS Senior Associates. Does anyone know of any dd's getting a place for 2nd year, or is this very uncommon? Also, what kind of grade/standard would those accepted be? I'm not sure wether to go for it, as the auditions are held on school-days, and the audition fee plus travel to BRB or Covent Garden would make it very expensive... I auditioned last year unsuccessfully, but two of my friends, who in the past 3 years had auditioned every year for Associates/WL, getting a straight 'No' each time, were given SWL! I'm just not sure wether to 'waste my time' (as my Mum puts it, although she said if I decide to audition, she will support me) auditioning when so few places are available- although even just SWL would make me absolutely ecstatic to have been noticed ... any advice gratefully recieved

S x

thanks, Anjuli and Aurora, that makes it a lot clearer. tried a half-turn before class yesterday and ended up doing a full turn which stayed balanced en demi pointe having done the rotation! (was very smug because id seen that step in a Vaganova video, lol!) Aurora, yes i have tried turning with the mirror, and the leg is noticeably bent. will try those releves Anjuli suggested

in my pirouettes to the left, I can't seem to 'lock' back into the knee, thus causing the leg i am turning on to be bent. Any tips on how to prevent this? I have swayback knees, if that makes any difference.

shame they're not a 2 xx, they would've been perfect for me! hope you find someone who will have them

What size are the Blochs, loulabelle? x

Totally agree with that, my Suffolk pointe fitting was by far the best i've had. A private fitting (at no extra cost), the option of custom-made shoes, and the sheer wonder of being in a 'proper' pointe shoe factory make it an excellent treat!

Lemongirl, I didnt have to pre-book a fitting in Dancia, although I did have to wait 10-15 minutes because someone else was being fitted. there were lots of lovely leotards and accessories to look at in the meantime though!

ah, glad someone agrees with me about Bloch!

gosh, sorry, that post was longer than i'd intended!!

Dancia, Dancia, Dancia!! Utterly <3 the place!

Went to London last month, went in Bloch, Sansha, Capezio and Dancia. Bloch- had a rather dodgy experience there; the incredibly enthusiastic asisstant spoke very badly about my previous pointes, declaring 'Yuk! I'd cry myself to sleep if I had to wear these!!' The pointes in question were a Christmas present, and I was a bit offended by such a remark, as I thought they were very comfortable. She then asked 'Are they a bit small?' I replied that yes, they were- thinking that pointes were supposed to be a bit snug. She then, without really asking, attacked them to turn them into soft blocks. (I was perfectly mortified by this, as a) i already had a pair of barely-used soft blocks at home, and they were the only pair of pointes I currently had that fitted well!)

I then tried on at least 20 pairs of Bloch pointes, but just could not find the elusive 'perfect pair'. I felt slightly disheartened that the assisstant had not asked anything about what kind of shank, box, vamp etc I prefered, or how many hours of pointework i was doing (With my previous pointes- Suffolk- I felt that, having been very lucky to be fitted by none other than Mark Suffolk himself, Mark ensured that the shoes were exactly right for me, and ensured that they were as I needed them). Meanwhile, another young girl came into Bloch, and the assistant started fitting her too. I felt rather unpeturbed by this, as I thought that a pointe shoe fitting required the full attention of the fitter... The young girl said that her previous pair- Bloch Jetstream- had 'no demi-pointe at all, I could get about an inch of my heels off the floor before going straight to full pointe...', which concerned me, as I was paying my own money for my pointes, so wanted them to be perfect. Anyhow, I left Bloch after a rather frustrating hour, having not found the perfect shoes. (in general, the platforms seemed very small, the box pinched my feet, and the shanks felt as if they would never be broken in!)

Went into Capezio, which stocked Chacott (i think!) Suffolk Solo, and Spotlight, but not the new Stellar design. Got no pointes but a lovely leotard and split-sole canvas shoes, which i would highly recommend. Next, Sansha, which did a lovely range of onesies (which were very big- I am 5ft 1, and size 4-6, and they were all huge on me, but might fit if you're a bit taller. Got canvas and leather split-soles from there, the fitters were very good.

Last but by no means least, Dancia. Had to wait about 10 mins for a fitting, but the assistant was lovely, and chatted to us all about her dance training. She was also incredibly knowledgeable about the different bands of pointe shoe, and identified why I could'nt get over the box particularly well in my old pointes. Got some absolutely Stunning (but very, very pricey ) Mindens, which will be perfect for 6th form Auditions next year! (just hope my feet don't grow, lol!) Dancia also stocked a lovely range of Grishko, and I think I saw a poster advertising Capulet pointes, but i'm not totally sure.

Oh, and i do hope ive not offended anyone on here by being quite anti-Bloch, as quite a few people seem to have got on well there- good for you, im glad you got lovely pointes that suit you, but my personal experience there wasn't quite so good. Tulip, I think I probably wasn't served by Tiffany, who sounds great. Happy shopping, Pointytoes22!

Oh, and whilst you're in Covent Garden, if you want to you could go to Floral Street, to gaze in awe at the Bridge of Aspiration i simply had to take off my shoes & shamelessly do an arabesque right there in the rather busy street, beneath the Bridge (to my Mum's horror, who i asked to take a photo of me & the Bridge... LOL!!)

Edited to change my huge chunk of writing into easier-to-read paragraphs

had another very odd one last night- dreamt my Mum's friend came to visit, but Gailene Stock and Jay Jolley were with her!! (no idea why.) anyway, in the dream, my impulsive reaction upon seeing Miss Stock was to do a reverence- which i did, then promptly fell over my own feet.... Whoops