Kate_N

Gosh < blushing > thank you. It comes from long years of dealing with undergrads who think we are telling them they are inadequate people when we mark a performance at 58%.

Oh and the other thing to say ... (gosh, I am full of advice today !!! 😋 ) is that it's particularly tricky examining & assessing performance. Performance is often very closely connected with a sense of self - it's about one's body, one's voice, one's feelings as expressed in performance. Students getting a 55% for an essay, students will often say "Oh well, that's fair enough, I wrote it the night before." Whereas, a 55% for a performance is interpreted as a slight against them as a person. But it is not. Marking is always about the work. Not the person. The difficulty is that "the work" is the pupil's own body - and their sense of self. So could your DD start to think about her body as her tool or instrument, and feedback is about how to use that better? It's not that she is an insufficient person, but that her teachers believe she can improve how she uses her tool of communication. And that her aim as a performer is not to show her feelings, but to perform in such a way as to make the audience feel? Take away the personalisation. Assessment isn't an expression of personal feelings - teachers really don't have the emotional energy to hold strong feelings about individual pupils.

I always advise my students (undergrads) that 'Comparison is the thief of joy.' We mark & assess individuals according to a set of criteria - we don't mark/assess individuals by comparing them to others.** Individuals are marked differently because well - they're individuals and all different! And the other thing to say - from the point of view as an examiner and assessor of performance - is that we often give the same mark for very different reasons. I'd advise you DD to look at the narrative feedback, not the number. A number (on what scale? 1 to 10? 1 to 5?) is a fairly blunt instrument - even a percentage mark (ie out of 100). The written feedback is the important thing, not the number. The further thing I say to students is that "Feedback is a gift" - it's up to the receiver to decide what to do with it. If we are never told what is deficient, as well as what we're good at, how can we improve????? I'm currently doing some fairly intensive personal training at the gym. I "fail" regularly - I can't do a full body-weight pull up (yet!) and with heavier weights I sometimes fail at the 4th or 5th repetition (getting stuck at the bottom of a heavy back squat, oh boy). My trainer persistently reminds me that it's the point of "failure" which is the training point: it's where I learn my current capacity, and the point at which I need to train, so that it becomes my starting point, not my failure point. **The educational technical language for this is 'criterion-referenced assessment' The comparative method of assessment is "norm-referenced assessment" eg the infamous "bell curve" distribution model)

On this one - ballet isn't the only field which is tough & requires dedication beyond the normal hard work required for a specialised profession. I'm an academic. It's similarly a tough career to get started in, long hours for relatively low pay - particularly compared to others with lesser or equivalent qualifications (eg medical doctors). Most people with a PhD who want to go on to work full time as a university lecturer spend 5 to more years in part-time, or temporary university work, on precarious contracts. There's a huge drop out from those who don't have family support at that point. There are many more people with university degrees now and that filters through to those doing PhDs - but the squeeze at the end of that training - the academic equivalent to graduating from a senior high school ballet training such as the Royal Ballet School - is extreme. The professional ballet dancer in my family and I have often compared the level of talent, dedication, and luck required in ballet & academia. I'm sure there are other professions where the requirements go beyond the normal requirements of hard work, dedication & talent, not just ballet. And the skills acquired from aiming for this success are useful in the second or third careers that ballet dancers can have.

My experience of studying both syllabi (although I've never bothered with the exams) is that Cecchetti is more "dancey." I've had teachers who don't know me (eg in open classes) pick me as "Cecchetti trained", although when I travel & do classes in the US, they always pick the "English" training. I think that's the RAD influence in British training - very upright and somewhat more controlled, compared with the extended lines of, say Russian-style training, and the more fast & furious style that influenced in the USA (via the popularity of Balanchine). BUt I do find the Cecchetti work more interesting & challenging. But I think the grade levels are meant to be pretty much interchangeable. I wonder if in recent years, the RAD has stretched out their curriculum because in the UK it is almost the "default" syllabus and needs to meet the needs and education of a much wider variety of dancer skills & abilities.

Toi toi toi, BalletGremlin! A quick jog (about 3 minutes around the room) in your warm ups, and a few squats & body swings - big all-body movements to literally heat up the main core of your body and your large muscle groups always works for me in a cold studio. Big free swinging movements - won't harm you, and will get the blood moving & your body temperature up a tiny bit - literally 'warming up.'

University of Glasgow, Fri 30 Nov: "Critical Reflections: Dance and Words" Dear all, You are all warmly invited to Critical Reflections: Dance and Words, a conversation between The New York Times dance critic Alastair Macaulay and screen dance artist Katrina McPherson, on Fri 30 November, 6.30pm, at the University of Glasgow. The conversation is part of the Writing Dance Weekend, presented by The Work Room in partnership with Katrina McPherson and Theatre Studies at Glasgow. Please see further details about the event and booking below. We hope to see many of you! Critical Reflections: Dance and Words A conversation between Alastair Macaulay and Katrina McPherson Friday 30th November 2018, 6.30pm James Arnott Theatre, Gilmorehill Centre, University of Glasgow General admission is £5 via Eventbrite. For more information and tickets see: https://theworkroom.org.uk/opportunities/writing-dance-weekend-with-alastair-macaulay Alastair Macaulay has been the chief dance critic of The New York Times since 2007. Prior to that, he worked in New York as guest dance critic for The New Yorker in 1988 and 1992. He is British, however, and most of his career has been in London. He was a junior dance critic for The Guardian from 1979 to 1990; and between 1988 and 2007 he reviewed theatre, music, and dance for The Financial Times, serving as its chief in the years 1994-2007. In 1983-88, he was founding editor of the quarterly Dance Theatre Journal; in 1996-2006, he was chief dance critic to TheTimes Literary Supplement. He also taught dance history at BA, MA, and other levels at various colleges between 1980 and 2002; in the years 1987-2002, he was chief examiner in dance history to the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing. He is the author of the short biography Margot Fonteyn (1998) and the extensive book of interviews Matthew Bourne and his Adventures in Dance (2011; first edition 2000). Katrina McPherson is an award-winning screen dance artist, whose creative, scholarly and educational work is at the forefront of the international field. She has collaborated with many performers, choreographers and artists and the resulting single, multi-screen and on-lineworks have been presented at venues and festivals world-wide. Katrina is the author of Making Video Dance, a step-by-step guide to creating dance for the screen (Routledge, 2006), a new edition of which was published in September 2018. www.makingvideodance.com

Glad you enjoyed being back in class, RuthE. And isn't muscle emory a wonderful thing!

Hurrah! Have a great time. If you find your way to drop-in classes other than a Tuesday, I'd really recommend Hannah Frost's 4:30pm classes at Danceworks on Wednesdays, Fridays, & Saturdays. If you've done ballet before, her class will help your body remember; if you've not done it before, she gives lots of advice and hands-on corrections (a rarity nowadays!). As a fairly experienced ballet student, I find her classes are also a really useful tune-up and her corrections are really spot on & very helpful. She has an eagle eye & a great dry sense of humour.

I've just done some googling, and see that BalletBoost in Devon is to be held at my home studio. It's a new & really very good facility (we just moved there in September), with some gorgeous big and safe studios, as well as a good changing room, and a café on site. It's in the city centre, with easy transport links by coach, bus and train. The Studio Director is extraordinary in terms of her knowledge of ballet: she's an ex-professional who then trained to postgraduate level in dance & dance science) and vision for safe and inclusive dance training for everyone. I know she doesn't teach in the BB Associates scheme, but that gives you an idea of the ethos and atmosphere of the studio. And she only takes on outside projects which align with the ethos and vision of her studio.

Are you interested in just "Ballet Boost" or is your query more generally about training in Devon? There are some excellent local schools/studios in DEvon, which have produced some very good dancers now in the performing arts industry.

I’ve not been taught by him, but I sometimes do a class at Danceworks taught by another teacher of which Mr Simpkins is a regular member. Watching him in class is a lesson in itselfand if I lived in London I’d definitely seek out classes he teaches. He’s a beautiful dancer to watch and seems a highly regarded teacher and colleague by my teacher.

But that is likely to be the case at the international elite schools all around the world. I think we need a balance - we can't have it both ways: developing and maintaining one of the top ballet companies in the world (really one of the top 3 or 4, I'd say) and training UK nationals. At the level of the Upper School, training potential tends to convert to actual pre-professional capacity, talent & ability. It is inevitable there is a rethink of the cohort. It's brutal, but it happens everywhere.

Well, there's often a difference between 'correct technique' and 'correct technique for exam purposes' ! As others have said, the 'correct technique' is whatever the teacher sets or the choreography asks for. I was taught to spot to where I want to land, but other teachers & coaches will offer different advice, and if you're doing (say) pique turns en manege, you can't spot where you want to land as you're going in a circle - in that case I'd spot to each corner as I work my way around the circle. But for exams, you may need to check with the syllabus. Doesn't mean that other ways of doing it are not correct, however.

Also Frankiska Rosenzweig of Holistic Ballet runs regular intensives: https://www.holisticballet.com/workshops The Place offers adult dance intensives, with a mix of ballet and contemporary (I always think that contemporary is really good cross-training for ballet for adult dancers - gives fluidity and groundedness): https://www.theplace.org.uk/holiday-dance-courses

Don't underestimate how much investment - not just money - that families make in sending children away from home, and particularly those children who travel internationally for specialist education. It's not easy to up sticks and move to another country (I know this - I've been a migrant twice), and at 16 or 17 it's an extraordinary feat.

Certainly not the case in UK universities! Don't know about the RBS or ENBS, but universities get the full income from overseas students.

I'm absolutely in agreement, Anna. The UK has some absolutely leading world class educational institutions in various areas - ballet, tertiary education, art schools etc. These institutions still educate mostly lucky UK students/pupils. Students from overseas constitute a comparatively tiny proportion of the total student body. And they pay much higher fees at all levels of education (secondary and HE). I've made this point several times - overseas students subsidise the education of British students and pupils. (And by the way, overseas student fees at universities represent the real cost of a university education - which is - in some subjects - a lot over the current Home/EU tuition fee). We should be rightly proud that the RBS, the ENBS, and Elmhurst attract some of the best aspiring dancers from around the world. British influence via education is going to be one of the things that we'll need to hang on to in the next few years. And how wonderful for British dancers to get to learn alongside such a varied mix of dancers trained in a variety of national styles? All dancers need to have an international outlook - companies all over the world take a mix of all nationalities of dancers - you only have to look at any cast list of any company to see that. And just to add, in the HE sector, there is some pretty compelling research that suggests that British national students have much to gain from studying with and engaging with international students - not just observing & learning from different styles, and pooling knowledge & understanding, but also making international friendships and networks. Given that we seem set on removing ease of movement across the rest of Europe for our young people, they're going to need all the help they can get in forging international networks for work in the entertainment industry (which is a global industry) in the future.

Viv, I'm sure other people will have their recommendations & favourites as well - these teachers/classes are the ones that I enjoy and which also feel really good for my body.

Thank you Julie, for your calm and sensible moderating and sharing your advice & knowledge.

Hope you enjoy it. I always come out of Mr Pudney's class feeling energised and really having danced!

I think that the ENB classes are by the term, rather than drop-in. I only get to classes in London when I'm working here, so I have a selection of drop in classes I go to regularly, which work for me after a day grafting at manuscripts in the British Library, or endless meetings about European funding or whatever. The ENB does do one-day workshops: have a look at their events page. These are usually great fun! A ballet toning class (like Pilates) a standard ballet class, and then learning some choreography from a current ENB show. You usually then get into groups to work on something - my only thing has been that a couple of times I've landed in a group which has been dominated by a couple of dancers (once who spoke to each other exclusively in French) who don't really collaborate and so there's not much fun there to try things out. But that's just me ... For adult classes, drop-in, in central London, at a level which will challenge you but you won't be out of place, you have lots of choice at Danceworks : http://danceworks.net/classes/schedule/ Central Nights (at Centra School of Ballet) classes on Monday to Friday evenings at 7pm, and on Sundays: https://www.centralschoolofballet.co.uk/aectimetable.php Teachers I really like, who do more than just give a standard class, and who are good for (ageing) bodies are Hannah Frost at Danceworks. Her classes are rated Beginners, but she gives challenging corrections, and really helps me clean up my technique. She has a VERY good eye, and can help you wth very little things if you're more experienced, while she's also terrific at the same time with people who've never danced before. I really enjoy watching her skill as a teacher, and also appreciate her classes as a lovely "tune up" to stop me getting lazy & badd habits. Adam Pudney at Danceworks - an energetic very physical style (he's Australian & I think that shows): again, really good at corrections and working with your body. Lovely dancey class, combinations a bit more complex than Hannah's but pretty standard. But if you're used to doing set exam work, you may prefer a slower open class, if you're not always picking up new combinations in your regular classes. Nina Thilas-Mohs at Danceworks and Central Nights: very different style but lovely. Ad Nina is a lovely friendly encouraging person. I'm off to her floor barre in about 20 minutes. Again, a great teacher for older dancers - we spend a lot of time in first position at the barre, and then the centre moves really quickly - and we move! I love it. The barre might feel slow and endless tendus & pliés, but it really prepares you very well for the centre, and I leave her class - which is usually almost 2 hours - feeling as though I could start another class straight away - energised & turned out & on my legs. Desiree Ballantyne at Central Nights: again, a lovely juicy class at the barre, and then really moving in the centre. Her emphasis is on getting the whole body supple and aligned and open. Last week we were working on en dehors pirouettes from 4th across the floor (you know, that standard chassé, pas de bourree, tombé preparation) but using only one arm, and the other on our hips. Really requires one to be up and use the back - and I felt so strong and secure in my turns. Doubles with both arms were easy after that. I don't include Pineapple in my studios I like to do drop-in classes because most of their ballet classes are only an hour long. So I don't go there - but I'm sure others will have had a better experience of Pineapple, and can give you some tips & ideas. There are also other schools located further out - I tend to be working in Bloomsbury so I prefer to stay in central London. But I'm sure other dancers will have good tips for drop-in classes further out.

They're lovely garments - they look beautifully made, with great detail, although I don't like the colours - but way out of my price range!

Adam Pudney's Improvers class at Danceworks might suit you. It's a lovely class - an easy level, but energetic, and usually some fun allegro, and pirouettes - he really gets people moving. It's at 4pm on Monday at Danceworks which is very central..

I’m bumping this thread up because I’m on my phone and can’t manage to link it. This is for someone asking about adult ballet classes in central and south of England.