invisiblecircus

Here http://www.prixdelausanne.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/2015-List-of-candidates.pdf

Are they doing the video blogs and "on the spot" features like they have done in previous years? I've only managed to watch the first day's coverage so far but hoping to be able to watch more later today.

So sorry to read of your "no" Zacharovitti, it's so difficult for year 8. I'm sorry your daughter was so upset. It's understandable because even if you know the chance is small, you can't help thinking of the possibility of being chosen. If your daughter's studio is the one I think it is (you have given some hints in your previous posts) she is really getting the very highest quality of training and her dream is far from over. When I was her age, I had not even started ballet lessons, but I still made it to vocational upper school and went on to dance professionally. There are other schools out there, but even RBS is not out reach for the future. Well done to everyone who got a yes, and to everyone who got a no, don't give up, there will still be plenty of opportunites to follow your dream!

Thanks for the link, CeliB, I've been reading that website for the last couple of weeks but must have missed that part! What an amazing opportunity for your son, I don't think it's possible to enter the Prix and NOT come away with something great! I'm looking forward to seeing him and I don't even know him! There's never a good time to be in Milan, Regattah!

Thanks PdQ, I've never seen it on TV, I thought it was that way but after reading Strawberyy's post wasn't sure. I understand about the prizes and that there are networking sessions, I'm just wondering how many contracts and places/ scholarships in schools are offered as a result of those networking sessions. I know that a few competitors who didn't win prizes went on to study at the RBS for example, but don't know if that was as a result of been seen at the PDL or whether they had auditioned for a place normally.

Really looking forward to this! I noticed that the Swanilda variation is not an option this year for 15-16 year old girls, there have been rather a lot of them in recent years! Strawberyy, are the prizes awarded solely on the 2 solos performed in the finals or are the previous performances and classes also taken into consideration? I've been re-watching competitions from previous years on youtube and it's sometimes puzzling why certain candidates miss out! ETA: Is there any information on how many candidates who don't win prizes, still get scholarships and contracts?

Is there any possibility you could take some private lessons at your current studio? Or are there any classes at either a level above or a level below you could take to boost your hours? (This would also depend on how big a difference there is between levels.) It sounds as if the Boston Ballet's pre-professional programme isn't possible at the moment due to you not being able to get there, but maybe they or another major school have a summer school or Easter school you could go to.

I'm sure that they're looking for potential and will take it into account if she has not had any formal vocal training. Interesting that they do a cut after lunch. Does that mean that some of the candidates don't get to show their solos? I suppose that at least you avoid the wait for results, but I know how bad that journey home feels when you're not asked to stay as my very first audition was like that!

Sorry to hear it was a no for your DD, Jade, I hope she isn't too upset and nice to hear that she had an enjoyable day. Are you going for any other school? Approximately how many do they take to finals for WL for each year group?

You could always start that way and start offering exams in other subjects at a later date if you thought they would be popular. Personally, I think that the focus on exams is too great in the UK, but the culture is that parents do want official certificates in recognition of their childrens' achievements, so you might find that you need to offer syllabus classes in other subjects to be able to compete with other schools in the area. If you're starting a school from scratch, you'll find that your school/ business will develop over time, you don't need to decide right away what you'll ultimately be offering in the way of classes. Are you currently qualified to teach any of the subjects and enter pupils for exams or are you at a dance school studying for teaching qualifications?

It is, but that's OK isn't it? I disagree, I think there are good training options elsewhere in the UK (and outside of it!) and it also depends on what kind of dance you want to focus on. Once you've graduated though, being in London is advantageous as there are many places you can take class and network and you're close to where a lot of the auditions are taking place.

I don't think they are being secretive about the numbering system, the timing of auditions or which audition people are being put in. Someone here mentioned that they asked about the numbering system at their DD's audition and was told that it was in order of age. Maybe it's not always the same system, but they don't seem to be hiding anything there as they were happy to answer the question. Someone else was told that she had been placed in a later audition because she was travelling a longer distance, so again, they do seem to open to answering those questions. As for dance skills, I'm pretty sure they accept complete beginners into year 7 as they start from the very basics, although realistically, most candidates will have had some kind of dance training beforehand. I'm sure the school would be happy to answer questions about that too though. What sort of body type... that's a bit more subjective. We all know to some extent what a suitable physique for dance is and I would hope that anyone who does not have a suitable physique would be advised accordingly before applying (e.g. overweight girls) but they are also looking for physical facility, musicality and other requirements which they can't really judge unless they see the child in person. They're not being secretive about this, they probably don't even know themselves until they see it! At most auditions (I'm not referring specifically to RBS) they say that no correspondence can be entered into in the event of an unsuccessful application, and they can't go into specifics about things like body type for the same reason. I'm sure the auditions are authentic, but at some point of the audition, whether that is at the beginning or the end, they have to come to a decision about each candidate. For some candidates, it might well be that soon after seeing them walk in the room, they decide that that particular candidate is a "no" because she doesn't have the right poise, way of moving or physical facility. In theory they could eliminate the candidate at that moment, but I don't think anyone would prefer that they kicked people out the minute they decided they didn't want them! About the laughing during the audition, I have seen this reported a few times and not just this year. Obviously I wasn't there and while I don't doubt that the judges WERE laughing, I wonder if it is possible that they were laughing at something between themselves and not actually at a candidate. When you're in an audition, you do feel vulnerable and exposed and you're also looking for any minute reaction from the judges that would indicate whether they like you, and it is understandable that if you see them laughing you might think it is at you or another candidate when in reality it might not be.

The whole industry is a law unto itself! What should they be more transparent about? The numbering? Ultimately it's just a way of identifying people. It doesn't really matter whether it's done in age order, alphabetical order or at random. They're probably wise to keep as much as possible a mystery to avoid complaints from parents or candidates. I was surprised to read here that they didn't rotate the class, especially if it seems some candidates were less visible to them but it's also quite common in some auditions to arrange applications or numbers on a table in a way that corresponds to the position of the candidate in the class (if that makes sense!)

Many companies do use English, but dancers will still find themselves in situations where the'll need to do something in the language of that country. Rent an apartment, go to the doctor, go shopping etc. English is widely spoken in some countries like Holland and Germany but in some others, not so much! Good point about overseas students coming to the UK at 16. Those students have obviously aimed to train in the UK though, maybe with the hope of dancing in a British company upon graduation and I think a lot of British students also have the same hope. They picture themeslves dancing in a British company and don't always think about the realities of dancing abroad when applying for a 6th form place at 15.

Many schools offer significant performing experience in the final year which goes some way to providing the experience companies ask for.

Yes, absolutely. I think that a lot of students who train in the UK, dream of entering one of the top British companies but as you say, joining a company abroad is a very different experience. I trained abroad, and even though I spoke the language decently and didn't have to deal with finding a place to live or deal with bills etc, I still felt very overwhelmed with having to deal with everything in a different language. How much more difficult it must be for someone who is leaving the security and routine of a school to having to take care of themselves, find accomodation and deal with many other things for the first time in an unfamiliar culture and a language they don't speak at all. That's way out of a lot of people's comfort zone!

Are your DD's teachers recommending she enters this competition?

I agree, but they can probably tell who they DON'T want just on seeing them walk in the room! Since a specific physique is one of their major requirement and it is obvious immediately if someone doesn't have what they're after, I immagine they probably stop considering that person for a place right away.

That's true of a ballet company but as a freelancer you're with the same group of people for a rehearsal and performance period, then when the project is over you all move on to something else so you never get to form close ties with anyone. Yes, you go along with the flow every day at school, then auditioning for companies is just a part of that. But what if you don't get a contract? Your course ends, you leave school, you have to figure it out for yourself now but you're not taught how to do that. One of my friends, on failing to get a contract, became an air hostess and has never danced again! I think many students (me included) thrive on the assessments and scrutiny. Rather than seeing it as a criticism, it becomes a challenge! You want to prove the teachers wrong, but sometimes without thinking about whether the end result will make YOU happy. It comes back to what I wrote previously about focussing too much on the next assessment or performance and having graduation as your goal rather than the job.

Reading through the threads on this forum highlights the stress of auditioning for associate schemes, lower school, upper school and colleges and the seemingly endless wait for the letter or email which could set or keep you on the road to your ultimate goal of being a professional ballet dancer. I'm wondering if, for some people, just by getting through all those auditions and assessments and then the rigours of an upper school training, they kind of feel as if they have achieved their goal. Or certainly, A goal. It is hard to see beyond the end of your course sometimes, plus, when you're training, your day is pretty much planned out for you. You feel as if when you graduate, you've finally made it, when in reality, that's just the beginning. Looking for work is hard and expensive. It is understandable that the reality doesn't always set in until you actually reach that point. Before then, you're focussing on your next assessment or performance. Additionally, so many make the decision to train as a dancer when they're very young. At 11, you don't know what life as a ballet dancer will really be like. You are not considering how you'll live on that wage (that's if you even get a job) or how hard it will be to balance work with other things you might want out of life. From my own perspective, I made the decision before graduating vocational school that a full time contract in a classical ballet company wouldn't be for me but I wanted more of a portfolio career to include teaching and especially choreography as well as performing. I have been lucky enough to achieve this, but there were some things I had not considered. I hated touring. I also found that even when I was working full time on a contract, I had to come home and look for what I'd do when that contract ended. It was all consuming and it didn't leave any time for a social life. I realised that I wanted more in my life than just dance. I wanted a family, and I realised that my job was standing in the way of achieving that. I realise that some people do both, but I think it is very hard as a freelancer. I didn't realise it would be so lonely.

Don't be afraid to call the school and ask!

My first couple of pairs of pointe shoes were Gamba, then I ordered a pair of Sanshas from a catalogue without ever having tried them before just because I liked how they looked (don't try this at home folks ) Amazingly, they were the perfect fit for me, my teacher approved and I have worn them ever since.

One of the episodes did mention salaries. I think the starting salary was £23k for a member of the corps and it said that only principals can earn in excess of 60k. This was in 2010 so it will have changed by now although it was mentioned that they were unable to keep up with the rate of inflation and since the coalition government came in and the funding for the arts was cut.

You should definitely go for the audition, if you don't try, you'll never know. You won't be wasting anyone's time, it will be a great experience for you whatever the outcome, and the school will certainly not laugh you out of the room even if you're terrible, which I'm sure you're not as clearly you have passion and you also have some training so you've obviously got some technique too. It's easy to think that an audition panel is waiting for you to make a mistake and pick faults but in reality they WANT to like you! I echo the suggestion to look into Laban and Northern School of Contemporary Dance too. How much ballet are you doing currently? Maybe you could take some classes outside of college too, either syllabus or non-syllabus, that will increase your rate of progress. What kind of courses have you been accepted for already? University courses?

I'd ask your DD's ballet teacher in the first instance for a private lesson and for safe stretching exercises she can practise at home. To answer your question about gymnastics coaches though, you can look at the British Gymnastics website under Women's Artistic or Rhythmic, enter your postcode and find a list of qualified coaches in your area http://www.british-gymnastics.org/discover