Peanut68

Can you view these dances in full with their own music anywhere? I want to see more as very impressive & expressive for such young choreographers & dancers! Beautiful & thanks for sharing x

Have visions of racks & implement of medieval torture being used prior to an audition day to try to reach the 'golden leg to torso ratio'.....Please, please can't all this ridiculous measurement idea stop being talked about? How are our kids going to feel if we start getting a tape measure out? They are not stupid....they will ask what it's about then how did they measure up. Then what? Oh - your the ideal 'length leg' (so how do you explain a failure then?) or sorry, your legs are the wrong length (so then say well may as well stop dancing?) !!!!!    

We would all say it is wrong to discuss bust sizes for maturing girls in the big wide (non dance) world & the imagery of big is best in the 'celebrity' world leading to boob jobs being sought by very young women is universally condemned. Well, this is surely just as bad.

Can someone in plain English explain just what a hyperextended knee looks like as opposed to a regular 'Joe Bloggs' knee..... all this talk of hyper extension seems bizarre.....

Heard same story from my DD too....imagining a West Side Story scene on a cross channel ferry! Very funny.....if there is footage out there, do share!!

Not exactly ballet related, but my elder daughter auditioned this week for Arts Ed school in London for signing and drama course and I got a call this morning she has got a place for year 9! She will be so happy.

Just have to hope we have good news in next few weeks for younger DD who is waiting to do finals for YDA and Elmhurst ...

 

I'm going to be broke though ...

Wow -  congrats & lucky to have such a talented pair of kids! Good luck for finals to come......& on winning the lottery for those fees

Good condition girls Tring uniform items for sale. Size suit a Prep 3 / Year 7 pupil

Size 28 Blazer (unisex)

Girls Long Sleeved Blouse

Girls Short Sleeved Blouse x 2

Girls Jumper x 1

Girls Cardigan x1

Tracksuit top x 1

Prep Pinafore x 1

Prep Ballet Leotard & Belt x 1

Prep Modern/Tap Unitard x 1

I think you should be adding Hammond into that list too

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Oh....must be such a shame to have to decline WL SS but I am sure a 5 week programme will be an amazing experience - good luck to her! & I hope I am not tempting fate here but it would be sooooo lovely if my DD got that so wished for email with the offer of this space  Mind you, she is wait list week 1 so unlikely I fear.....but, no loss hoping & crossing those fingers!!

The medical profession is far too quick to label people. I am so glad that Peanut's son and Dance's grandson are doing well and Ballet4 son recovered so well. I wish them all the luck in the world.

I found it was not so much the medical profession but other 'well meaning (???) so called child experts.ie. pre-school teachers & Teaching Assistants with basic NVQ 1, 2 or 3 training who thought it ok to label a child. Usually the interest in my son jumped up straight after they had attended yet another 'course'....I do think so often it was a case of they wanted to find a child to fit the term & to practise what they had learnt on....but sadly this was so misguided, so damaging & extremely frustrating to son & to us. I especially found the busy body side of it just ghastly....as these 'educators' saw it as perfectly ok to share their 'diagnosis' (really, just their own ill judged opinions!) with all & sundry. And in a small village that is pretty far & wide - even extending of course to their own kids who then think it ok to say to others things along lines of " well, we all know X has problems"....AghhHHHHHH. Sorry if I sound bitter....I am.....But, back to Ballet. Frankly whilst unlikely to lead to anything longterm it has been the making of him - it has given him the backbone to stand up for himself (as well as fantastic posture for which he will always have ballet to thank for the rest of his life) & also it gave me the backbone to stand up to the frankly bullying teachers & others & to trust that not only do I know my son best but that actually dance teachers have a real gift in working out a child from a physical, mental & emotional standpoint as ballet engages all these aspects even in just a once a week, one hour grade 1 class!

I really think that many a boy will benefit from these fantastic dance teachers who do not judge or pigeon hole boys but rather give them the opportunity to express themselves with the discipline to learn to fit in & be part of a team whilst getting fit, supple, strong, co-ordinated & skilful.

So, any doubters....get your sons down to dance class...they may surprise you & themselves!

Ballet4boyz - a truly inspirational boy you have there! Best of luck to him going forwards....

I too have seen ballet & dance as great 'therapy' for my son.....School (& many parents who think they are clinicians it seems...hmmm) were convinced our son had Aspergers....to the point we were 'forced' to go down the route of going to the GP to be referred to a Paediatrician for assessment when he was 7/8. We parents actually felt he was just a very intellectually bright child who was frustrated at school by the slow pace & lack of progression & by others 'messing about' so he just struggled to fit in socially. Then when teaching assistants treated him like he was 'special needs' with patronizing one on one treatment (I was truly horrified when I discovered this seemed to be going on) saying all the time in loud baby talk " Now, X, look at me. X look at me." The more they did it, the more he would NOT look at them as he thought frankly there was something wrong with THEM to be talking in such a stilted over the top 'baby' way......why would he want to connect with them when they were talking in a weird way? Frankly, when I witnessed this, if I had been him I would've wanted to punch their lights out!! It also gave carte blance to other kids to assume there was something 'wrong' with him which led to bullying & the misconception by other parents too......all very horrible. now, the ONLY other people to see our son for the incredibly bright & misunderstood kid I knew him to be were the Paediatrician (yep - her assessment was a high IQ child frustrated & bored by school who needed to be stretched......funny, on her writing to school with this, some 'tests' were done whereby they discovered he had a reading & maths ability which would put him in the top 10% of 11year olds - at age 8 & with frankly very little teaching - certainly no exposure to anything from older curriculum stages) & the Dance teachers at our amazing local dance school! His struggle to fit in was not helped by the fact that he has always been extremely tall for his age yet is a true gentle giant as has so often been picked on & bullied with physical attacks yet never has hit back. 

The Ballet teacher totally 'got him'. In her well over 50 years of teaching experience, she has had every type of child through her classes & is the best judge of character & ability. He really responded to her discipline....the 'get on with it' 'dancers don't fuss' etc approach & she identified his sharp brain & that he was being treated wrongly by others......she gave him the strength of character to stand up into his full height with great posture (which fills me with pride every time I see this as he had begun to stoop to make himself smaller to fit in....). & the school 'diagnosis' (grrrrrr) that he had trouble with co-ordination & balance were completely proved wrong in both Ballet & Jazz classes. So proud of his recent Merit in RAD Grade 2 & he won the award for 'most improved' dancer in his very very tough jazz class. He works so incredibly hard & so respects the dance teachers. His sister is at vocational school (again all thanks to our incredible local teachers!) & I suspect he likes his dance far more than he lets on.....Dad rather more keen on his Rugby than ballet!! He was 'man of the match' last week there too (ok - I'll stop bragging now....just don't often get an outlet to rave about our wonderful kids ). He wants to get distinction for his grade 3 ballet & you know what? He just might!  I feel happy to share this story as ballet/dance & just generally moving one's body is just such an important outlet for everyone & can give us strength physically & mentally!

No idea this year, but I think last year was about 9, from looking at last year's posts on here. And I think they had 8 MDS places last year but of course with Tring they don't necessarily give these all out to year 7s.

there were definitely many more than 9 at funding audition last year

I admire all you ballet-parents who make sure you follow up every path & opportunity for your DC's - you can sleep sound knowing you explored all avenues & that whatever the outcome, your DC's had all the love & support they could ever wish for; I am sure they will all remember & respect you for it now & long into the future! Good luck to all xx

Dancing 10 - I think if your DD is for age 14 & older then there is perhaps only one option - the 2 week course - so there wouldn't be any more info perhaps?

Oh - & congrats on joining the wait listers too!

A sad no for dd y7 Manchester, but a summer school place, but good luck everyone else's dc

That definitely proves the phrase 'every cloud has a silver lining' - well done to your DD for SS!

Hi - thanks to others confirming they got the same wording....it did feel confusing last year as we all tried to work out if we were higher or lower in the pecking order  !

Wonder if it was just whether it was CG or WL or even different age groups/genders or actually just more than one email template letter was used & actually it was just one list with any free places being offered in same way as mentioned in the email this year!

Well done to those who get the magical YES! & well done & lets try not to get too hung up on it to us wait list families!

Oh.....here we are again....... "Mr Mark Annear, Head of Outreach and Access, would like to offer a place on the waiting list for the White Lodge Week 1 course."

Another year of fingers & toes crossing & desperately trying to steer husband away from wanting to book family holiday for that week!!  

Out of interest, is this the wording everyone gets for WL wait list? I have heard various terms being used last year on Forum such as 'Select Wait List'.... 'Priority Wait List....' 'Director's Wait List'....

Be good to know if it is all one & the same!

Good luck to everyone else still waiting.....& proud my DD got the wait list....again!

We felt that Wait List was a definite achievement.....esp. when you see that a very high % of attendees at RBS SS are from overseas....I think that logically most on wait list will probably be UK based as they would be most likely able to take up any last minute available place.

Have pondered on whether actually when Summer Schools are advertised as International, if we UK based families might actually be better to apply overseas to be an International Student there....but funds/family support makes this an unlikely option for us.....

No Dancing 10...  In DD's year 1 of applying ended with a NO email, year 2 got Wait List.....so....here's hoping for third time lucky!!!!

& for those on wait list.....fingers crossed a place frees up (it didn't for DD last year but hey ho....a wait list place still felt like a step in the right direction!)

Hah, I empathise! I never realised how much I must talk about these things until one time when out and about, the other half saw me lost in admiration and staring at a ballet poster. He said (in 'Minion' voice):

 

'Banana!'

 

He wasn't wrong either: she had lovely high arches!

 

Swayback knees, though, I could grumble about for hours. By default in first position my knees are in first while my feet are in some sort of scrappy ten-centimetres-apart nothing-much non-position. The various bits of my knee joints have weird and painful ideas about where they should be, too. Admittedly they look nice on proper dancers 

Love the minion voice banana thing!!  I think the DH's manage to keep our dance obsession in perspective with well placed humour from time to time!

Hi Stirrups.....we empathise about the rugby black eye....my DS did his RAD ballet exam looking for all the world like he'd been hideously abused.....bruises all the way up his legs (shorts at Grade 2 so no hiding it!) ....all from a  particularly brutal rugby match 3 days earlier! 

I think many get hung up on being as far through syllabus grades as possible (& dare I say it...some may be led this way by schools to pay for ever extra lessons to 'push on' at great expense) Does it help secure places? Maybe. Is it the only criteria? Absolutely not. I know of DC's who have been accepted onto top associate schemes with NO prior dance at all & also know of DC's now in Voc school who started Year 7 with just RAD grade 2 taken.

Keep the letter back - pop it on doormat a few days after all auditions....unless of course you are quizzed by DD or they hear others have results....in which case, best not to lie. Buying time by delaying giving a negative result will avoid any feeling of self doubt before other auditions. & remember, a no from one school just means it's not to be that school at this time.....Good Luck!

It definitely shows....also in his discipline & ability to take criticism! The strictness & demands of a rugby coach don't come anywhere close to that of our legendary ballet teacher!!

Thank you Cotes du Rhone & Taxi!

I will definitely share this with him if I see him questioning about carrying on! He is at the age where he is showing a distinct interest in certain girls & worrying that his hair looks good

I know it's not a vocational exam.....but wanted to share how proud I am that rugby playing son got a merit for his first ballet exam - RAD Grade 2....& even more proud that he intends to carry on & seems able to shrug off any of the usual teasing from other boys/adults about boys doing ballet!!