Ruby Foo

I think the RAD junior summer school is still open until the end of today!

Its non competitive but good teachers.

12 hours ago, DVDfan said:

I am horrified by the idea of kids being put into situations where it is thought necessary to provide routine mental health support. 

I'm certainly not saying that kids shouldn't dance or do serious sport, but these activities should always be life enhancing. When the pressure gets damaging, it's time to leave. 

I'm intrigued by this. Do you mean leave the establishment they are currently receiving the pressure/ abuse?

Or leaving the profession altogether?

There are many dancers who don't have those incredible arched/ big instep feet. But what they have instead are flexible/ workable feet. In a class at a top vocational school I would estimate just over a third will have the banana type feet while the rest have a good pliable foot that has some instep and arch. A pliable foot can be worked on with the correct exercises to develop and strengthen. The foot is always developing and changing anyhow as the training progresses.Without seeing your daughters feet it is impossible to tell where she would be on the scale of possibly workable or a definite not possible for classical while still being suitable for contemporary or other genres. A completely flat, inflexible foot with no instep would not work for classical. What I have noticed is that many yr 7s have the banana feet but by upper school there is very few.

14 hours ago, Peanut68 said:

Well, I can see this as a reason but the irony for me was I was prevented from doing an intermediate class with an 18+ year old (schools decision - frankly I think based on the mother of said young adult who I think just doesn’t like me despite not knowing me…🙄) yet when I took my exam at RAD HQ with another adult we were then placed with 2 under 13 year old girls!!!! We were in same changing room, left completely alone with them in a wa up studio too! We adults were both rather shocked at this (I’d like to point out also that both of us regularly worked with children, were both were at tons current advanced DBS checked & I held a chaperone license but RAD were not aware of this nor asked any questions!!! I would not have been happy if I were the mother or teacher of those two minors….. however, it were actually us adults that needed the protection…. From the smug sniggering looks (from them & their teacher sadly) at our middle aged post birthing very much less than perfect figures whilst they were in their pre-pubescent skinny ‘perfection’ state. 
It did give us both awful jitters & I think seriously disadvantaged us adults being in exam with them so my advice would be to ask questions pre exam entry to ensure not to be placed with seriously training kids!! 
Mind you, it did give us some satisfaction to see the smug little madams faces drop when they saw that despite the lumps & bumps we could actually dance!! 
Wish I’d complained to the RAD at the time for the woefully inappropriate scheduling of 2 adults & 2 very young for Intermediate children. 
I think the examiner really struggled with it too & it tarnished what should have been a proud experience sadly… put me off looking to carry on with any syllabus or do any other exam…

 
I find that incredibly insensitive of the RAD. When putting pupils in for exams we were always taught to arrange them in suitable groups - children with other children of similar ages or maturity as far as we were able. No wonder you felt the way you did afterwards. 

On 21/04/2022 at 19:48, BalletMummy123 said:

Thank you for you answers everyone - very much appreciated. Can I ask which regular shampoo/conditioner you would all recommend? Thanks again x

 
The Aveda Botanical intensive repair is good especially if you sit with it on under a hot towel ( microwave) for a while. 
It is much more the thing NOT to scrape your hair back these days. Some vocational schools are being much more proactive in changing hair positions, not putting your hair up too early and sitting in it for academics, and encouraging a slightly softer look  than the gel/ egg head, purely because of the damage and fall out - literally.

I recommend checking out Sarah Toner school in Finsbury Park.

Sarah does a class for 14- 24 yr olds who don't want to be vocational but still want to be challenged.

Sarah is lovely and technically focussed. Sure she will be able to accommodate your needs.

3 hours ago, Mum to a boy dancer said:

We are Scottish and DS had to audition for year 7 while in the equivalent of year 5. It’s worth noting that while he skipped year 6 (primary 7) it hasn’t affected him academically at all x

It was the same for us. Missed a year of her education. There's no allowance  or exceptions from the vocational schools unless they decide themselves that an already existing student should repeat a year.

44 minutes ago, glowlight said:

Wouldn't it be wonderful to have a 'Balletco' ballet company!

 

I think the main problem would be how to fund it so that you could pay the dancers a decent salary - otherwise you are back into the vicious circle of asking dancers to perform for nothing. 

 

If you are serious about this I would suggest the first step is to think about how many dancers you would need to make a viable company, and what basis you would want to employ them - maybe half a dozen dancers for a short project (a couple of months) would be a good place to start.

 

Then think about how much it would cost to employ them, and how much you might need to spend on venues, costumes, insurance etc.  

 

What do you think you could bring in in ticket sales for the performances?  And any other revenue streams (maybe merchandising - not sure what else)

 

Once you have a bit of a budget together then start to look for grant funding to get it started.  Or crowd funding?

 

Sorry if I'm teaching you to suck eggs - this is just my initial thoughts on where I would start if I was looking to set up something like this.

Maybe the first hurdle would be,

what do people want to watch?

what would motivate people to part with their hard earned cash? Not easy at a time like this, when many people can't  even afford to heat their homes. Only understanding this, would lead to running a completely sustainable company, not so reliant on grants and funding and sponsorship which can never be guaranteed.

Traditional companies are struggling. Thinking out of the box in the way that someone did when they realised we didn't need expensive estate agents to sell homes.

Maybe something more interactive where the audience are in the driving seat. Something different and risky and courageous, but without giving up the core values of dance. 

It definitely won't affect her application so don't worry about that.

I would give them a phone and check they received the other photo and email. Not sure if they are on Easter holidays now, so maybe check when back after Easter.

Well done to your Dd for being able to complete her exam.

She will have gained so much more than a mark ( whatever it may be) going through that experience. Finding it within herself to do what was needed, when everything was against her, is what every professional dancer will come up against in time. Whether it be carrying on in a performance through a malfunction of the music, costume, nerves, lack of rehearsal, an injury or because you've just had traumatic news given to you etc, it's a sign of strength and creativity to be able to see it to the end.

Sorry, meant to say 3-4 

Not three quarters, which would be nice but definitely not true!

Applying for yrs 9 and 10 in my opinion is the best option both from a dance and mental health perspective.

From a dance perspective, the new candidates are full of vitality, eager to begin their new life, full of determination. In contrast to the students who began in yr 7 who can be a little worn down and jaded by that time. From a mental health perspective, it's relatively obvious. The students starting in yr 7 will have had 3 years of the dreaded assessments hanging over them... it is a niggling worry that youngsters don't need if they are to produce their best without fear. They have also had to deal with leaving home very young age and all that entails, which is huge. On top of that, they will be dealing  with  favouritism and other confidence busters.

How to get to a year 10 standard without the whole family dying of stress, exhaustion and bankruptcy? I know for some people what I'm about to suggest would be completely out of the question financially, and for that, I apologise. I can not solve the bankruptcy problem.
Firstly, you need an extremely good and patient dance teacher who can offer 1st class training which builds in hours and standard. The teacher should be well versed in the very high standards needed for a yr 10 entry. This teacher may be able to offer some free or discounted tuition once the lessons become a daily event and they are hopefully onboard. Hopefully the school might offer Pilates or other strength training or, at least be helpful and supportive in finding contacts.

The school needs to be close enough to enable the student to incorporate travel and the time to deal with the increasing academic work load, otherwise the student will be exhausted.

Second, a private lesson teacher ( once a week) who will give a different perspective. Maybe try to locate a RAD or ISTD examiner who offers private lessons or an RBS associate teacher. Some people will prefer an ex classical company member for lessons but caution  - not all great dancers are great teachers! Whoever you choose, the student should feel it's really pushing them (in a good way) towards their gaol. These lessons will be costly, especially around London and you may have to travel a fair distance to find someone special.
Associates will help to measure up the standards and competition and are also a valuable weekly lesson but I much prefer a long one to one lesson with an excellent teacher if having to choose.

Summer / spring intensives will be very important to keep the international cohort in mind. Trying to get some intensives overseas would be a bonus because internationals are very, very strong en pointe. There are some cheaper ones around. My Dd did a RAD intensive in Italy and it was a very high standard but very reasonably priced. It also opens your eyes and mind to different teaching styles and keeps you on your toes. It's easy to get locked in with the same teacher, which is very important as a base in the early years, but different teachers pick up on different areas needing attention.  Being creative  with the training, changing it around and up and applying for scholarships and a reduction in fees wherever possible is the way to go. There are intensives all over France, Italy and Sicily, and Scotland  which are excellent and much cheaper than going for the big flashy ones. We stayed in a campsite and combined it with a bit of a holiday.

These are just suggestions. Everyone is different and will have different ideas of how this can be achieved. Although, it's incredibly difficult, it's not impossible. 3/4 new British students in RBS upper school were home trained in UK.

Such a wonderful post Notadancema.

I would also add, try to take your dc out as much as possible if you can. Know it's so tricky when you live far away.

You can always ask for special permission- a family birthday etc as an excuse to get them out.
Sometimes they get so addicted to being in that environment it's difficult for them to understand there's another life out there and that's so important for their mental health. 

31 minutes ago, Julsgalaxy said:

I must say as a parent of a DC in yr6 who has just been offered a yr7 place at WL , this thread has been very good to read for the reality of it but also fills me with dread and anxiety about accepting the place as it’s filled with worry about what the next 3 years could bring at the end of it .

I think it’s good to go into it with eyes wide open but it doesn’t feel like the joyous achievement that it should be knowing that it doesn’t mean a smooth ride all the way through to yr 11 and worry about the psychological affects of it all. 
it feels a bit like taking a chance accepting the place in the hope that your DC “makes it” passed the next 3 years.

My daughter is 3rd family generation of dancers/ teachers. I didn't want any of my offspring to dance knowing what I do about this profession but sadly she fell through the net and, as it's her passion, I didn't feel I had the right to interfere. It has been tricky but interesting being firstly, a mother to a dancer but also  a daughter to a teacher, a dancer and teacher myself. We have all experienced so much in terms of training and training others. Many, many vocational schools. Many of these issues are inherent in Classical Ballet and go right through the training and into the companies. None of it necessarily stops when you get a contract. This is why having a forum like this is so helpful. You can see how much support IN EVERY AREA you need to give your children.... just don't stop. Keep it coming, even if they are silent and things appear to be going well. Bring the professionals in if you can, if you need to, and if you can afford it. Counsellors, physios, sports massage, nutritionists and other teachers ( for confidence)  can all help when the training is letting you down. But you know your child better than them all, so you will be the most important source of support. You will be able to balance the books.As another poster said, don't leave it down to the school, no matter how solid it appears to be.

The most frustrating thing about a classical ballet training is that many is that many of the issues which are so mentally damaging could be so easily be ever so slightly tweaked by the establishment to make them less so, but they just don't do it!

The point of a good ballet school is to ' train' the best dancers.

A student was assessed out at age 12. She arrived at my vocational school where she trained for 4 years. She was then accepted back to the original school in US. She declined the place. My vocational school did the work the other was supposed to do. All that heartache for nothing.  She went elsewhere and gained a Classical contract.

Maybe this will give confidence to the OP

48 minutes ago, The red shoes said:

Indeed this is true however they have had 3 years of the next training in the world ( in my opinion) and that is better than none at all or 5 years of mediocre.

RBS have said ALL year 9 students must apply to other vocational schools and indeed normal

secondary schools. They help them with their videos , etc and are very supportive . 

Realistically RBS don't have any other choice  but to help with audition videos seeing as the students are at boarding school and wouldn't be able to do them anywhere else. Although that is helpful, this is not really what I mean when I use the word support. Support is asking the students how they're managing to continue in their day to day life ( ballet, academics, weekends, knowing that they will be leaving while many of their friends will be moving further up the school. Support for the end of the year when their friends are choosing who to share rooms with the following term. Someone to talk to when they are worried about uprooting once again and having to start all over in a new, unfamiliar territory. The first week back, standing on the barre in a school you love, knowing you can't stay. That's tough for some kids.... because that's what they are, just kids. The ballet training may or may not be great, but it won't change the natural feelings that arise in youngsters when there's uncertainty and worry. A cold email helping to find another school doesn't help when you need someone to talk to and listen. I disagree with all the posters, who say they have gone in with their eyes wide open. The adults may have their eyes wide open ( you haven't experienced it till it happens) but no child of ten, which is what many are when they audition, can tell you how they're going to feel 3 years down the line because they're still developing as people throughout the process. Plan b c and x is great and sensible but it doesn't take away the pain of breaking the bonds kids make when a boarding school becomes their 2nd home, and their friends and houseparents become their 2nd family.

I'm sure that no one is in any doubt that from a dancing perspective, being assessed out ( or not being successful in continuing in the training) can lead to a renewed energy and momentum and in turn, lead to greater happiness, fulfilment and success, possibly more than if the student had remained in the same environment. Many students who arrived at my vocational school, having been assessed out of another school, went on to have very successful dance careers, many in renowned classical ballet and contemporary companies.

But let's not forget that having to change schools after 3 years, no matter how prepared you may be (how mentally prepared can you be at such a young age?) can be anything from a small trauma to something much more traumatic. You are having to deal with great disappointment, a period of low self esteem, uncertainty about where you will go next, will you be accepted, and what will the future look like? While saying goodbye to friends who have almost become brothers and sisters, knowing you have to start friendships all over again somewhere else. There will also be students who feel they have let everyone down, even if they don't verbalise it. I just felt I should mention this, as there is much more to it than statistics and success and having a great deal of support will surely help students with a smooth transition.

Any student who completes a single year of vocational ballet/ dance school  should be extremely proud of themselves! But it doesn't alter the fact that it's the same process as it always was, but in a slightly more clever/positive framework, which will eradicate much of the criticism. However, It will take a while for the students to think about this in a different light, if at all. 

Yes. She made all sorts of adjustments. I would advise you to leave a long time for the fitting ( much longer than Leanne says) because she is a complete perfectionist and has many, many different shoes to try for starters, even before she starts making adjustments. Her fittings get booked up months ahead, but there's always cancellations. Then there's the issue of Grishko supply....

I'm sorry, I can't give you all those details at present! My daughter will know and I can pm you later.

Basically Leanne seems to be able   adjust them to exactly how you need them to be! I believe it was a strong but slightly flexible shank to stop them  dying. The first set were bending too low but that was adjusted. The second set were perfect.

I'm not sure where you're based, but a fitting with Leanne from Straight to the Pointe helped my daughter enormously. My daughter was getting through a pair of pointe shoes a day in yr 11 and after a 2.5 hour fitting with Leanne and an eight week wait for special order Grishkos, this problem was solved.

She has very high arches and insteps plus doing many full ballet classes en pointe. Her Freeds ( which she loves) were dead every day.

Leanne is based near Southend but travels about. Anyone who knows Leanne will tell you that she is an expert, extremely knowledgeable and takes great care. Sadly though, the factory she was ordering from was closing and there was no special orders being taken. I'm hoping that may have changed but it didn't look promising.

I was thinking that maybe a leotard like Gaynor Minden cap sleeve would be nice. It's expensive, but you could look for similar style in cheaper model.

Medium coverage below but the style on the shoulder line would balance hips. A cap sleeve might work too, like the Just Ballet burgundy cap sleeve leotard. Something that draws the eye upwards and balances hipline. Again, very pricey, but the Bullet Point velvet trim would give a nice balance. A high neck and front zip would be good for a more mature dancer( Dansez) do a nice one) or a two tone like the Jule Luster where the bottom half is darker than the top. Personally, I would steer clear of thin, strappy leotards unless she loves them.

57 minutes ago, Babyballerinamum said:

Apologies if I’m repeating a question but I can’t see it - does anyone know if WL places are ever offered off the back of the SI? I couldn’t work out why else they’d ask on the form if you were interested but it surprised me. Thanks 

This definitely happens, yes. 

On 05/01/2022 at 12:11, dancegrad said:

Hi,

 

Another query I have is if anyone knows of any Balanchine based ballet classes in London/surrounding area? I quite fancy taking some classes in this technique as I would like to see how it feels on my body but am not sure if there's anyone who teaches it over here at open classes?

 

Thank you all again in advance for your help!

Maybe not quite what you're looking for but Raw talent coaching ( Kerry Birkett and Jose Martin) are doing a one off Balanchine workshop in April at the Arts Depot in Finchley. 

Just thinking,  you could actually take her to a pool and see if doing some of her dances in the water might be a fun way to stimulate some sensitivity in her hands and fingers.