Ruby Foo

Depressing.

It certainly doesn't mean that your daughter doesn't have a good chance of getting into RBS but a lot of this is down to confidence and physique. It all depends who's there on the day and can come down to minute details. If it's a no, then it doesn't mean much at all, just that somebody else had 1mm more in something. It's tricky for young students to understand that, I know. When a child is super confident then they tend to show themselves off and their work to their best. Let your daughter know that she doesn't need a school to tell her how lovely she is and to go in and show her self in her very best light. Have lots of fun, listen carefully to the teacher and music, lots of smiles and enthusiasm, stand tall, eyes up and have lots of fun being a jellyfish or whatever it is this year. Everyone seems to enjoy the audition a lot! Making sure your daughter knows she'll find joy in dancing whether she gets a place or not is key. Because that's the truth - JA's is not everyone's taste and it lasts just a few years. My daughter got a straight No from her first associate audition ( not RBS) she was very disappointed but later went on to become a RBS full time student. For better or worse . It's all swings and roundabouts. Good Luck 😊

I recommend Jose Martin Ex ENB He teaches from a studio in Beaconsfield, but has also used Arts Educational studios. He knows exactly what Directors are looking for in a video construct and is so patient and professional and pays attention to every detail. He did a wonderful job for my daughter. You will find his details under ‘Raw Talent’. He also danced in San Francisco and Canada so knows that scene very well.

Very exciting Tiaramum! Wishing your daughter lots of joy and success in her new school.

I’m sure this is true. I’m merely pointing out our own experience in a certain European country. I can see how difficult it all is for young people who are trying to push on with their lives and make the best of themselves and their training, whether you live in UK or Europe. Our experience was the feeling from some that it was hassle that they could do without.

I will PM you

You beat me to it Peanut! Are these stirrup ballet tights? with the toes and heels cut out? They shouldn’t fall off with stirrup tights. If not, can you replace with stirrup tights? If not, a lovely mixture of roisin and hairspray might work. You can buy a pack of roisin for violins online and crush to make a nice sticky goo. Or buy the one suggested above. Or sewing a piece of elastic at the back of the shoe ( same colour as tights so it doesn’t show!) This is what you do with pointe shoes. Find the seam at back of shoe and sew a goodthumbs width from the seam on either side. The elastic will sit high up near the ankle.

This was for a student visa and not a working/ residency permit. In some European countries, a school college must be accredited by their government in order for non EU students to apply for a student visa. For a school to be accredited by their government, they must prove they are taking a certain percentage of students from their own country. Some schools prefer not to do that.

Americans, Canadians, Australians all have varying ways within the law of obtaining a EU visa. Not particularly easy and a lot of form filling and cost, but possible. Many of my daughters friends from US and Australia had managed to do this. This option is not possible for UK residents/passport holders. Believe me, we fully researched with a lawyer. This is for a visa longer than 3 months allowed.

Not a company as such but I do know that some European schools are less and less enthusiastic to take on British students since Brexit. That was definitely mentioned to my daughter when she was in Europe. It’s not only the visa issues but also a rumbling grumble that UK chose to make things so tricky. It’s not just in the Ballet world but in employment in general. A friend’s daughter has had great difficulty in getting a visa to start work ( not dance) in Spain. They are giving out far less visa’s to the Brits than before.

I think this year, in particular, seems harsher than any previous. I have noticed that in 3 top schools in Europe and UK, who are producing gorgeous dancers, there are far less gaining contracts than in previous years. There’s the global economic crisis of course that’s having a huge impact but now we have the impact of social media too which is making the situation far worse than it ever was in my day. We have everyone from parents, teachers, students, ‘Big Business ‘ feeding into or feeding off the frenzy of social media and creating an environment which is not helpful. It creates a worldwide false impression that with this teacher, this school, this summer school, this leotard, this photographer, this amount of money -I will get a contract. This is the difference between then and now.

Sending lots of virtual love and hugs and strength to you Michelle. I’ve never read this thread before yesterday, but it sounds like you are having an extremely challenging time of it. Hoping you get through it all super quickly and successfully and get back to your beloved ballet asap. x

Are there any glaring issues with her pointework? Any problems that her teacher is working on with her? If everything is going smoothly and there’s nothing major then I would suggest you get in touch with Sarah Toner who could possibly arrange some weekly lesson online. I wouldn’t normally recommend doing pointework online but as you have no facilities near you and Sarah is very experienced and a wonderful teacher who can work equally well from a screen as she can in real life, then this seems a plausible option. It will give her the extra she needs and Sarah coaches / has coached many students through the vocational process so she knows the standards. TBH the pointework in vocational schools in the UK up to yr 9 is not what it should be in comparison to what students overseas are doing, so she’s probably hanging in there. Our experience in vocational was that pointework class was often the first thing to be cut if there were rehearsals/ performances ( even rehearsals for a carol service in one vocational school!). There is also nothing major in the audition- it’s very basic. Where she will see a difference is actually at vocational yr 10. This is where everything changes because the overseas students just arriving look like professionals in regards their standards of pointe. They are completely comfortable executing the most challenging combinations en pointe with strength, accuracy and consistency. It’s not the cheapest option I’m well aware but you’re in very safe hands with Sarah. sarah@sarahtoner.co.uk

Absolutely true, Peanut! The variations ( 2 learnt) were taught as a group. The time was then divided between them all to see them individually. They ‘ran’ them one after the other in a big rush to get through them all after class and there was absolutely no corrections or individual help whatsoever. After my daughter left vocational, she worked properly on the variations with a couple of teachers and the difference was insane.

Probably repeating a lot of the excellent points in the previous post. It depends on quite a few things - The quality of her classes at the moment. (We are presuming the associate class will be super beneficial but we can’t take that for granted). Whether she feels too comfortable in her current classes and with her teacher, and is not being challenged? Or challenged enough. What she is looking to do in the future? Is this just for interest and fun or Vocational school? If so which vocational school? Around year 10 in vocational schools, the standard changes/ is upped considerably (understatement ) especially in the top classical schools. This is the point in the UK where we see a large proportion of students appearing from overseas, Its always good at this age to have a different teacher and perspective and to dance with other dancers other than the ones you’re used to- no matter how good your own teacher is. A different teacher sees different strengths and weaknesses which can be helpful. And being out of your comfort zone just a little can be beneficial. What does your daughter really enjoy? Obviously Ballet is key, but the joy of dancing has to be a priority and if she prefers other styles to Ballet then why not indulge in those and become a more versatile dancer? Maybe she could drop one of her usual classes and do associate’s instead? There’s plenty students who haven’t done a single associate class who have achieved what they wanted to. I guess it’s about personal choice and time management. Making the most of yourself and your time.