balletgremlin

Had a very strange exam session today being both camera operator and examiner. Continuous exercises on the diagonals were tricky, trying to fit in both the end of one dancer and the start of the next. The girls did fabulously but I felt sorry for the grade 8s for whom this was their final ballet exam. Not quite the same experience without an actual examiner present.

The RAD is offering the option of filming exams and having it viewed by a panel of examiners at a later date so I hope that's available to you RHowarth. Fingers crossed for you all. Staying safe is important but that doesn't stop the frustration and disappointment does it?

School is still open for us but exams this week have been cancelled.

2 pairs of split sole stretch canvas ballet shoes - brand new - both size 4, £14 each. Capezio Hanami (2037W) 6M UK size 4 Wear Moi Ceres Ballet EU Size 37 Narrow UK Size 4

What a fantastic term! I hope you continue as one for a lot time yet! Definitely something for me to aim for in future. Thank you for your best wishes. At 31 I thought I had a few more years before I started falling apart. Time is on my side and I'm sure I'll recover but the waiting sensibly in the meantime is difficult.

Fingers crossed for you The_Red_Shoes. It's hard to know which option is the best one to make. On the one hand, if you take it now you might regret losing marks due to your injury but waiting and dancing somewhere else poses issues too - and waiting an entire year - I'd get very fed up of all the exercises by then, I'd definitely need to be doing something else too to keep me interested. I'm in a similar boat - was originally supposed to take Grade 7 in November but had to be postponed due to a (still ongoing) hip injury, and was going to take it this exam session in March along with my Grade 8. However, my hips and physio have had other ideas and I'm banned from grand plies, kneeling and lifting my leg above 30 degrees so even June is looking unlikely. Thoughts of taking Intermediate and Discovering Repertoire exams this year are rapidly fading as talk of surgery is starting to surface.

The RAD combining the Improvers 1 & 2 associates is why I stopped attending as well. I know the numbers weren't high but it was still a shame to lose the second class.

Capezio does run small - I'm a size 10 and their large is very snug on me. Katz dancewear seems to be true to size (ie.e when they say it's a size 10, it actually fits) and are quite stretchy though I'm not overly keen on the fabric they use. I am tall so finding dancewear long enough in the torso is a pain. Nylon leotards tend to have more stretch than cotton ones and black cotton leotards always seem to be a size smaller than other colours. I currently make made-to-order wrap skirts for dancers of any size and would love to one day expand to offer leotards in a wide range of sizes.

https://www.royalacademyofdance.org/classes/find-a-rad-teacher/ If you search by area, you'll find contact details of registered teachers near you.

I've enjoyed several rep workshops with the RAD and no matter what level they suggest it is suitable for, there are always teachers/advanced students at one end of the scale and those who haven't danced in 30 years/can't do a balancé so the instructor has to change the choreography on the fly to adapt to everyone's skill levels and how quickly people can pick steps up. My favourite part is working with a different teacher, in lovely studios and a live pianist. I'm not too bothered by what we're actually being taught. Northern Ballet are doing a Cinderella workshop in Milton Keynes in April. Has anyone any experience of them before? I did a La Corsaire workshop last year with ENB and that was very basic even for beginners' standards.

No worries, hope you find something that fits. At least if she' smaller, she might get away with a less expensive child size tutu.

I have a Bloch tutu your daughter could have for £20. I have the P/S size which fits me as a size 10.

I tend to wear a leotard with leggings over the top, though most adults in my class tend to wear regular gym clothes - leggings and a tank top or tshirt. I'm tall and can't stand the feeling of my top riding up or sweaty armpits which is why I stick with a leotard. I only to break out the tights for when I'm dancing with teenagers, preparing for an exam or doing a workshop. In that case, I'd also wear a skirt to feel more covered up. For your first class, I'd say wear something comfortable that you can move in. I wouldn't go out and buy anything yet, though it's very easy to get sucked down a dancewear rabit hole. Even an old pair of tracky bottoms would do as long as they aren't dragging on the floor and likely to trip you up. Good luck! I hope you enjoy your first class.

I use Bloch hair nets (again, not bun nets) - they come in a pack of three and they keep my waist length hair under control.

Whoever wrote this report had far too much fun making up fictitious examiner and school names.

Open to offers. Trying to clear out some space before Christmas.

Mirella camisole stripe lace bust leotard, purple bird skirt, navy butterfly skirt and Pirouette surgery book have been sold.

Don't know if I'm allowed to suggest myself but I sew ballet wrap skirts on etsy for people of all sizes (it started out as I was struggling to find ones long enough) - the largest I've made is a 48" waist so far - and would be happy to make you one to fit your measurements. I currently only have plain chiffon options available on my shop - https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/601772920/womens-ballet-skirt-custom-size-choose but do have lots of other patterns available - more fabric examples, facebook page I keep meaning to get serious about it. advertise more and turn it into a proper business because I am fed up that as a tall size 10 I am often an L/XL and almost sized out of dancewear despite being relatively on the small side of adults who dance so want to make things that fit everyone.

I had to change studios at the beginning of this year as my old one decided it wasn't going to continue teaching vocational grades any more. Thankfully, despite living in the middle of nowhere, there were at least 6/7 other studios within driving distance all of whom said they would accept me in their classes. I did lead with my previous exam results and stressing I knew the syllabus and was happy to wear the uniform. I don't know if that helped. I came across more problems with studios unable to switch to a PAYG pricing structure (I work shifts) and wanting to pay for a term before I'd even stepped foot in their class. Fortunately, I have found an absolutely wonderful new teacher and am over the moon I switched studios. I definitely wouldn't stay dancing anywhere I was unhappy but it sounds like you don't have a lot of other options available to you locally. Could you contact the RAD to see if they could suggest any registered teachers nearby?

Having a major clear out of all my dancewear. All sizes are for adults - I'm a UK size 10. Postage is £1.50 for 1 item, £3 for 2+ items and £5 for international. Please contact me if you'd like more details/photos. Nylon/Lycra Leotards - £9 each, 2 for £15 Mirella camisole stripe mesh back leotard - size L - blue - £9 Mirella camisole stripe lace bust leotard - size L - blue - £9 Mirella camisole lace side panel leotard - size L - blue - £9 Bloch camisole lace back leotard - size L - pink - £9 Mirella halterneck zip back leotard - size L - purple - £9 Bloch capped sleeve plain leotard - size L - green - £5 Cotton/Lycra Leotards - £5 each, 2 for £8 Bloch rouched front tank leotard ("Adagio") - size XL (fits like an L in other colours) - black Bloch rouched front tank leotard ("Adagio") - size L - royal blue (rouching has come unstitched) Bloch rouched front tank leotard ("Adagio") - size L - burgundy Bloch cap sleeve leotard ("Cavalier") - size L - burgundy Bloch plain tank leotard ("Ballerina") - size L - purple Bloch plain tank leotard ("Ballerina") - size L - navy Katz cap sleeve leotard - size 5 - black Chiffon Handmade Wrap Skirts - £18 each, 2 for £30 All to fit 28" waist with generous wrap-over Other Handmade Skirts Various sizes & prices Books Darcey Bussell's Dance Body Workout - £3 Darcey Bussell Pilate for Life - £3 Dancing with Cuba - £3 Pirouette Surgery - £10 Character Dance - £7 New York City Ballet Workout - £10 Other Items Bloch Belle Practice Tutu- Size P/S - Black - £30 Camisole leotard dress - Size L - Burgundy - £20 Little Ballerina exam chiffon skirt - 26" waist - £15 Next Black Sports Bra - Size M - £4 Next Blue Sports Bra - Size M - £4 Black Leather Split Sole Ballet Shoes - Size 4 1/2 - FREE with anything else Tesco Blue Leggings - Size 10 - £5 Tesco Grey/Pink Leggings - Size 10 - £5 Mark and Spencer Cropped Leggings - size 12 - £5

I'll be using the CD for my grade 7 at the end of the month. I wouldn't mind if character were to be slowed down a smidge. There are ways of altering the music digitally to play at a different speed but my teacher's told me to suck it up and do it properly. I love dancing with a live piano - for example, if I were taking a workshop - but unless I'd been working with the pianist for a while who knew what tempo I like to dance at I wouldn't want to take any chances in an exam for them to adjust the speed. I know musicality is an important part of dancing but there were several exercises in my IF exam where the pianist played much slower/faster than I'm accustomed too and I didn't appreciate having another thing to think about.

Congrats Viv. I'm sure you've done fabulously. It's so easy to come out of an exam and remember all the things that didn't go perfectly or could have gone better rather than thinking of the positives. Fingers crossed for you. A couple of questions for you all: Has anyone successfully thinned out the sole of demi-pointe shoes/made any other modifications to make your feet look nicer while keeping all your fingers intact? When doing a battement lent on my left leg, why does it look like I have perfect turnout when my turnout is actually far from wonderful? My teacher's checked I don't have tibial torsion and I'm not twisting or lifting my hips or doing anything else weird with my posture.

I started pointe a little over two years ago (am now 30). I was scared to take my hands off the barre, very reluctant to do anything in the centre and my brain shut down any time I tried to do anything new. Part of it was mental but I was also in a lot of pain and didn't want to hurt myself (or experience discomfort) in any way, shape or form. I got to the stage where I was struggling to do anything at all and could see myself regressing. I didn't want to be the person who blamed her shoes so blamed myself. I tried working on my technique and my strength and got really hardhearted and frustrated when I was still useless.Turns out I was in the wrong shoe. Got a narrower shoe and it was like a flip switched on. The change was immediate. I was comfortable and felt secure, supported and was in control. I'm still a very long way from being good but now I'm not sinking into my shoe and I can balance, I'm much more willing to attempt things I can't do and knowing there are definitely things I can do now that I couldn't before builds confidence. I do have a very rambling series of videos on youtube of me complaining about my pointe shoes and my slow progress if you're interested.

FIngers crossed for a speedy recovery for the pair of you. It's always so hard to cut back on dancing even when common sense tells us it's the right thing to do.

Coleman - yes, for grades 6 and 7 you just pick one from classical, free or character. Sophie - congratulations on your merit, distinction and upcoming wedding! You sure are fitting a lot into the early part of next year. I completely agree about how much nicer grade 7 is to dance than the vocational stuff, even if I'm currently sporting a lovely bruise on my foot from kicking myself with my character shoe. I hope to take Intermediate early next year - my technique isn't where I want it to be but I've been working on it for so long I want to get it over and done with before I get completely bored with the syllabus. I've also started DR classes again recently so maybe an exam or two of those late next year. I don't know if any of you have heard but RAD are changing (or at least thinking of changing) the mark scheme so 55-74 which is currently merit would be split into merit and high merit (65+) and similarly 75+ would also be split and have distinction and high distinction.