Splitz

Got 'no' letter today Hardly surprising really, given the odds! I do wonder if mostly JAs that have got through..... Speaking of which, we also got the 'JA SWL is now closed' email - double whammy in one day ! Oh well, onwards and upwards.......

Anyone heard anything yet? Thought we'd have heard by now. Don't have high hopes but would be good to know either way

I'm not surprised they are only asking for boys. SO many little girls!! With only 8 girls' places up for grabs (out of around 300) the odds are pretty low. I'm not sure we would have spent the £25 audition fee plus £20 train fare though had we known so many were auditioning! Still, DD said she really enjoyed the class. (And we discovered a branch of our favourite bakery just round the corner where they do the world's best cinnamon buns )

Same here And it's not hideously early! (phew)

We applied too back in August and no not heard anything , only had receipt email from booking..! Might try and email them tomorrow ... Sounds like they've been inundated- 1 Oct date sold out and new date added ..

Yes I guess it might be a bit of a trek for some Elmhurst JAs! And I guess London-based RBS JAs will be busy with the RB Nutcracker? The BRB isn't asking for any specific ballet experience, so I guess it'll all be fairly basic which is why they're opening it out...

Thank you, this looks exciting! DD wants to sign up. (she is only just short enough!) I wonder why they are doing open auditions this way and not using Elmhurst students? Is it something they've done before? Just curious. I imagine the response will be HUGE...

Thanks. I spotted this already actually, but dd's ballet teacher knew nothing about it (or the teacher) so wasn't keen on her auditioning for it just yet. But interesting you have heard good things

Thanks for your replies. I'm familiar with TCYB but not Harlow or Cambridgeshire ones - anyone had any experience with either of them? I'm not aware of any in the Cambridge area. And that is a shame about the Norfolk Dance association. It does seem that the east of England is under-represented in ballet - the RBS JAs for example covers 8 corners of England and completely misses out East Anglia!

I know there are a zillion posts on associates and I've tried a search but... I'm on the lookout for associates programmes in the east of England - apart from Dance East in Ipswich (which I understand is not so ballet focused) I can't seem to find anything in our corner of the country - so many are based in London/southeast/midlands way. My dd is 10 (end of yr 5) and on swl for JAs, but assuming a place doesn't come up she would love to do some extra training over the coming year, and it would be great to find somewhere reasonably close to home! Thanks

Yes what lovely news (has given me hope, but trying not to get hopes up too much - who knows how many there are on these SWLs..!! I guess we'd have heard by now?!)

Thank you. In case you are all wondering - my dd does not have the ideal 'ballet feet' - so much so that her teacher didn't even put her forward for the RBS audition. But she really wanted to give it a go anyway - we umm'd and err'd and eventually I agreed to take her... Just goes to show, trust in your dc!

SWL for London/Birmingham. Better than I was expecting and very encouraging, as it shows there's hope yet for her feet!

Pixie it looks like you got a yes. Fantastic news - after all our discussions about feet!!

You are so right Mrs Moo about keeping things in perspective. At the moment, it's my 10-yr-old's 'dream' to be a dancer - that could all change of course, esp. with puberty (!) but up till that point, the way I see it is it's up to us as parents to facilitate the opportunities as much as possible, just as we would later on if she wanted to become a doctor (not likely!!) or whatever. But yes, fiercely competitive that's for sure. I'm trying to play it all down, to keep emphasising her love of dance and celebrating her achievements. It's hard though - am definitely more obsessed with it all than she is!! (I suppose it's a bit of escapism from the daily grind! ) Sorry Tiredtoes about the no. Great news sunrise81 about SWL. More waiting for us!

This may well be the case - I'm not really in the loop! Wonder which theatre it would be...

Sorry to hear it's a no Dancer123. But your dd has done amazingly well to be doing YDA and to get into Tring!! Don't give up the dream just yet.... But I know how horrible that 'no' is, especially when you get your hopes up. Something else will come along to give you another boost - and so the rollercoaster rolls on!

As I understand it, the reference to 'larger company' and 'West End show' refers to the usual format - ie. 50-60 dancers at the Peacock (which is in the West End!)

Did anyone see their performance in May? DD wanted to audition for it but we had holiday booked over May half term already. We have been to see the past two productions, they are so lovely. Have just seen that audition dates for 2018 are on their website. ... (Only just recovering from all the associates auditions !! )

Thank you Dancer123 for your kind words. And big congrats to your dd. Amazing the difference a year can make. How funny you had the same experience. Apparently dd is a 'late developer' - natural ability/potential but right now lacks strength/stability - it seems Tring are looking for a slightly more 'finished article' than perhaps RBS...

Yes it's all a bit of a mystery to me!! Have put dd down for London and B'ham SWLs to increase her chances, so we'll see. And thank you mnemo and Pups_mum for your wise words!

It was a no again for my dd. Felt quite disheartened by this, but then just heard from RBS JAs she's been put on the short waiting list, so now more encouraged!! It really is a rollercoaster isn't it! And it just goes to show that different schools look for different things.

Congrats to all the yes's. Exciting times! Received an email today offering my dd a place on 'a short waiting list' for London Yr 6. More than I was expecting I must say!! But really encouraging for dd who received a couple of straight no's recently. We auditioned in Birmingham for a London place, with Birmingham as 2nd choice. Guess that's why we've heard earlier than London people? Need to email them back to confirm wl place and also state the 'wait list status' - not sure what that means??

Slightly delayed response but we were there at the CBA audition too. DD's third attempt! She received the 'train hard and try again' letter first two times so wanted to give it another shot. Hopefully she'll have improved enough over the past year. The letters must be due out soon.... I am so hoping it will be good news for her this time! Hope good news for your dd too Dancer123.

Just to say DD auditioned in Birmingham on Saturday. She seemed to enjoy it, came out smiling. DD commented that the standard was higher than her RBS audition last week. I suspect that's because they get a lot more applicants for RBS than Elmhurst. It was interesting to see the school and the parents even got a guided tour, which I wasn't expecting!