TwoLeftFeet

So, having ventured out there into the ballet world for the first time, applying to two european schools via video, we have been told that DD is too short.  Its not something that had even entered our minds before that - gutted doesn't come close to the feeling.  She is 15 years old and is 5 feet 1.5 inches and is a UK size 4 in street clothes.  We chose Europe to apply to because of the low fee aspect.  

I have to wonder at this point if we are going to get the same answer from every school that she applies to??

For those of you who are lucky enough to have DDs starting out or finishing Year 11, first year of Elmhurst, ENBS, Royal conservatoire or indeed ANY of the UK schools - do they have a height restriction or do they accept shorter dancers? Or are there any other schools anywhere that will accept shorter dancers?  Getting desperate here and haven't even told my DD why she will not be looked at... she'll be heartbroken

Oh thats fantastic news, very well done to her and her family. My daughter was almost 13 when she started, so there is hope yet... thank you for sharing

2 minutes ago, Picturesinthefirelight said:

Our daughter has found homestay the best option.  She knew that she was not ready  for independent living aged 16 and hence didn'tapply for the majority of colleges that others do.  Howevere, havong spent some time in boarding too she preferes homestay.  The family she is with treat her as their own and she is very well looked after.

Thank you for sharing that.  Does she have far to travel to her dance school?

Thank you all for your responses.  Its quite a small list.  I know that every 15/16 year old is different and that some will cope far better than others and some are much more independent than others.  My own DD I don't think would cope well without the boarding/residential facility.  Its very worrying for me that there are not more options.  Homestay is definitely next on the list and I don't think it would be so bad if she had someone from her class doing that with her, but since I can't guarantee that I'm not sure what to do.

23 minutes ago, arabesque1 said:

Ballet West do not have boarding facilities on site. They own houses in the area which the students rent, but they do their own shopping, cooking, washing etc.

Thanks for the response arabesque1, I thought first years stayed in chalets onsite?

Thank you Anna C.  Yes, Upper Schools with boarding facilities provided on site.  Definitely for 1st year.  My parent mind is saying definitely for year 2 also, but by then maybe DD might have other ideas once she knew the area and her classmates.

I would be most grateful if you could help me compile a list of ballet schools with boarding/residential facilities please, for overseas students. DD will be 15 turning 16 in October this year and living outside the UK.

Elmhurst

Ballet West

If anyone has the above for sale, please pm - we're only in London for one night :(

thanks

If you don't mind me asking, for those of you who got places and those on the waiting list, what level/grade ballet are your children or people you know of?  I'm thinking of putting in a last minute application for my DD but I'm not sure what level they are looking for.  If you'd rather PM, please do

I'd love to buy the Dot2Dance board for my daughter but its from the US and customs I image would come into the picture.  Does anyone know of a UK alternative?

On 13/09/2018 at 12:19, swanprincess said:

London Russian Ballet School might be worth contacting?

Thank you Swanprincess, I'll have a look there too

On 13/09/2018 at 09:36, Anna C said:

Assuming your DD is looking at a one year course post-GCSE then ideally you'd want a Foundation Course.  The only one I know of which could potentially be purely ballet focused is this individually  tailored at London Studio Centre:  http://www.londonstudiocentre.org/courses/specialist-one-year-programme

Thank you Anna C, I'll have a look at that one.  Yes, she will have completed her GCSE equivalent.

Thank you all for your replies - I didn't know they were here, I guess I need to figure out how to turn on notifications!

On 12/09/2018 at 21:07, invisiblecircus said:

How old will your DD be on 1st September next year and what is her aim after completing the one year?

 

 

 

She will be 15 turning 16 in October and will have done her GCSE equivalent.

Hi all,

Still trying to decide on a course of action for DD for September 2019!  Are there any one year courses for ballet out there?  I know there is a pre-vocational in Rambert that combines ballet and contemporary but its only one day per week - I looking for something Monday to Friday for a one year duration.  Does that exist?

Does anyone have experience of auditioning for any of the German schools?  If you have, could you please pm me if you don't mind?  Thank you

I know this is probably a long shot but is the Wear Moi leo still for sale?  Thanks

46 minutes ago, invisiblecircus said:

 

Absolutely true. I got back in touch with one of my friends from ballet school 10 years after we had both left, and she told me she still had nightmares about her time there and was still somewhat traumatised by her experience (she gave up ballet immediately after leaving.) I on the other hand think it was the best time of my life and has had a positive impact on everything I've done since whether dance related or not.

 

 

Royal Ballet school is the most obvious, then there's English National Ballet School and Elmhurst.

As others have said, most who graduate from Rambert go into contemporary.

Regarding Russia, it's useful to read blogs of other foreign students who've studied there, to see the pictures of dorms  and think about how she'd feel living in dorms like that. Is she naturally good at or interested in languages? I think that 16 year old vocational ballet students in the UK have a lot more freedom and independance than students of the same age in Russia, which may be a good or a bad thing depending on the student!

 

From your post I'm not sure where you're based, but is there a reason you're not looking at countries other than the UK and Russia? I'm asking first of all because there are some very good schools outside of those countries and secondly because some of those schools might not dedicate as many hours to dance styles other than ballet as UK schools do.

Thank you so much for your advice.

The reason I don't mention other countries is simply that our idea was always to send her to Scotland to train but now that she has moved ballet schools, her new school focuses on training their dancers for Russia.  I'm certainly not opposed to training in other countries but I think maybe the thought of sending her away is more difficult for me than it may be for her!  I'm a worrier and an overthinker - she is quiet, shy and also a worrier which is why I'm quite anxious about sending such a sensitive person to Russia.  She won't be 16 until October 2019 and so far the only places that I've found to take her at 15 in September 2019 are Ballet West Scotland and Russia.  We may decide to wait until 2020 till shes a month off 17 starting - its so so hard to know what is for the best...

49 minutes ago, Pups_mum said:

I can't comment on the Russian side of things, but just wanted to mention that the UK schools you mention don't all focus specifically on ballet. Rambert has an equal 50:50 focus on ballet and contemporary and Ballet West offers a degree in dance,not ballet, so the curriculum reflects this - there's plenty of jazz and contemporary as well as ballet.

With jobs in the dance world being so hard to come by, most schools are looking to produce dancers with a broader skill set nowadays - in the UK anyway. RBS, ENBS, Elmhurst, Central and RCS are probably the most classically focused schools in the UK  but I think they all have other genres on the curriculum to some degree.

Thanks Pups_mum.  I have compiled a list of all the schools that I could find with information from their websites and yes, they all seem to study difference genres of dance.  I can't find any that study classical ballet alone - Rambert seem to be the closest to what we want but I have been told that while they do say 50:50, it definitely isn't, its more geared towards the contemporary end (information received from a recent graduate).

Hi again all,

Our DD has just started in a new school and has gone from the RAD system to Vaganova which she is loving.

Her plan was always to go to UK to study in a degree course at age 16.  She wants to study classical ballet, doesn't like Jazz but likes contemporary.  The problem for her is that most of the courses out there include lots of different genres of dance whereas she wants to specialise in just ballet.  So she is considering applying for Ballet West, Central School of Ballet, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and Rambert - is there anywhere else that focuses mostly on ballet that I am missing?

Our next dilemma is that her new school trains students to audition for Perm State Ballet School in Russia - this is now an option for her also BUT theres the language barrier (I know they take Russian class there), its so so soooooooooooo far from home and from what I've read in research the training itself is very very tough both mentally and physically.  I know when I think about going there to study for 3 years I'm thinking about how far away she is and how hard it will be for her rather than whether this is the best training there is for her.

Moms and Dads, what would you do?  We are not from a dance background and don't live in the UK so we are very unsure about making the right decision for her .  Any advice is greatly appreciated.  If anyone has a friend, child, sister, brother that has gone the Russian route I would so love to hear from you either here or by pm.

thank you 

32 minutes ago, Pointetoes said:

I have no idea how easy it is for you to travel but Can I suggest you book her into Ballet West Summer School this summer  and maybe look at other summer schools or end of year performances.

Plus in March 2019 coming over to Move It, where you will be able to see a wide range of colleges / universities. In many ways because of her birthday you do have time on your hands, no rush, do the research. 

She is booked in for the Ballet West Summer School and really looking forward to it.  I think you are all right, we do have time now that I'm reading all the comments.  I was so sure that next year was the right year to send her, now, I think I'm going to wait and see how the summer school goes and see what they say there.

Thank you all for your advice and input.  I understand the situation now and perhaps it is no harm to keep her here until she is 16 going on 17 and as you say, more mature.  Its a massive step in anyones life and I certainly do not want to ruin it by sending her too early.

6 minutes ago, Dancing unicorn said:

In British schools the school year age is 16  and turning 17 during the school year! (Birthday between 1st September and 31st August during year of entry). Not 15 turning 16 if that makes sense? So if your dd won’t be 16 til the October, then her entry will be the following year! 

My dd’s Birthday is July so she is one of the younger ones in her year! October birthday - she will be one of the older ones!   Hope that makes sense!!

 

Hmmmm, I understood that the earlier they started the better and that they would be at a disadvantage if they were older which is why I presumed next year after her equivalent of the GCSEs was when to start her - am I wrong?

6 minutes ago, Pointetoes said:

Just a quick question: what school year will she be ? From the information you have given she is going to be in yr 11 in September 2019, which is GCSE year, entry at 16 is exactly that 16+ not 15  and turning 16 during the first year. 

Our school years are not the same as those in the UK.  My DD will sit her Junior Cert which is the equivalent of the GCSE in June 2019.  Does this then fit with the UK system or do you think she should wait another year so she will be 1 month off 17 when starting?

Thank you all for your input.  My DD will be turning 16 in October 2019 so will be 15 at entry that September - too young??