BalletBoysDad

I’m seeing that videos part 1 and part 3 has been quickly viewed again within the last hour, only for a couple of minutes each, but no other views of video part 2...

We’re applying for Y5. My DS is a summer baby, but also has a surname beginning with 'A'. We also submitted nearly at the deadline. It’s hard to know how they’ll work through the videos, or if it’s totally random. I imagine Birmingham has a huge number of applicants, as it was its own group like London.

We’re Y5 too

I'm totally with you about the home setting. There's an energy I see in my DS when he goes into and comes out of the ballet studio that genuinely can't be replicated at home, in front of a pre-recorded class. Zoom works when there's a real-life human being in front of you to impress (like the Elmhurst zoom audition). And Tring CBA audition had a degree of 'positive tension' that no doubt causes some constructive adrenaline to kick in and genuinely try and impress. I do think the pre-recorded element has its limitations, and even if it allows the RBS still to see what they feel they need to see, I don't think it gets the most out of a younger dancer. Lets see what news the future brings.....

@BellaFWith at least 2.5 weeks until decisions/results, I’m sure there is plenty of time for thorough viewings. Ours were being viewed rather late last night, around 715-745pm. It makes me think what someone else mentioned earlier, that different assessors have each been given a batch of applications and might be looking at them within their own time. Ours definitely weren't viewed within ‘office hours’.

Congratulations to your DD, sending positive vibes that that SWL place materialises. Was that for Y4 or Y5?

Who knows... we genuinely won’t ever know what number of views, when, for how long etc mean. I’m sure they’ll all be looked at multiple times. All the views in the world could still result in a no. I really hope there’s not another YouTube auditions again because having access to the analytical data is borderline torment. No one would ever know in a studio audition!

A very similar amount of time to @Spamcatspent viewing the videos today (They were being watched this evening, around 7pm when I got off the train home). Approximately: 9 mins of first vid 5 mins of second 5 mins of third

All 3 videos have just been viewed again. The YT Studio phone app says ‘estimated watch time in last 48 hours 20 minutes’ but I think there’s a 24 hour lag in getting more accurate numbers. I can’t yet see how long each video part was viewed for.... I’m hoping I get a clearer idea tomorrow. Not that it will affect the outcome, just for my peace of mind that the videos got a fair viewing. As others have said, many different eyes might be on these videos at different times, so a one day snapshot in time probably has no meaning whatsoever.

Other than a 10 second view of the first video, nothing yet. I wonder if they look at boys separately, who knows.... or they just review in the order the videos were submitted. We were very last minute in submitting the videos as my DS was unwell the days we intended to do the filming. Fortunately he perked up just in time to give it some effort before submission deadline. I genuinely though we ‘missed the window of opportunity’ for him to give it his best.

Haha, ‘out of our misery’, perfect choice of words!!! My thoughts exactly! That’s really interesting about the dates for group 3. It would be a lovely thought to know by end of next week. I think, like most people, we took photos towards end of January, and regardless of the outcome, I’ll be happy to have a break from this process 😂

I wonder if that’s all of group 3 decided and informed, and if all eyes are on Group 4 Birmingham videos now? Part of me hopes they’re now impatient to finish the epic 2020 JA audition process and not take another 3 weeks to make their decisions. Though I’m sure as a matter of fairness they’ll take the full time.

Congratulations! Wonderful news for another Y5 🎉🎉🎉

An unheard of Y5 🎉🎊🎈👏👏👏

I’d like to think they’d be looking separately at Y4 then Y5.

Snap! One view of the 1st video for 10 seconds. I know YouTube analytics can have a 24-48 time delay, but it’s a bit depressing to know that that might be all that gets looked at.

I personally think a prestige (or socially responsible) organization has a responsibility to be transparent. It was really nagging me that these auditions might be nothing more than a source of revenue rather than genuine opportunity, so I just felt compelled to ask the question. This is a section of the reply I got, that I was pleasantly surprised to receive: We are making room in all our Associate centres to take in new Y4 and 5 students in January – inevitably there will be fewer places than a normal year but we will do our best to accommodate the candidates who we feel would benefit the most from the programme. I don’t yet sense that there have been many spaces create for Y5, but like you mentioned, the participants in this forum might not be a proportionate representation of the applicants and results. It doesn’t address if the allocation of spaces will ‘swing’ more favourably to Y4 rather than last years claim that it swings more favourably to Y5. But it does suggest theres still opportunity, though much less than in previous years.

I’m quite sure I’ve got a ‘big red X’ next to my name at the RBS for being annoying/too blunt, but I did email and ask the auditions team are we technically auditioning for places that don’t actually exist? I think it’s a perfectly legitimate question. We’re living in times when £50 isn’t insignificant, and an ‘experience’ in your living room is very different to one at an actual ballet school. They did say there ARE spaces in all year groups, but acknowledged that there are fewer. I dont know if people will ever truly know how slim the odds were. I believe that the RBS are a charity and not obliged to divulge all numbers. I do hope that there are genuinely spaces, but I can’t help shake off the feeling that I’ve purchased my DS a ticket for a flight the airline know is already cancelled. 🤦‍♂️

Yes, taking audition fees for places that don't actually exist would be highly controversial I am sure. My DS got SWL for Y4 last year, and was told not to worry, it was a 'good result' and they take fewer Y4 children to offer more spaces to Y5. Now, it seems to be the complete opposite; giving more space to Y4 and pretty much ignoring Y5 applicants. I know every parent/guardian/teacher of every applicant doesn't participate in this forum, and we can only form opinions on what we do actually hear, but it seems a very disappointing year for Y5s in general. As you mention though, there are many other high quality associate programmes. I noted that Tring CBA have opened registration for their next round of auditions in March. That's a brilliant programme in a stunning and inspiring environment. This isn't the be all and end all.

I would think that’s really positive to get SWL this year, though always bittersweet if a place doesn’t become available (we had that experience last year). There appear to be almost no Y5 ‘yeses’ this year due to limitations on class sizes that would normally expand to accommodate more Y5. It might be fair to assume that some of this year’s SWL places might have been yes in a ‘normal year’.

Congratulations for your SWL. May I ask if that was for Y4 or Y5? Y5 places seem to be almost unheard of this year.

The only way someone will remember my DS is if the London team are looking at the Birmingham videos 🤦‍♂️

I thought that too. My DS’s Y5 pictures were a lot better than Y4, but surely the audition team will appreciate how much time has since passed. Maybe (he says, knowing he will never know the answer) clear improvement between photos from then and video from now is a good indication of progress....

Absolutely! We had an ambulance pass, people stop outside for a ridiculously loud chat (the pavement being really close to our living room window), kids shouting whilst walking past.... I didn’t realise how noisy our road was until we filmed that video!

Birmingham is presumably the 2nd biggest centre with a huge catchment area. I would imagine it’d take several days to go through all the videos even just to check if the quality is suitable. So I personally wouldn’t worry if some have been viewed and others not. I do agree on the photos though, I think we took ours on miserable February morning in a freezing cold studio, after making a video for an intensive application. He was tired and the look on his face on one of the pics looked less than impressed 😂 But my DS has had a massive growth spurt since the and his turnout is now leagues apart from what the photos might show. I feel the photos are a bit of an unfair representation given so much time has passed. Compared to the video it’s like looking at another dancer.