DVDfan

This is of course true, but if it applied to all the students who are not offered places in years 10 and 12, (which I doubt since so many of them go on to other vocational schools and do well), it would indicate that vocational training starts too young. My concern here is as a tax payer - I have no connection with the dance world except as an audience member. And I am feeling that if my taxes are supporting a vocational ballet school I want it spent training the most talented British children to the standard that will get them into paying work.

I am an outsider to the ballet world, a watcher not a doer so I am not sure how valid my perspective is. For what it's worth, however, I am left speechless at the idea that they won't be any good if they are not shouted at. This is totally illogical. I mean, is the raised voice some sort of magic nostrum that will bestow talent and technique upon them? Are they so un-motivated that only shouting will get them to co-operate and work hard? If so, why are they there at all? It seems to me that they are being set up very young to accept a culture of verbally abusive teaching, with this myth, that they won't be any good if the teacher doesn't shout.

I'm getting a vibe now that the students are being used to win competitions for the school, that this is what matters to the teacher, not their welfare or their education. IMO, your DD is quite right not to like it, whoever it is directed at - she is sensing the underlying, undesirable motive. It does seem to me that if you can, it would be best to move her to a school that teaches dance, not competition routines. If she likes to compete, I get the impression from this forum that there are a lot of ways to do that - festivals etc.

Permission to attend from your existing school? The way these dance schools treat their paying customers is very odd! Is there a justification for this?

I'm puzzled by the continuous last minute changes of schedule. I can see that whilst stuff happens now and then and occasional changes are inevitable, I can't see how any kind of youth group can run without a fixed timetable and one of the reasons why this is necessary is that most kids are dependent on their parents for transport, and parents have jobs, siblings and indeed their own lives to organise. You say these changes of schedule are causing you serious problems: I'm not surprised, it's something I couldn't live with at all (maybe I'm a bit inflexible). Expecting parents - the paying customers after all - to put up with this doesn't sound reasonable to me. It also strikes me that the difficulties and stress this causes you could be a reason your DD would understand for starting to think about another school.

In my experience, if a teacher is shouting so that a child is afraid of her, that is a warning sign and you should get out. As far as the mean 'friend' goes, it depends. Is the 'friend' just boosting her own confidence in a rather childish way 'I know something you don't so I'm clever'? If so, I should tell your daughter that the 'friend' is just unhappy and insecure, and to ignore it, it's not her problem. On the other hand, if it is directed spite of the 'you're no good at dancing and you never will be and everyone is laughing at you behind your back' type, then this is a deliberate attempt to destroy the self-confidence and self-esteem of another person. No one should put up with that and if the teacher doesn't stop it for good, you should walk. If you do that, make sure your child knows that the 'friend' and the teacher are at fault, not her.

So glad things are basically going well for Adrian, and that you are getting in some ballet. I can see it is a lot of hard work with many set backs and frustrations, which leaves me in awe of your achievements, as a dancer, as a partner and as a home maker.

In my experience (not dance related) it depends on the country. In Germany, Holland and most of Scandinavia, English is taught to a high level and you will find it difficult to speak their language even if you can, as the minute they realise that you are a native English speaker they will insist on speaking English to you. In southern Europe English is not so widely spoken, though they will be friendly about your ignorance of their language. However, in France they will resent it if you do not make strenuous efforts to speak French - though if you do they will usually be friendly and help you out. Good luck!

This just shows how different tastes and preferences are. To me, the only thing that makes the recording of the Dowell SB bearable is his performance as Carabosse and Durante's as Aurora. I find the designs both hideous and vulgar and I am full of admiration for the dancers who manage to give a performance looking so ridiculous, especially the king and queen. Aurora's entrance in point shoes and tutu down a steep staircase, unsupported, fills me with horror for the poor ballerina, and I believe the reflective floor, which adds nothing to the ambiance, caused a number of falls. So to me this is a prime example of what a ballet set and costumes ought not to be. I'd be interested in other opinions - I might learn something!

There seems to be some confusion about the aims of ROH discounts, though I get the feeling this is in the group think of ROH and not the minds of forum members. Offering students or under 25s large discounts is presumably about building an audience for the future, on the assumption that they will keep coming any pay full price later in life. Whereas if accessibility were the aim, those discounts need to be offered to people on benefits regardless of age. No reason why they shouldn't do both, of course, if the balance sheet will stand it - but that's surely where the Arts Council should be helping?

The 'audience' at most religious services are there to take part, and are generally expected to do so, but rites of passage like funerals, weddings and coronations are an exception. An atheist or a member of a different religion can attend those purely because they have a personal connection of some kind with the main participants. They're not expected to take part, only to watch respectfully.

Those two interviews have a very different tone, in spite of covering much of the same ground! Down to the journalists involved, perhaps?

As I understand it from various odd snippets of information in interviews etc, RB like dancers to spend at least 2 years in the corps when they first join the company because they still have a lot to learn about stage craft, still need to build strength and stamina, and because this is when they make friends in the company. It also avoids putting too much pressure on too soon, before they are ready to handle it. After all, it's not as if they can't be given soloist or even principal roles for which they are particularly suited - I think Sambe was cast as Bronze Idol in his first season with the company, for example. And didn't Claudia Dean do the Chosen One in Rite of Spring whilst still at artist rank? So they need not be held back unproductively.

Bless you, Michelle, Adrian is lucky to have you.

Personally I feel I've learned a lot just from watching different dancers in the same production. I hope they will go on adding multiple performances, as they have with Beauty and R&J.

Not a ballet parent, but as one who has had school go badly wrong, I'd offer the following advice. 1 Listen to the bad experiences of other parents/children (there will be some) and try to work out objectively whether or not your child will be affected by those issues. 2 Schools change all the time - most obviously when the head changes, but also heads of year, house parents etc. Sometimes the cohort of children in that year is important too. No one can forecast these things, so point 3... 3 If it's going wrong for your child, move. In the OP's situation, I'd tell DC that no one can know what it will truly be like until they live it, so they can go but must promise to tell you if it isn't working, and you can make other arrangements. Dance training is a mountain with many paths to the summit - these are widely discussed on this forum.

OK...I may be quite wrong and talking through my hat here, but I am worried that the OP has been told that she has potential but that her dancing is ugly and weak. If it is the same teachers who tell her both these things, it sounds abusive to me, as though they are seeking to trap her into spending a lot of money with them. As to what God wants, if you are supposed to be a professional ballet dancer you will have the God given gifts of facility, the right physique, talent and opportunity. If any of those are lacking, then it's not what He wants. I suggest you stop worrying, enjoy dancing, and just see what comes. And remember that you can learn a lot of useful things on the journey which will be of help in other walks of life.

Can I suggest that rather than talking about problems at a particular school, which can run our splendid, hard working moderators into legal problems, we focus on what to do when things are going wrong for our children? I'm not a dancer or a ballet parent, but my daughter has been badly damaged when things went wrong for her in an academic school. She desperately soldiered on, and we did not recognise the signs until she was overwhelmed and collapsed. So, for a thread, I feel it would be useful to discuss how to tell the difference between a rough patch and a serious problem, and what to do about it. When is it time to contact the school, to put pressure on the school, to change school? How can you tell if the school/teacher is at fault, or if in fact, ballet as a career (or even hobby) just isn't for you? Should serious formal complaints be made to somebody about the behaviour of certain teachers or even schools? Should parents get together and vote with their feet? Ought there to be more regulation in this sector, and if so, who should be responsible for it. It's clear to me reading this forum over many years that behaviour that amounts to teacher bullying is common throughout the ballet world, and it would be good to change the culture.

It appears to my non-technical eye that Alistair McCauley is right about the short comings in McGregor's work. It just doesn't seem to me that it matters.

I think my perception of the ending may be influenced by the fact that Anastasia died at Yekaterinburg and therefore I know that Anna Andersen remains seriously ill, deprived of her true identity.

Having just watched Anastasia on the ROH streaming, I think it will be important to some people to know that the films which Anna is shown include scenes of execution by firing squad. The deaths of the Romanov family are also re-enacted on stage, with the Tsarevitch (played by a young boy) shot in his father's arms. It's pretty tough stuff. It's also tough in a different way if you have family suffering with low mental health. Given the hopeless nature of the ending I don't think it helps. Even when these things are not problematic for you, it isn't a pleasant half hour and I'm also sorry that Laura is ending her career with this, though I'm sure it's a ballet that will give her dramatic qualities a magnificent final outing.

There's also a video somewhere of RB about 40 years ago when the entrance of the prologue fairies gives a definite feel of magic and excitement. Now they just come on stage.

Shouldn't a critic judge a classical ballet from the Russian Imperial period as a classical ballet from the Russian Imperial period? Against the best performance and production standard of that style and that choreography? Complaining that it's not McMillan or Bourne is surely like complaining that an apple doesn't taste like a pear.

Of course it can get silly, as can any movement, but the basic idea is not silly. I have relatives who suffer PTSD and trigger warnings on films and TV are very helpful, as flashbacks can be very serious. However, there is a difference between measures to protect the vulnerable in our society whilst still allowing them to enjoy as much theatre, film and literature as possible, and Woke censorship. I haven't seen the details, but the Peter Pan thing sounds like the latter dressed up as the former.