Dragonlady

well done! Unfortunatly my dd recieved a 'No' but she has picked herself up and is working hard on her next audition in December. It is quite strange but no-one she knows from her audition group/school got a 'yes' so a super well done to those that did!! T

If anyone is looking for a tutu on the south coast p.m. me as I also make custom tutus. Trudi

Hammond do around 15 hours per week during the week mixed in with regular academic classes for years 10 and 11. They also have choir and some limited drama work during the week too. Weekends dance is Saturday morning for 3 hours for RAD (girls) and Cechetti (???) for the boys. They are also expected to use weekends for rehersals as necessary. T

I talked to DD last night and asked about this, it seems that they ask different groups to do different things, so in the morning audition there was not a lot of pointe work (the bit the parents watched), there was more pointe work in the afternoon audition but easier 'flat' work. Just to clarify, the allegro, adage and pointe work was also different for both sessions although the students were all auditioning for 6.1. I hope this makes sense, DD's school friends were in both groups so they had time to compare last night. Some things were harder for one group but others the same sort of thing was easier, each had different things that were harder....its just what the pannel ask the dancers to do at the time. I was aware that there were limited numbers of places available but I think they would offer a place to a dancer they wanted regardless of the apparent numbers.

As usual, the school made us really welcome. We arrived early as made allowances for traffic but got there in plenty of time. We stayed in the Radison 'Encore' hotel the night before and although slightly more expensive than some others, it was clean and felt 'safe'. DD and I had a quick evening meal there and it was reasonably priced and good although a limited menu. It is only just up the road from Elmhurst so the taxi only took 10 mins, (we allowed 45!!!) The audition was good with a pannel of 5 and a video camera. Parents were given a talk about A levels and pastoral care. They are currently building a new 6th form accomodation block - away from the school - which made me feel slightly better about sending DD off to live on her own in a big city (if she gets in of course!!) as they will have 6.1 and 6.2's living there as of Sept 2014. (currently it is just 6.1's that are housed). We were allowed into the audition room for the last excersise which was a pointe excersise and I am glad that I am not a judge as everyone was lovely!!! Fingers crossed for a good result Trudi

As we are off to Elmhurst for the 6th form auditions tomorrow, I wanted to wish everyone auditioning all the best. As far as I know there are two upper school auditions going on, one in the morning and another just after lunch a mixed bunch of boys and girls. I may see some familiar faces as I hang around waiting for my DD. Trudi edited for typo

SAB, which auditioned in London last year are apparently auditioning at venues in France and Italy this year, not London. Not sure about any other American schools though. T

Thank you for all the replies. As someone else has commented on a different post - year 11 and the choices the dancers have to make is a very stressfull one for all concerned. I will show this thread to my DH as he is very concerned about both the living in London bit as well as the academic side. The DaDa issue is also confusing as several schools direct us to the Government website but we are then directed back to the schools for the figures involved in the 'means tested' bit. Does anyone have an idea how to find this info on the schools own wesites? We are looking at ENB and Elmhurst in particular. I have no idea what the lower and upper limits for pay/contributions are and feel this knowledge would aid quite a bit in the decision making process! Trudi

ENBS has now put out their audition dates/times for next year. My dd will be applying there along with other schools although we too as parents are concerned about A level study after all that dancing. I think it must take an academically highly motivated individual to turn to study after a long day of dance.....any opinions welcome on this one!! Strangely enough my dd's current ballet teacher was a bit dismissive of Elmhurst as an option this year for her....she didn't elaborate why but they boy/girl ratio may well be part of it. Good luck to everyone who is auditioning for a 6th form place at a classical ballet school (or indeed any other!) Trudi Edited for wierd typo!

As far as I am aware, Hammond do not offer gymnastics etc but they do a lot of felxability and pilates training which would make any dancer (classical ballet or otherwise) more able to to do these sort of moves that may be required from any choreographer. I would not consider my dd an acrobat but sheis certainly very flexible. T

Further to the Hammond assessing out comments: This is a fairly new thing for everyone at the school but a couple of children have had their MDS's taken away in year 10 which left their families unable to pay the fees and thus had to remove their child. I am unable to offer any further comments on these children. A letter offering any sort of awards (MDS or Bursary) carries the warning that these can be taken away from the child for a variety of reasons at any point over the child's time in the school, althogh obviously in consultation with the parents. Hammond and possibly Tring are unique in the fact that there are other forms of dance opportunities to hand, so a change of dance/musical theatre direction whilst still staying at the school are possibilities. Hope this helps. T

A bit of a wierd one this, but if you wrap up the shoes in an old towel and then place it all a plastic bag - a supermarket carrier bag will do and run over them in the car a couple of times (!!!! ) this softens up old de-shanked pointe shoes and makes them quiet for demi pointe work. My DD does this and we never buy soft blocks any more. T

to answer the questions about 6th form auditions, you have to prepare a drama piece and a monologue as well as a dance solo. All the info is on their 6th form application form. All the year 11 parents there were warned that this years 6th form auditions were tougher than previous years! T

I have often said this but my DD auditioned at Hammond and could not sing a note! She went for the dance and got accepted. I think in the end she sang a line from "Happy Birthday" with the music teacher. It did not affect her audition in any way as they realise all children have different strengths. However...four years on and she is auditioning for the chamber choir.....they have boosted her confidenc with singinge so much that her "Can't sing, won't sing" attitude has changed into a "ok, I'll give it a try". She may not ever be able to sing a lead role or even do a solo but when they all sing together it is lovely to hear. Good luck! T

I also make tutus - generally for the south coast area....I have occasionally made a tutu for a long distance client (Just sent one up to Scotland!) but much preffer to have a least one fitting if not the usual 2 or 3. I have recently made a traditional bodice in heavy lycra for a romantic tutu that worked out very well so you can have the best of both worlds www.trudistutus.com T

Thank you for this info. We can now start to plan where DD can apply this year. Not too many places have audition times out yet but I am sure it will be soon. T

done! I wasnt sure how much you needed before but £10.00 is just right. Trudi

My dd is at the Elmhurst SS this year for the third time and is also finding the level of teaching very high as they are all being stretched physically and artistically. She is is with other dancers who are about to enter year 12 whilst she is going into year 11 - although at the top of her age range. Her group and above are in single rooms and I get the feeling a lot of the girls are just too tired to do anything other than hang their aching feet out the window or soak them in a cold bath/sink!! She too is loving the work with the BRB dancers and is happy she is there. Basically Elmhurst is a SS which pulls no punches when it comes to giving the older dancers a real taste of what it is like to dance for a top notch vocational school 6th form or ballet company,this becomes more apparent as she progresses up the set/age groups, Not everyones cup of tea I suspect. T

My DD and some other friends are going too, they are all 15. The teaching is amazing and the end of week show very good indeed. Looking forward to seeing everyone either from past years or at auditions!!! TX

My DD started her periods when she was 13, she was (and still is) in vocational ballet training and has only just reached 6 1/2 stone at nearly 16! Periods have always been fairly regular. As all the women in our family are tiny and both my dd and I started at around 13 years of age so i am not convinced there is a 'magic number'for weight before periods should occur as it was not until I hit my 20's that I reached the weight mentioned above. Neither of us is (or was) in any way annorexic just very tiny. Not sure if this helps but may ease some concerns for mothers of smaller sized dd's. T

Sometimes, if a student is identified as having a particular 'weakness' in a specific area but the class teacher is too busy to help remidy this then i think it is ok to go back to an old dance teacher for help or advice. My DD very occasionally see her old ballet teacher for a regular class in the holidays and will have private 'audition' lessons this summer to prepare for 6th form auditions. At DD's school this does not appear to happen and the dedicated ballet dancers are left to get on with it as best they can whilst other "at home" dancers or day pupils are intensively coached by private teachers (not from DD's school) when approaching this milestone. T

I thought that DaDa's were ending as of 2012 Sept entry. I.e. 2013+ entries no Dada's Is there any news on alternative fundings for this? T

Dominic is still at Hammond, now in year 10 with my dd. Not sure what his plans for the future are though. T

....when you start stocking up the 'fridge for extra food and snacks and hubby gets a haunted look due to the imminant arrival of a teenager back from V.S. when the house will be transformed into a hub of noise and clutter!!! Bliss :D Edited for wierd spellings!

Brilliant news.....So pleased for you! All that waiting though how didi you cope???? Looking forward to seeing you both at SS. Tx