Aurora

Her arm could well be a lot better by the end of June for her Ballet exam, she won't need to lean on it for that or anything at least. For the auditions I would contact the colleges as soon as possible to let them know what has happened, she may be able to miss sections of the audition that would cause pain.

I agree taking her to a physio could help enormously, I strained my neck very badly once, I could barely move my head, literally one trip to the physio fixed it for a couple of weeks before it started hurting again, I then went back and had another session and it's been fine ever since.

Good luck!

Just for anyone wondering....the old Elementary is now called Intermediate, the old Intermediate is now called Advanced 1 and the old Advanced is now called Advanced 2 (also old pre-elementary is now intermediate foundation, old pre-intermediate or intermediate part 1 is now called advanced foundation).

As a very general guide, at 16 you should be about intermediate standard if it's a musical theatre course, for a pure dance course you should probably be around Advanced 1 standard. That's only very general though as it very much depends on where you're going and the exact type of course, plus all the other factors like potential, physique etc etc.

The yes envelope is small but you can tell there is more than 1 sheet of paper in it!

I feel dizzy from some of those clips!!

We don't use soft blocks in France as far as I know... What are they? And soft points for that matter? I know what they are, I simply don't understand the point.... Can someone enlighten me?

Soft pointe shoes and soft blocks are the same thing. They've got a hardened toe but not a strong shank so you can't go en pointe in them but it gets you used to the feel of dancing in pointe shoes and they can help strengthen the feet (the shank is quite thick).

They're compulsory for RAD Intermediate exams and above but I've heard that quite a few people don't follow this rule which seems very unfair on those that do as soft blocks are much harder to dance in!

While I think that perhaps it shouldn't have been put in the newsletter I do know that the girls were out of order as my dd and her friends witnessed what happened. There was a complete lack of respect from at least one of the girls from what they told me and it's saddening to think children can speak to people like that. The girl in question has had other 'issues' too with several schools in the area so it wasn't a huge surprise to be honest. Quite a sad situation overall but who is to blame? The parents? The children? The schooling? The circumstances? A combination of several factors I guess.

I don't think it would prevent EYB from coming back to newcastle but I imagine they wouldn't take those girls again (in the unlikely event that they chose to audition again).

Ah sorry to hear that mumstheword, keep trying!

Good luck! Fingers crossed for a good result! My dd is looking forward to starting at Sunderland in September!

U is for underwear which should ideally NOT be worn under a leotard!

I believe 'stardancer's daughter has been accepted too, not sure if she has any more information....

I is for injury!!

That's great news amber21!

Thank you and congrats on your 2! With your older dd going off to Hammond in September you could have no kids left at home if they follow in her footsteps! Your eldest will be all grown up by then won't he?

Huge congrats! There's another post about it by the way

Yes pretty quick, 12 days.

Thanks everyone

She doesn't even know yet (I've been aw work tonight so will tell her tomorrow) and my husband doesn't really understand so it's good to have some enthusiastic replies

Has anyone else had their results for Sunderland? I know of 4 who got in from my daughters dance school, her included

Good heaven yes, most of the comments that follow are horrible! Dancers probably cost the nhs almost nothing currently as they are renowned for 'just getting on with it'. The nhs has a duty of care and because of the specialist nature of dance and injuries sustained through it, that makes this service essential. It's been a long time coming.

What's the concern about cheerleading? It's just dancing with pom poms isn't it? Unless you're thinking of stunts but would the actually do those in school?

Yes miss Lewis said before the certificate presentation that they were coming back to Newcastle in 2014.

They're back in Newcastle in 2014

Apparently some did drop out at newcastle. I heard that one wasn't cast as a princess so she quit after the casting day which sounds a tad diva-ish. Another couple of girls dropped out too and one was apparently very rude to miss Lewis! Also some girls were stopped from under studying the princesses because their technique wasn't good enough and they took a huff about that! My daughter and her friends were discussing it on the way home, that's how I heard all this!

EYB is a performance experience, it is not necessarily meant to be technically challenging though of course it will be for some.

Your dd will really just have to wait her turn. When she's older, if she's good enough then she probably will get a better role. As for the other location casting an 11 year old as a princess, she was obviously an excellent dancer and deserved the role and perhaps none of the older children were as good as her.

For anything in dance, you can of course ask for feedback but you shouldn't really doubt the decisions of the professionals in auditions and selection processes (or even in classes really). They are highly experienced and know what they're doing.

Apparently some did drop out at newcastle. One wasn't cast as a princess so she quit after the casting day which sounds a tad diva-ish. Another couple of girls dropped out too and one was apparently very rude to miss Lewis!

EYB is a performance experience, it is not necessarily meant to be technically challenging though of course it will be for some.

Your dd will really just have to wait her turn. When she's older, if she's good enough then she probably will get a better role. As for the other location casting an 11 year old as a princess, she was obviously an excellent dancer and deserved the role and perhaps none

Go for it, it's never too late

Try sewing them just at a very slight angle and not too far back. Also if you try the ribbon with the elastic section in (elastosorb??) she'll be able to tie them a bit tighter and then the elastic should pull it back in when she comes down (in theory....I think!!)