Pups_mum

I am back from a dreadful "oh heck" week - no broadband! And my daily fix of balletco has been restricted to sneaky peeks from my computer at work or a microscopic (and expensive) view on my phone. How did we ever live without the internet? If anyone had seen me and all 3 children running around the house yelling "it's back! It's back!" when we finally discovered we were on line again this evening they would probably have sent for the men in white coats! But anyway...it's good to be back!

Not cheap I'm afraid, but I have bought a number of costumes from http://benefisshop.com/ over the years and always been delighted with both the quality and service. When I first discovered them the payment was in US dollars and at the time the exchange rate was very favourable so their tutus were a real bargain. Sadly that's not the case now, but they are very beautiful.

My worst ever driving moment.... I was late for a hairdressers appointment, dashed out of the house, hopped into my car and reversed across the drive just as I have done a thousand times before. Until I heard a loud "crunch" which gave me a dreadful shock, as there's never anything parked behind me. My husband has 2 cars - a company car that he'd gone to work in as usual, plus the true love of his life, his classic Alfa Romeo, that is always in the garage. Always, except on that particular morning........it was an awkward phone call.....

That's interesting Janet - the only thing that I was slightly disappointed in was that I felt Elisha was a little bit unconvincing in Act 3. She still seemed a bit "nice" to me! Not that that spoiled my enjoyment though. Totally agree with you about Tzu-Chao though, he absolutely lit up the stage. My daughter has been raving about him non stop!

they do absorb sweat. My DD has seriously sweaty feet and her feet don't get wet or anything in her GMs!

Yes, DD was very excited when she saw an advert for the capulet shoes with D3o in them.She'd being doing something in physics at school about the same material and was fascinated to hear about it being in a pointe shoe.It's an "awesome" material apparently! I was tempted to let her try some on when we were in London a few weeks ago but decided against it as I didn't want her to fall in love with them only to be told we weren't going back for another pair. I already drive 3 hours each way for the bloomin' Gaynor Mindens and that's plenty far enough I'm afraid! Would be very interested to hear more feedback on the capulets though - it sounds a very interesting concept.

I have suggested this but she's adamant that she wants to teach primary. In fact she said "Eww no. Who would want to teach teenagers - we're awful!". Got to admire the honesty!

Famcandance2 - I know you have been making a substantial journey south to take your daughter to class but that you're no longer happy with that school. Have you looked into what similar length journeys in other directions might offer? There must be somewhere within that radius surely? Have you tried ringing the big dance organisations like the RAD/ISTD/IDTA etc to ask where their nearest registered teacher to you is?

Thanks all. It's good to hear that dancing doesn't have to grind to a halt when school days finish. Obviously I'll be encouraging her to pick the best course that's open to her when the time comes, but I do think that there's more to university life than the academics alone, so i'd like her to go somewhere where she can continue to dance if possible. I have to confess that I hope she doesn't opt for London though - the thought of her going from our tiny little village to the capital is too much for me I think! Ah well, time will tell.

My DD is wearing Gaynor Mindens and they do definitely last a lot longer than the Grishkos she favoured before. But whilst the shanks have not been a problem she has found that the box does go "soggy" (her description!) eventually. She's currently doing a couple of pointe classes a week and her shoes will last a few months.

Well my DD is in year 10, so we have 4 years before we really have to think about this, but if the last 4 years are anything to go by I have no doubt this time will go in a flash! We were musing about this last night, so thought I would ask here if anyone has any ideas. My DD has no aspirations to dance professionally (her current thought is that she'd like to be a primary school teacher.) However, she's always been very dedicated to her dancing and she's not bad at it. She's currently working on RAD Advanced Foundation in ballet and ISTD Intermediate Modern. She'd like to get to at least Adv1 in ballet with her current teacher before she goes to university, though obviously we'll have to see how she manages with the increasing academic workload as school goes on. But my question is, what then? I know there will be many other distractions at university (plus hopefully some work to do!) but I can't believe that someone whose life has pretty much revolved around dancing since she was a pre schooler is just going to walk out of her teacher's studio at the end of 6th form and that will be the end of it. She says she can't imagine ever not dancing but we don't know what she'll be able to do. Obviously I know from reading the posts on here that there are adults who dance but I don't know much about it. Does anyone know if there are likely to be any facilities at university for students who want to dance but aren't studying performing arts etc? Or would she just have to look for a local school? We live in a rural area so I'm not really au fait with what most big cities are likely to offer - are there classes that you can just turn up at on an ad hoc basis? And what about performance opportunities - things like EYB stop at 18 of course so does anyone know how an enthusiastic amateur older than that can get to perform? As I say, not an urgent issue but I'm sure the time will fly by. DD did say that if she has a choice of where to study and all other things are equal, then the dance opportunities would be a factor in her choice, so I thought I'd better start doing some homework. Any thoughts or experiences would be welcome.

That is very true ribbons, and I think sometimes there is more happiness to be had in accepting that certain things just can't be rather than pushing relentlessly at a closed door. However, reaching that decision is a very individual thing.

Swanprincess, if there's one thing I've learned from years of reading this forum it's that you could easily go insane trying to figure out what the RBS (and the other schools come to that) are looking for! I'm sure they do consider any physical problems that may potentially lead to injuries later etc but there will be a myriad of other considerations too.In my humble opinion, it's probably best not to stress about what they want physically as you probably will never find out for sure, and you can't really change your physical proportions etc. I'm a great believer in not worrying about things that you can't change. Of course the probability of anyone getting a place on these courses is small. There aren't many places and there's always going to be many, many more applicants than there are spaces for. I think as long as you go with a pragmatic approach, determined to enjoy the day for it's own sake and not get too stressed about the outcome, then you've nothing to lose by trying. But don't over think things! Go, do your best, smile and enjoy it, and what will be will be. Good luck!

Sorry to hear there's no progress with the Hammond famcandance2. Have you had any joy with looking for another local dance school?

Yes, I agree. Nobody expects all teenagers to be saints but I was still rather taken aback to read it. My DD is in year 10 at a state school with a very good reputation but I know from what she tells me that a fair number of her peers drink and smoke and it's much the same in other local schools.DD has always been pretty good at resisting peer pressure thank goodness and she says that a lot of that comes from her dancing. She understands that in order to be able to dance well she needs to take care of her body and she knows that cigarettes and alcohol are not the way to do that. She doesn't even aspire to be a professional dancer but dance is still more important to her than anything else. I guess I'd assumed that children at vocational school who are hoping for professional careers would feel the same as my DD only more so, if you know what I mean. Perhaps I'm being too harsh, they are still just kids, but I am shocked that the schools aren't tougher on this sort of thing. When I read of the sacrifices that so many parents on here have made to send their children to vocational schools it makes me angry on their behalf that situations like 2dancersmum describes are happening.

I think you've had some great advice. Having a plan B is definitely important but I think you also need to be really clear in your own minds whether vocational school really is plan A before you start. Obviously statistically speaking "no" letters are much commoner than "yes" ones but the yesses do exist! I know of a couple of people who have let their children audition "just for the experience" with no real expectation of getting in, who then have done. This situation can be as difficult to deal with as comforting a heartbroken child who has not been accepted - probably more so in fact. If your husband is not keen on the idea I think you need to have some really honest discussions with him about it all before you start the process. To be left with a letter saying yes and a husband saying no would be a situation I really wouldn'y want to be in! Good luck with the decision and with choosing "normal" schools too - that's stressful enough in itself.

Gosh, I'm shocked by that 2dancersmum. I hope your DD finds some friends who are more on her wavelength soon - there must be some surely? Maybe I am very naive, but I would have expected young people who are planning on a career which depends so much on their physical well being would have the sense to take care of their bodies a bit more. Sounds like your daughter is the sensible one and I'm sure her attitude will serve her well in the future. She's probably a lot more mature than the others actually! I hope she manages to settle in soon. C4D - so glad to hear that things are looking better. And it will be half term before you know it.

I've no real advice C4D but wanted to send you a virtual hug. I'm sure things will get better in time. It's such a big change for you both, it must be really tough. Even starting "normal" secondary school is a worrying time for most 11 year olds so going away must be even harder. But I'm sure Charlie will be sparking again soon. Take care of yourself and remember that everyone here is thinking of you xx

Funny how ballet pervades our every day lives. We are currently recruiting at work and I got a very horrified look from one of the candidates when I told him today that "We're planning to hold the auditions a week on Tuesday." I think he wondered what on earth we were going to ask him to do! Anyway, good look with the showing. I don't know anything technical about dogs but yours looks beautiful in your avatar.

No personal experience sorry, but have you tried contacting the Children's services dept at the relevant county council (Cheshire I presume)? They might have knowledge of this kind of thing. Good luck. I hope you're able to find somewhere suitable.

We've never bought pointe shoes in London, but last time we were down I bought tap shoes for DD and was very impressed with the assistant in Dancia. DD tried on several pairs but there was something not quite right about each of them. They were all ok, but not perfect for her. Rather than sell us a pair that we weren't totally happy with, the assistant recommended a particular model of Bloch shoes that she thought would suit DD so we strolled down the road to the Bloch shop (who were also very helpful.) I guess it's hit and miss in every shop, depending on who you are served by though, and even the best assistants must have their off days.

I completely agree with drdance and anjuli. There is a whole lot more to being a good teacher than being an expert in the field yourself. When I was at university one of my tutors was world famous in his field but he couldn't teach for toffee - we learned more from the lab assistants than the eminent professor I think! Teaching is an art in itself and, in my humble opinion, teachers of all kinds are often dreadfully undervalued. A great, or even good, teacher can inspire and change many, many lives,without necessarily having to be "stars" in their field themselves.

Well I'm pleased to report that we had a remarkably trouble free time in the shoe shop today. DD chose a lovely pair of lace up shoes without me even having to lean on her. I think it did help that the lady in the shoe shop told her that this style was one of her current best sellers and that lots of girls from the high school had been buying them. Amazingly it took less time to sort out DD than her 6 year old brother who insisted on trying on every pair of shoes in his size in the shop before finally settling on the first pair the lady had suggested!

My latest nightmare.. We are in the dressing room at a festival when my DD asks me where a vital part of her next costume is. I reply "I don't know. You packed and told me you'd got everything ready and didn't need me fussing." She replies "Well yes, everything except the bits that YOU were supposed to pack." Hang on a minute, that wasn't a nightmare. It was yesterday and it was real. Kids, who'd have em......

I have nightmares relating to my DD's dancing. Things like turning up at festivals or shows and discovering that I have forgotten all her costumes etc. Unfortunately these nightmares are at least partly grounded in fact!