siana Posted February 26, 2016 Share Posted February 26, 2016 Hi all My daughter is off to university in September and is in the processing of making her choice for First and backup picks. She is a very keen dancer and has just passed intermediate tap with distinction and is working on her RAD Advanced ballet(she has completed her grades) - ballet is her first love but I she would like to be able to carry on with the tap as well. As a consequence her choices for university will be influenced slightly by whether she can carry on with her dancing while there. Her first pick is between Imperial College , London and Durham Unversity. Obviously RAD and the ENB run classes for external students so London would be good. SHe has read that Durham have a ballet company on campus but doesn't know what the standard is - and has no idea of whether there are any good schools in the area? Can anyone help with information either to confirm what she thins she knows about london(do the RAD and ENB do external classes?) or about the Ballet at Durham University or schools in the area. Her backup pick (which it isn't likely she will have to use , but I believe in always being prepared) is between Manchester or Liverpool Universities. We know there is a Ballet school on Oxford rd as she went to summer school there once but we don't know whether they do external classes . We know nothing about the ballet in Liverpool so again any information would be much appreciated. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBallerina Posted February 26, 2016 Share Posted February 26, 2016 You're correct in what you know about ENB and RAD. ENB holds classes for external students from beginner to advanced/professional level and RAD runs syllabus classes as well as pointe classes for extra pointe work and body conditioning classes. They also host master classes and workshops from time to time. Imperial is only a short walk away from ENB (approx. 5min) and RAD is around 20-30 min away. (Depends on the traffic) I'm a student at the RAD BA program, so feel free to PM me if you need any information about the classes they offer. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Picturesinthefirelight Posted February 26, 2016 Share Posted February 26, 2016 KNT dance works in Manchester offer adult classes up to advanced 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted February 26, 2016 Share Posted February 26, 2016 Hello Siana, we had a topic a while ago about dance facilities in or near universities that may be useful to read: http://www.balletcoforum.com/index.php?/topic/11185-ballet-at-university/?hl=university Good luck to your DD. Do let us know how she gets on. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxi4ballet Posted February 26, 2016 Share Posted February 26, 2016 Central does classes in London on Sundays for adults, including the RAD advanced exams. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2dancersmum Posted February 26, 2016 Share Posted February 26, 2016 Siana - I had to read your post twice and check the date as it could so have been written by one of DD's friends a few years ago. Same level of ballet and same choice (bar Liverpool) of universities! DD's friend is now in her 2nd year at Imperial College, London with academic studies, ballet and tap all going strong. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBallerina Posted February 26, 2016 Share Posted February 26, 2016 Danceworks and Pineapple also do classes in London. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kate_N Posted February 27, 2016 Share Posted February 27, 2016 Speaking as an academic, your daughter really needs to choose the university course which is best fit for her. There is always a way to dance. And as an adult dancer, which is what she'll be, she might like to discover a whole new world of dance beyond RAD. I don't know Durham well (although it's my father's university!) but there is an excellent dance culture in Newcastle so that might be the fix there. In London, there are various places where she can pursue RAD syllabus work, but as an adult, I always wonder why getting grades and qualifications is such a thing, unless there's a career aspect to it. At Advanced RAD level, your daughter should be ok in the advanced level classes at Danceworks (which in my opinion has a better range of serious ballet classes than, say, Pineapple) and could probably try the a professional level classes there. Doing daily class outside of a syllabus gives you a lot of experience in picking up choreography, making an exercise work quickly for you, and making a style of your own. And you learn from watching actual professionals which is almost reason enough to go to that sort of class! And then there are all sorts of other dance forms. As an adult student dancer, I think it's important to widen horizons and learn about all sorts of other forms - I've just done my first Bollywood dance workshop and am going to another in a couple of weeks. What I see with a lot of adult dancers who've done fairly intensive training but haven't made a career of it is a period of adjustment when they start to wonder what they dance for. It can be quite tough, but I always hope that they come to realise is that it's the pleasure of dance and moving, a well as the challenge of mastering an insanely difficult art form, that is the daily challenge, not the grades and qualifications. Good luck to your daughter - it's great she's in the position of choosing between two absolutely top notch universities (neither is mine, btw, so no bias!) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulieW Posted February 27, 2016 Share Posted February 27, 2016 Aside from the dancing, along the lines of Kate's message to choose whichever course suits her best, or which university she felt more at home at, is to also consider that it's more expensive to study in London - accommodation mainly being the issue. A higher loan amount is available but of course that's also more student debt. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siana Posted March 18, 2016 Author Share Posted March 18, 2016 Hi Thanks all for your comments and advice. They have been very helpful. With regards to picking a university , there is very little to academically to choose between Imperial College and Durham for the subject my daughter has chosen(Geophysics) - so the decision comes down to accommodation, surroundings and dance . She liked the accommodation at both and they both have pluses and minuses for surroundings so opportunities for dance will influence her decision. WE've since found out Durham does have its own dance company as well as a dancesoc that provides training and teams that enter competitions. We weren't aware of or had thought about the opportunities in Newcastle so that is something to consider. My daughter will be staying over in Castle College on Monday night and has Monday and Tuesday to look round Durham in more detail so this will help. With regards to doing exams - she really enjoys the challenge and had thought that it would enable her at some time to do some teaching so she would like to continue with her Advanced ballet. At the moment Durham is ahead because of the surroundings but she keeps going back to Imperial because of its accessibility to ENB and RAD - I think she has till May to make up her mind. The only thing she still needs info is Liverpool, does anyone have any suggestions for good ballet schools there? At a push she could travel home from there for classes but its not really a good option. Thanks again for your input everyone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siana Posted March 18, 2016 Author Share Posted March 18, 2016 Speaking as an academic, your daughter really needs to choose the university course which is best fit for her. There is always a way to dance. And as an adult dancer, which is what she'll be, she might like to discover a whole new world of dance beyond RAD. I don't know Durham well (although it's my father's university!) but there is an excellent dance culture in Newcastle so that might be the fix there. In London, there are various places where she can pursue RAD syllabus work, but as an adult, I always wonder why getting grades and qualifications is such a thing, unless there's a career aspect to it. At Advanced RAD level, your daughter should be ok in the advanced level classes at Danceworks (which in my opinion has a better range of serious ballet classes than, say, Pineapple) and could probably try the a professional level classes there. Doing daily class outside of a syllabus gives you a lot of experience in picking up choreography, making an exercise work quickly for you, and making a style of your own. And you learn from watching actual professionals which is almost reason enough to go to that sort of class! And then there are all sorts of other dance forms. As an adult student dancer, I think it's important to widen horizons and learn about all sorts of other forms - I've just done my first Bollywood dance workshop and am going to another in a couple of weeks. What I see with a lot of adult dancers who've done fairly intensive training but haven't made a career of it is a period of adjustment when they start to wonder what they dance for. It can be quite tough, but I always hope that they come to realise is that it's the pleasure of dance and moving, a well as the challenge of mastering an insanely difficult art form, that is the daily challenge, not the grades and qualifications. Good luck to your daughter - it's great she's in the position of choosing between two absolutely top notch universities (neither is mine, btw, so no bias!) Thanks for the reply, you've brought up some the things she has been thinking about. Although she would really have loved a career in classical ballet she had accepted by the time she was 14/15 that probably wasn't going to happen because of her height but she loves her dancing so much she still continued and will continue I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siana Posted March 18, 2016 Author Share Posted March 18, 2016 Siana - I had to read your post twice and check the date as it could so have been written by one of DD's friends a few years ago. Same level of ballet and same choice (bar Liverpool) of universities! DD's friend is now in her 2nd year at Imperial College, London with academic studies, ballet and tap all going strong. Wow, thats amazing. Is your DD's friend going to ENB or RAD? And if so what are her thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siana Posted March 18, 2016 Author Share Posted March 18, 2016 Hello Siana, we had a topic a while ago about dance facilities in or near universities that may be useful to read: http://www.balletcoforum.com/index.php?/topic/11185-ballet-at-university/?hl=university Good luck to your DD. Do let us know how she gets on. Thank you. I notice you're in Liverpool. You don't have any recommendations for good ballet schools there or nearby? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siana Posted March 18, 2016 Author Share Posted March 18, 2016 KNT dance works in Manchester offer adult classes up to advanced Thanks for the reply. We knew about the Northern ballet school there but didn't know there were evening classes being run there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siana Posted March 18, 2016 Author Share Posted March 18, 2016 You're correct in what you know about ENB and RAD. ENB holds classes for external students from beginner to advanced/professional level and RAD runs syllabus classes as well as pointe classes for extra pointe work and body conditioning classes. They also host master classes and workshops from time to time. Imperial is only a short walk away from ENB (approx. 5min) and RAD is around 20-30 min away. (Depends on the traffic) I'm a student at the RAD BA program, so feel free to PM me if you need any information about the classes they offer. Thanks for confirming this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 Thank you. I notice you're in Liverpool. You don't have any recommendations for good ballet schools there or nearby? Hello Siana, sadly I am a ballet watcher rather than a doer so have no experience of dance schools in Liverpool. Elsewhere in the thread KNT is mentioned and think I have read elsewhere on this Forum that they also hold classes in Liverpool. Good luck to your daughter! (I adore Durham BTW!!!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Picturesinthefirelight Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 Yes, I recently found that KNT holds an extensive programme of classes in Liverpool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 KNT's website: http://www.manchesterdanceclasses.co.uk/liverpool/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted March 20, 2016 Share Posted March 20, 2016 Bear in mind, too, that ENB's classes tend to be very oversubscribed, so it may well take a while to get in on one of them. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sarahw Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 Siana - KS Dance in Warrington have an excellent reputation also Elizabeth Hill in St Helens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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