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Saturday ballet classes in central/south London

worsethanclueless

By worsethanclueless
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worsethanclueless

worsethanclueless

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Hi all

 

Looking for advice on extra ballet classes.

 

My daughter is auditioning for the RBS JAs on the advice of her teacher. We went to the Insight Day on Thursday (which was amazing - what incredible teachers they have!) and having observed, I can see that she may have the facility for ballet which her teacher says she has, but she's not a born performer - I could see some kids are just itching to show the world how good they are, which is a great thing, but makes me think my daughter is likely to get slightly lost in the crowd. 

 

That's fine I think in one sense as I suspect you do need to have that desire to express your talents to others to do well on such a course but now that dd has figured out that extra ballet is a thing (!) she's desperate to do more!

 

This means I really need to find extra Saturday classes should she not make JAs. I'd like them to help her develop really well as a ballet dancer because she doesn't have bags of confidence but ballet is really helping her with that - so it needs to be a good class. And it needs to be something different to what she does during the week, I think.

 

So 2 questions...

 

Is it potentially annoying to a ballet teacher to put her in a Saturday class that isn't something like the JAs? I could understand that! It's not that her current teacher isn't brilliant (she is and dd loves her!) but just that she wants to do more and I'd like that to be something different to give her more experience (so not repeating what she does for her grade exam in the week, which I think is what would happen if she did extra Saturday classes with her own teacher).

 

Question 2 - does anyone know of good classes that run on a Saturday (got to be Saturday!) that fit the bill? Needs to be fairly central/south London.

 

I've looked at YDA (sounds totally fab but nearly £1k a year 😯 and she might not get through that audition either so not a great plan b!) and Central but seems like they don't do Saturdays for her age group. And ENBS but they seem to have a vast waiting list.

 

Other ideas? I basically just want her to be able to do more quality ballet which is really what excites her about the whole JA thing and if I have a plan b for more ballet, she won't be worried if she doesn't make it through the audition.

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MrsMoo2

MrsMoo2

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Can she do privates with her current teacher? Only saying as the teachers tend to not like you going elsewhere unless it’s some sort of JA/ENB type class. Maybe speak with her teacher and see if she could recommend/fit you in for extras...👍👍👍

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worsethanclueless

worsethanclueless

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7 hours ago, LinMM said:

Is this Franziska Rosenzweig holistic ballet....as far as I know those classes are not for children! 

I would have thought RAD classes may be appropriate but they are over in Battersea. 

 

Ah - it says beginner under 12 with authorisation - but is that misleading? I.e. not for an 8 year old? RAD  don't seem to do non-exam classes for her age and stage but maybe I've misunderstood - otherwise perfect as we're v close!

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amos73

amos73

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It sounds like what you are talking about   is an associate class. So JAs is the junior associate class for royal ballet school, central have an associate scheme, as do Yda and Tring (their associate scheme is called CBA classical ballet academy). There is also London junior ballet on a Sunday at Artsed in Chiswick. Associate schemes will be more than just a class, they will be comprised of a ballet class but also some kind of body conditioning and learning some rep even. As such they tend to be 2/3 hours long. All of them will require your daughter to audition but royal is accepted to be the hardest to get into because of the numbers applying for that being so high. I don’t know what they all cost but they will all be reasonably expensive (isn’t everything in ballet!) If your daughter thinks she might be interested in ballet as more than a hobby getting into one of these schemes may be a good starting point. Good luck!

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worsethanclueless

worsethanclueless

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3 hours ago, amos73 said:

It sounds like what you are talking about   is an associate class. So JAs is the junior associate class for royal ballet school, central have an associate scheme, as do Yda and Tring (their associate scheme is called CBA classical ballet academy). There is also London junior ballet on a Sunday at Artsed in Chiswick. Associate schemes will be more than just a class, they will be comprised of a ballet class but also some kind of body conditioning and learning some rep even. As such they tend to be 2/3 hours long. All of them will require your daughter to audition but royal is accepted to be the hardest to get into because of the numbers applying for that being so high. I don’t know what they all cost but they will all be reasonably expensive (isn’t everything in ballet!) If your daughter thinks she might be interested in ballet as more than a hobby getting into one of these schemes may be a good starting point. Good luck!

Thank amos73 - I think that's her teacher's thinking and I'm keen for her to do more although not sure about it as a career at this stage - she's only 8! Sadly the London Junior Ballet (which looks great) is Sunday when we're already full. We thought Tring might be a bit far out and I couldn't find a Saturday class for her age group at Central but maybe there is one? Finding the site hard to navigate so I could well be missing something if anyone knows differently? Which leaves YDA (I think - happy to be corrected!) which is nigh on £1k/yr which might push our budget a bit too far, sadly. Unless there's any chance of assistance? Anyone know?

 

Very frustrating that we can't make the others work but as she's just keen to do more ballet, any other good quality class would do, I think? Very happy for people to weigh in and give their own views/experiences though. I'm a complete newbie to all this!

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LinMM

LinMM

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I was going to suggest Masters of Ballet but I wasn't sure where the classes are held ....I had a feeling not in one place so different days would be in different places etc. I think it is Russian based teaching though. 

I don't know whether London Russian school in Clapham ...between two tube stations so easy to get to...do classes for eight year olds I can't remember if their programme starts around ten years old...but I could be wrong about this worth checking out.

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swanprincess

swanprincess

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2 hours ago, LinMM said:

I was going to suggest Masters of Ballet but I wasn't sure where the classes are held ....I had a feeling not in one place so different days would be in different places etc. I think it is Russian based teaching though. 

I don't know whether London Russian school in Clapham ...between two tube stations so easy to get to...do classes for eight year olds I can't remember if their programme starts around ten years old...but I could be wrong about this worth checking out.

 

LRBS have Saturday classes for students aged 5 upwards!💜

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worsethanclueless

worsethanclueless

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44 minutes ago, margarite said:

I know YDA have a couple of bursaries for full time, not sure about the associate course though. No harm in asking? My daughter was an associate there for two years and is now at vocational school so it was money well spent, but it was a stretch sometimes! 

Thanks margarite - I might give them a call. I have heard glowing recommendations, it's just the financial side putting me off.

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Ruby Foo

Ruby Foo

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You don’t say which method your Dd is doing at the moment, RAD? ISTD? Or other?

The russian method is a little different and personally, I wouldn’t mix them at her young age. Later, when she has learned the correct use of turn out from the hip ( not the feet!) and correct posture, then maybe. 

Just going to another reputable class with a different teacher and different children will give her a boost of extra confidence, even if it’s not an associate class at this stage.

Providing her own teacher gives permission of course.

 

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swanprincess

swanprincess

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Russian classes have a huge emphasis on technique, in particular strength and developing effective use of turnout. As the classes at LRBS are non-syllabus, they also develop students’ understanding of ballet and ability to pick up exercises quickly, rather than simply doing the same set syllabus exercises each week.

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Anna C

Anna C

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6 hours ago, valentina said:

You don’t say which method your Dd is doing at the moment, RAD? ISTD? Or other?

The russian method is a little different and personally, I wouldn’t mix them at her young age. Later, when she has learned the correct use of turn out from the hip ( not the feet!) and correct posture, then maybe. 

Just going to another reputable class with a different teacher and different children will give her a boost of extra confidence, even if it’s not an associate class at this stage.

Providing her own teacher gives permission of course.

 

 

I agree with this.  It’s one thing mixing syllabus and non-syllabus classes, or doing RAD during the week and associates at weekends but at 8 I think mixing RAD and Russian (or Cecchetti or indeed any two styles with distinct differences) is unnecessary and potentially confusing.  

 

The thing about good Associate classes is that they are designed to complement your usual weekday training, not conflict with it.  They are never the student’s main or only school.  Masters of Ballet and possibly LRBS are schools in their own right and if they send their pupils to other Associate schemes you could find that they want to become your dd’s main school.  That could potentially cause problems with your current school.  

 

If your doesn’t get into JAs this time then do try again next year.  In the meantime, I would look at the suggestions above (Danceworks do children’s classes; Danceworks Academy I think it’s called but the rest of their classes really are for Adults or teens) and Central Juniors (https://www.csbassociateschool.co.uk/jscourseoutline.php).  Tring Park CBA is excellent but the classes are on Sundays.  

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Confuddled

Confuddled

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Hope it’s not too late, but the Master Dance Programme at Ibstock Place School sounds like it might be just right. It’s Saturday afternoons, in Roehampton. Run by Mary Goodhew, who is amazing, and takes children from 7 right up to older teenagers (they split into Juniors, Mids and Seniors).

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worsethanclueless

worsethanclueless

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4 hours ago, Confuddled said:

Hope it’s not too late, but the Master Dance Programme at Ibstock Place School sounds like it might be just right. It’s Saturday afternoons, in Roehampton. Run by Mary Goodhew, who is amazing, and takes children from 7 right up to older teenagers (they split into Juniors, Mids and Seniors).

Thanks Confuddled - sounds great. I can't find a website giving info on how to apply though- do you have any details?

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Confuddled

Confuddled

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16 hours ago, worsethanclueless said:

Thanks Confuddled - sounds great. I can't find a website giving info on how to apply though- do you have any details?

 

I think phoning Mary Goodhew would work - her ballet school site gives her contact details:

http://www.dancegems.co.uk/?&p=contact

 

Alternatively, I’m sure Ibstock Place School would be able to point you in the right direction, as the office there does some of the MDP admin:

https://www.ibstockplaceschool.co.uk/senior-school/contact-us/

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BalletBear

BalletBear

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I’m not sure how far away RAD HQ is from you but it appears that they offer non-syllabus classes from Grade 3 onwards,which depending on the grade of your dd could be something to think about for the future. However, I’m not sure how good they are because I have no personal experience. Good luck to your dd! 😊

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