All England Dance 2019

[HopelessMummy]

Got to love the way all England divides everyone. It's a tough comp and adjudication is difficult to predict. My one was told she'd never get anywhere with the music she chose to dance to and then got placed 2nd at one qualifier. I guess just take it as dance experience

[Hazel]

I never think of festivals as something to win. The dancers should go out, do their best and if they get placed that’s great. Fully aware that like everything in this dance world the winners are chosen by one or two peoples view on the day and they all have different preferences on what they like. Nothing you can do about that. 

We do it for the stage experience, the teamwork in groups and it’s brilliant to build resilience and a great mental attitude as well. When my daughter doesn’t place she has a fabulous attitude - she knows if she tried her best and had fun performing that’s all that matters....not someone’s subjective view on what they thought was the best dance on the day. I love that she has no petulance about it, not sure I did as a child (athletics was my thing, hated losing!) We also love watching dance styles she doesn’t do and older groups so you can see how the skills progress. Think it’s a fantastic way of seeing new things and learning.

[JLAEI]

We do several local comps a year, one of which is an AE qualifier (possibly not the highest standard one, though always pretty high standard). My dd's have qualified dances to regionals from this festival (and our regionals would be MN), but we have never done because even if they qualified for finals, it's not feasible for us in July, and we're only just okay with balancing classes, exams, academics and festivals as it is! 

 

However, I know several dancers who do compete at regionals in this area from a number of different schools, and they had sections of 60 dancers in some age groups at MN this year. And a high standard. I also have seen adjudication from one of the adjudicators first hand, who was knowledgeable in all genres (but I admit to knowing nothing about national so could be wrong about this).    I remember from my own comp days when there are 3+ adjudicators, this sometimes produces more surprising results as some dancers divide opinion.  

 

Festivals always are subjective (dance just is?), but it is rare someone who wasn't even on my radar wins . I have seen dancers who regularly win highest mark of festival not place. I think festivals have to be about improvement,  performance opportunities, and fun.    

[Mrs Brown]

I have to admit to half wishing I was a fly on the wall in the adjudicators area in one regional. I saw the lists of adjudicators and in one they had one we found was a very very low marker across the board, one who was a very very high marker and one we didn't know. I would be fascinated to see if their actual choices are the same peope still.

 

I think in general it is often the same people place (this is in local qualifiers not regionals) regardless of the adjudicator present and the actual mark given.  

 

I think national is the area that is very inconsistent in terms of adjudicator knowledge. I don't know with Greek, certainly they sound knowledgeable at all the festivals we have been to. but then until we started doing national I thought they knew that as well but have been proved wrong...

 

Festivals can be such a lovely experience if they are taken with a pinch of salt.

[Loopy]

Hello again. Well my DD is almost at the end of her Regionals... Last day for us tomorrow. I’ve seen some Wonderful dances, amazing arrangements and creative choreography. I haven’t always agreed with results - but mostly I can see why the placings have been as they are. 

One thing we have all noticed this year in SW is that far fewer Groups have been put through to Finals. And adjudicators have been tighter with their marking than I’ve ever seen before (this is my 5th AED cycle). Are other regions finding that too? Today we watched 8 Character Groups, only 3 qualified to Finals. Yesterday saw  12 song and dance groups, only 3 qualified. Is it like this is all the areas?? 

[HopelessMummy]

Only one ballet group in under 10s were placed at South East. Pretty sure they made it harder this year. Only one 7-8 ballet qualified for finals. Out of goodness knows how many! 

[Mrs Brown]

if our local festival this year had been a qualifier year then I think almost every group entered would have qualifed for regionals, as well as large number of duets and probably a good half of solo entries as the marks were so high. Perhaps this has been the case at some of the regional finals where so many groups have got through to them because of overgenerous marking at qualifiers. If they want to maintain standards at the National finals then I suppose they have to control it at regionals.

[Loopy]

Hi Mrs Brown,

ive noticed a tendency toward more relaxed and generous marks in a non qualifying year, the same festival and adjudicator may mark differently when they know

its a qualifier. 

[Mrs Brown]

ah ok Loopy. I have seen fairly generous marking before compared to "usual" scores but this seemed extreme so I assumed it was just the adjudicator's style but you are probably right, if they know it isn't a qualifier then maybe they are more relaxed. 

[ParentTaxi]

I think the over / under-representation of some schools may come down to some schools have a greater tradition of going forward to Regional All England than others.

 

For example, we attend a fairly local festival that can be a qualifier for All England.

 

DD's dance school has no history of attending Regional finals.

Two of the other schools attending have a very strong history of attending (and specifically aiming towards) All England.

 

Dances and groups from DD's school that did qualify did not then enter the Regional Final, whereas equivalent - and lower- scoring groups  and dances from the other schools did. It's just about what a particular school focuses on, I suppose - for some schools, All England is part of their annual round (while perhaps ISTD Ballet Awards, Janet Cram and Star Tap might not be, despite pupils getting qualifying marks in exams), while for other schools, the exam board-based competitions are natural parts of the annual cycle but AED is not, even though pupils have qualified in the qualifying festivals.

[Loopy]

ParentTaxi. Yes that would contribute to the number of schools who do and don’t attend.

also.... if a school has qualified a number of students in a particular discipline that tends to mean they are good at teaching that discipline and therefore more likely to have winners. (Hope that makes sense). 

Some schools are ‘AED’ focussed and also good at teaching technically for that competition they tend to appear in the winning names a lot. 

Even knowing all of this, I don’t envy the adjudicators - they often have a very hard job with lots of very good dancers... 

sometimes I agree with their outcome, sometimes not.  For me - the Regionals are one thing ..... it’s the actual Finals that throws out all the rules and it’s impossible to judge. Some (often) very unusual adjudication. But hey.... c’est la vie. And it’s a lesson for budding performers. You can be fabulous but you won’t always get chosen - that doesn’t mean you’re any less fabulous! 

[Mrs Brown]

yes I agree Parent Taxi. I know some schools make a big thing about having qualifying scores and being desperate to get them whilst we (and our teachers) didn't even realise my daughter HAD got a qualifying score because we didn't know what they were! 

 

Can I ask a couple of festival related questions whilst you are all here please? saves starting a new post.  

 

2 things

 

Character - is this usually ballet based? I am assuming so but the description of it seems to imply that technically it doesn't have to be. my daughter has come up with an idea she wants to run past her teacher to see if they could work with it but whilst a lot of it would be ballet based steps there is a bit of the music she likes that could include a bit more jazzy dance and she wasn't sure if that would be allowed. 

 

National - why do so many (and nearly all the ones that do well) have a story made up to go with them? sometimes they seem more like character dances with a few national steps in rather than an actual national dance so I am intrigued if we are missing something here.

[Mrs Brown]

oh and thank you - sorry, didn't mean to be rude

[Hazel]

Can’t help you on the national, it’s a closed book to me. Character is predominantly ballet based, not jazz or modern. If your daughter /son does ‘character’ as part of their normal grade lessons it’s got some of those steps mixed in. What you do get us more props, bigger facial expressions to help tell the story etc than you do in the classical ballet sections 

[Loopy]

Character has come through Classical Ballet, which is where Character roles can still be seen.  However the AED has said Character can be any genre suitable to the character being danced... (there is a description In the syllabus of the AED) .  Some adjudicators still have a definite preference for classical but, having said that, the dance that got Silver at the Regional we went to was Contemporary. I think they are going for a Great characterisation of whatever character is chosen. 

[Mrs Brown]

We did think it was ballet based, will stick to that then if she does it. thank you. 

[Mumofdancegirls]

On 01/06/2019 at 08:54, Mrs Brown said:

I always think it is a little insulting for so many to leave just before someone dances, I do understand why as there are numerous bored dads at festivals usually but it must be hard if you are the next dancer. Our local festival seemed to have pretty good behaviour from the audience, lots of good applause even from random people who didn't know the children which I thought was nice although I will never understand why people can't take their rubbish away with them. I was horrified how many things were just left on the floor under the chairs. Especially given it is nearly always staffed purely by volunteers.

 

Bored dads?! That’s rude and a complete generalisation. Proud thrilled excited dad’s and mums. Who’s to say there weren’t bored mums too?

 

Too many competitive parents or guardians on this thread. Mr Powney from White Lodge wrote an extremely interesting and imho astute article recently about competitions and festivals, and concerns over them.

My DC’s teacher is against them

and I wholeheartedly agree! 

[Mrs Brown]

1 minute ago, Mumofdancegirls said:

 

Bored dads?! That’s rude and a complete generalisation. Proud thrilled excited dad’s and mums. Who’s to say there weren’t bored mums too?

 

Too many competitive parents or guardians on this thread. Mr Powney from White Lodge wrote an extremely interesting and imho astute article recently about competitions and festivals, and concerns over them.

My DC’s teacher is against them

and I wholeheartedly agree! 

I don't understand why it is rude. I didn't say all dads are bored, I said there were numerous bored dads, it is merely an observation that pretty much all the men I see at festivals are sat looking as if they would rather be somewhere else other than when their child is actually dancing. I have seen men sitting clapping with their eyes shut!  I am not being rude, just observing. I actually find the whole festival atmosphere fascinating because I like people watching. Sometimes it is more interesting to watch fellow audience members than some of the dancers. no disrespect to the dancers but it is so interesting to see how people react. 

 

Festivals and competitions have a place in the dance world, they provide competition that is now lacking in many schools but which is important for learning how to deal with real life. They provide a performance opportunity for those at dance schools which only do shows every few years. They give children a personal challenge. As long as the child wants to do them and finds them rewarding then they serve a good purpose. My only bug bear with festivals is that sometimes you get a nasty atmosphere (not something we generally experience in our local festivals but I have definitely seen it with my youngest daughter shoved physically by bigger girls) and that sometimes adjudicators could do with more education in certain areas.

[Mrs Brown]

our teacher doesn't like festivals either but she will support any children who approach her and request to do them

[Mumofdancegirls]

1 minute ago, Mrs Brown said:

I don't understand why it is rude. I didn't say all dads are bored, I said there were numerous bored dads, it is merely an observation that pretty much all the men I see at festivals are sat looking as if they would rather be somewhere else other than when their child is actually dancing. I have seen men sitting clapping with their eyes shut!  I am not being rude, just observing. I actually find the whole festival atmosphere fascinating because I like people watching. Sometimes it is more interesting to watch fellow audience members than some of the dancers. no disrespect to the dancers but it is so interesting to see how people react. 

 

Festivals and competitions have a place in the dance world, they provide competition that is now lacking in many schools but which is important for learning how to deal with real life. They provide a performance opportunity for those at dance schools which only do shows every few years. They give children a personal challenge. As long as the child wants to do them and finds them rewarding then they serve a good purpose. My only bug bear with festivals is that sometimes you get a nasty atmosphere (not something we generally experience in our local festivals but I have definitely seen it with my youngest daughter shoved physically by bigger girls) and that sometimes adjudicators could do with more education in certain areas.

Well well

not rude? I disagree 

 

such a generalisation is unnecessary in my opinion 

 

competitions and festivals are sometimes full of talent but also often full of parents and guardians who are so pushy and competitive that the whole ethos is lost. I say sometimes so as to not generalise.

i agree with Mr Pownys concerns.

 

. Some schools are just competition and festival factories and it’s sad. 

This is just my opinion 

[Mrs Brown]

I actually think saying "well well" in your reply is far more rude than me saying I have seen bored dads at festivals. I actually think your reply sounds extremely pompous and condescending towards me. We are all entitled to express an opinion or make an observation.

 

Just because I can enjoy watching festivals, indeed when we first started going to watch them our dance school only had 1 older student who did them and I just took my daughters along in the holidays because it was cheap to go, the weather was bad and I thought it would give them a chance to see live performances from children their age or a bit older. They got to see dance styles they had never seen before, they go to hear comments from the adjudicator, the first one we went to gave quite a nice explanation of some of the classes and what they were such as Greek and what she was looking for. I actually think it is a pity people don't just go along to watch. 

 

SOME schools are competition and festival factories but if that is what those children are happy with then is that really wrong? There are some who want to hot house to go to grammar school or get up at 5am to swim for 3 hours before school every day etc but that is up to them. It doesn't make it wrong. There are also children who just enjoy going along and doing their 1 dance or maybe 2 dances twice a year. I think it is great that the opportunity is there for those who want it. 

[Loopy]

This thread was specifically talking about the AED 2019. I’ve reread The article mumof dancegirls referred to (I’d  read it when it first came out)... and I agree with much of what is said. However, the issues Mr P writes about do not usually apply to the AED festivals. No pointe work is allowed under 14, ‘tricks’ are very much disapproved of, dances that have variations or steps that are clearly beyond the level of the dancer are often commented upon by adjudicators saying they prefer appropriate levels of steps for the child. Music is generally carefully chosen not to have inappropriate lyrics or too adult a meaning..... 

Mr P says “That audience(s) should be looking for an expressive dancer trying to communicate emotion, dynamics, musicality, storytelling ability, alongside an accomplished, clean technique relative to their age.”

I’d say that’s what I see AED encouraging and promoting. 

He also says :Competitions can be a great platform for dance students to gain valuable experience. 

He recognises the value of well run competitions. 

 

I don’t have much experience of other competitions so cannot comment on those.

I do have experience of a bored dad. 

I also have experience of a bored mum and dancer!! (Rather be doing than watching). 

 

Thx

 

[Mrs Brown]

15 minutes ago, Loopy said:

This thread was specifically talking about the AED 2019. I’ve reread The article mumof dancegirls referred to (I’d  read it when it first came out)... and I agree with much of what is said. However, the issues Mr P writes about do not usually apply to the AED festivals. No pointe work is allowed under 14, ‘tricks’ are very much disapproved of, dances that have variations or steps that are clearly beyond the level of the dancer are often commented upon by adjudicators saying they prefer appropriate levels of steps for the child. Music is generally carefully chosen not to have inappropriate lyrics or too adult a meaning..... 

Mr P says “That audience(s) should be looking for an expressive dancer trying to communicate emotion, dynamics, musicality, storytelling ability, alongside an accomplished, clean technique relative to their age.”

I’d say that’s what I see AED encouraging and promoting. 

He also says :Competitions can be a great platform for dance students to gain valuable experience. 

He recognises the value of well run competitions. 

 

I don’t have much experience of other competitions so cannot comment on those.

I do have experience of a bored dad. 

I also have experience of a bored mum and dancer!! (Rather be doing than watching). 

 

Thx

 

I have one daughter who would happily sit for hours watching festivals (except teenage lyrical sections apparently) and one who won't even go to watch her sister compete as it is "boring unless you are doing" like you say. 

[Mumofdancegirls]

Ok so this is clearly not an open forum for discussion as apparently my post was pompous! 

At no point did I say that schools being competition factories was wrong - just sad.

I am entitled to my opinion

I will not dare to comment again as it’s not worth the hassle

how sad that a forum has become competitive parents being rude! 

 

Its goodbye from me. 

[Jan McNulty]

Can we please draw a line under this and move forward civilly.

[annaliesey]

Mumofdancegirls maybe you ought to read your reaction and comments back because Mrs Brown was perfectly entitled in my view to say "there are numerous bored dads at festivals". It's a fact, there are a lot. Not everyone. But a lot.  There's more "bored dads" than "bored mums" purely because the mums get the job for a lot of the time helping to get dancers changed and help with hair and make up. There are usually a lot more girls than boys at festivals and different festivals have different rules in terms of Safeguarding and Children in Entertainment which essentially separates the dads out of the changing room areas for a lot of the time. 

 

Notice that I say "a lot of the time" or "usually". I'm not saying "always". 

 

You reacted by calling this a generalisation and calling her rude. 

 

yes you are entitled to your opinion but maybe you can see that you jumped on a perfectly innocent comment. She clearly has experience of festivals to offer her comments on, in the best interest of the forum 

 

 

[annaliesey]

14 hours ago, Mrs Brown said:

Character - is this usually ballet based? I am assuming so but the description of it seems to imply that technically it doesn't have to be. my daughter has come up with an idea she wants to run past her teacher to see if they could work with it but whilst a lot of it would be ballet based steps there is a bit of the music she likes that could include a bit more jazzy dance and she wasn't sure if that would be allowed. 

 

National - why do so many (and nearly all the ones that do well) have a story made up to go with them? sometimes they seem more like character dances with a few national steps in rather than an actual national dance so I am intrigued if we are missing something here.

 

I'll try and answer just based on personal experience of attending festivals for the last 6 years ... 

 

Character is usually ballet based but doesn't have to be. I have seen routines that are more lyrical, contemporary or jazz in character sections (barefoot or with jazz shoes) but it usually attracts entries which are ballet but in the style of characterisation and playing a role. That may include a costume as a character relevant to story telling or it might include an element of mime which is something that some dance teachers like to teach their ballet students.

 

National - I just think it's one of those categories that isn't very well understood. I think this is when organisers are choosing adjudicators it's really difficult to find someone who a) they didnt have before because some have rules about that with not having the same adjudicator for two events back to back and b) who is an expert on all styles of dance. I would say that a lot of festival organisers select adjudicators who are great with ballet, modern/jazz, tap and even singing, but then styles such as lyrical, contemporary, hip hop, character, all become a bit subjective based on what the adjudicator likes. You are then completely at their mercy which I think is why people would like to see AED have a different scoring system. The corrections and comments can vary massively and be extremely confusing. People who want to win therefore end up putting a routine out that they think will please the adjudicator. This might be contemporary that is full of lyrical/theatrical/performance related air grabs or acro (!) or it might be hip hop that has a la second turns, pirouettes and step ball change leaps in (!!) or it might be lyrical that was really ballet but in a mint green dress with hair half up and half down with no movement inspired by lyrics or might even have music with no lyrics (!!!) .. I could go on haha ... but essentially it's just very subjective and preference based (with allegations of bias) rather than consistent or useful. 

 

I personally think the key thing is to decide why you want to do festivals and then decide from that which ones to attend. 

 

 

 

Edited June 4, 2019 by annaliesey
corrected spelling then added a para

[Mrs Brown]

27 minutes ago, annaliesey said:

 

I'll try and answer just based on personal experience of attending festivals for the last 6 years ... 

 

Character is usually ballet based but doesn't have to be. I have seen routines that are more lyrical, contemporary or jazz in character sections (barefoot or with jazz shoes) but it usually attracts entries which are ballet but in the style of characterisation and playing a role. That may include a costume as a character relevant to story telling or it might include an element of mime which is something that some dance teachers like to teach their ballet students.

 

National - I just think it's one of those categories that isn't very well understood. I think this is when organisers are choosing adjudicators it's really difficult to find someone who a) they didnt have before because some have rules about that with not having the same adjudicator for two events back to back and b) who is an expert on all styles of dance. I would say that a lot of festival organisers select adjudicators who are great with ballet, modern/jazz, tap and even singing, but then styles such as lyrical, contemporary, hip hop, character, all become a bit subjective based on what the adjudicator likes. You are then completely at their mercy which I think is why people would like to see AED have a different scoring system. The corrections and comments can vary massively and be extremely confusing. People who want to win therefore end up putting a routine out that they think will please the adjudicator. This might be contemporary that is full of lyrical/theatrical/performance related air grabs or acro (!) or it might be hip hop that has a la second turns, pirouettes and step ball change leaps in (!!) or it might be lyrical that was really ballet but in a mint green dress with hair half up and half down with no movement inspired by lyrics or might even have music with no lyrics (!!!) .. I could go on haha ... but essentially it's just very subjective and preference based (with allegations of bias) rather than consistent or useful. 

 

I personally think the key thing is to decide why you want to do festivals and then decide from that which ones to attend. 

 

 

 

 

ha - thank you! interesting that character isn't always ballet. I think she would rather just do a dance she enjoys whether the adjudicator likes it or not if that makes sense. Especially if she is getting to play a character she likes as you have to enjoy what you are doing to perform it well I think.

 

Yeah I think with National there aren't many schools that do it round here so we tend to see specific styles. one school did an Indonesian dance recently which I wish we had been able to see as it would have been lovely to see something so different. We missed a Korean fan dance because we were getting ready too. My girls love their dance and they know they do it well, it is disheartening when adjudicators don't really know what to do with it but the audience usually seem to enjoy it, the girls say they can see people's faces during the footwork section of it so they know it looks impressive which I think makes them feel quite special that they can do it! haha. I just love that they have the opportunity to do a dance together and work with each other on something. 

 

I think they will probably carry on doing it but just need to accept they will usually be bottom for no real reason. 

 

thank you

[annaliesey]

16 minutes ago, Mrs Brown said:

 

ha - thank you! interesting that character isn't always ballet. I think she would rather just do a dance she enjoys whether the adjudicator likes it or not if that makes sense. Especially if she is getting to play a character she likes as you have to enjoy what you are doing to perform it well I think.

 

Yeah I think with National there aren't many schools that do it round here so we tend to see specific styles. one school did an Indonesian dance recently which I wish we had been able to see as it would have been lovely to see something so different. We missed a Korean fan dance because we were getting ready too. My girls love their dance and they know they do it well, it is disheartening when adjudicators don't really know what to do with it but the audience usually seem to enjoy it, the girls say they can see people's faces during the footwork section of it so they know it looks impressive which I think makes them feel quite special that they can do it! haha. I just love that they have the opportunity to do a dance together and work with each other on something. 

 

I think they will probably carry on doing it but just need to accept they will usually be bottom for no real reason. 

 

thank you

honestly, this is what I mean about being selective about the festivals you attend and what you want to get out of it. It's all very well people saying "it's a performance opportunity" and "as long as they enjoy it" and "as long as they did their best" but if the adjudication is ropey, it can impact negatively on confidence and performance rather than build it up and this is something that's difficult to get back.

 

I think we forget how much courage it takes for performers to go out and compete. They have to overcome nerves and in some cases they can feel like they have the weight of the world on their shoulders with pushy parents, pushy dance teachers and they might be trying really hard to do their best then come away feeling their best was no where good enough when actually if they competed on a different day at a different event they would likely have a different outcome. 

 

If National is your thing then I'd recommend being prepared to travel further afield and go to events where you can trust the adjudication. Even if you email the organisers beforehand and ask specifically about adjudication in that genre. They might bring someone in especially for that section (I've known that to happen for tap or hip hop before). 

 

And don't be afraid to give your feedback to organisers afterwards, drop them an email. The good ones will listen and try to improve for future events and the arrogant ones will carry on doing what they've always done, take your money and not give two hoots about the impact of poor adjudication  You can then choose whether to go back or not  

 

 

 

 

[annaliesey]

28 minutes ago, Mrs Brown said:

 

I think she would rather just do a dance she enjoys whether the adjudicator likes it or not if that makes sense. Especially if she is getting to play a character she likes as you have to enjoy what you are doing to perform it well I think.

 

Absolutely. Go for it! I think it's all about setting your expectations. Expect that there will mostly be ballet in the character sections but I guarantee that doing something enjoyable and good will come across to the audience and the adjudicator. They will mostly adjudicate based on what they see that the genre it is in anyway ... good luck

[Mrs Brown]

thank you Annaliesey, now just to persuade her teacher her idea is a good one!!

Edited June 4, 2019 by Mrs Brown
misspelt name - sorry

[Mrs Brown]

14 minutes ago, annaliesey said:

honestly, this is what I mean about being selective about the festivals you attend and what you want to get out of it. It's all very well people saying "it's a performance opportunity" and "as long as they enjoy it" and "as long as they did their best" but if the adjudication is ropey, it can impact negatively on confidence and performance rather than build it up and this is something that's difficult to get back.

 

I think we forget how much courage it takes for performers to go out and compete. They have to overcome nerves and in some cases they can feel like they have the weight of the world on their shoulders with pushy parents, pushy dance teachers and they might be trying really hard to do their best then come away feeling their best was no where good enough when actually if they competed on a different day at a different event they would likely have a different outcome. 

 

If National is your thing then I'd recommend being prepared to travel further afield and go to events where you can trust the adjudication. Even if you email the organisers beforehand and ask specifically about adjudication in that genre. They might bring someone in especially for that section (I've known that to happen for tap or hip hop before). 

 

And don't be afraid to give your feedback to organisers afterwards, drop them an email. The good ones will listen and try to improve for future events and the arrogant ones will carry on doing what they've always done, take your money and not give two hoots about the impact of poor adjudication  You can then choose whether to go back or not  

 

 

 

 

 yes maybe we need to consider going further afield if they wanted to push their national but I think we are far far too lazy!!! we aren't the most dedicated. 

 

It does take a lot to go out and compete you are right. I do feel for the children we see backstage who are so nervous that you wonder why they put themselves through it. my eldest didn't enjoy doing a solo, used to get worried about it so we stopped it. the younger one would do everything and anything and thrives on it. both together in a duet works well, the elder one likes the duet because she isn't on her own. sweet really. that alone makes it all worthwhile.

[sarahw]

16 hours ago, Mumofdancegirls said:

 

Bored dads?! That’s rude and a complete generalisation. Proud thrilled excited dad’s and mums. Who’s to say there weren’t bored mums too?

 

Too many competitive parents or guardians on this thread. Mr Powney from White Lodge wrote an extremely interesting and imho astute article recently about competitions and festivals, and concerns over them.

My DC’s teacher is against them

and I wholeheartedly agree! 

@Mumofdancegirls I would be cautious about Mr Powney's views on competitions. Until very recently his school recruited heavily from international competitions. On more than one occasion he has missed US finals to go to PDL.

 

I agree festivals are not the be all and end all but can be very positive and enjoyable. I would not judge them as 'the best thing since sliced bread' or 'absolutely awful'. I think @Mrs Brown has a balanced view and I imagine her girls benefit.

 

Dancing, like life, is not black and white.