Chrissy Posted July 11, 2019 Share Posted July 11, 2019 (edited) Hi everyone, I'm new hear and would like some information/help. We are on the Gold Coast of Australia where my daughter studies fulltime ballet. My partner is Scottish and we decided to apply to schools in Scotland to further our daughter's ballet journey. After viewing her audition she was offered a place in both Ballet West and the new Edinburgh Festival Ballet. We need to decide and being on the other side of the world would appreciate any help. We have found quite alot about Ballet West but was hoping to hear about anyone attending Edinburgh Festival for their new fulltime school. Anything else that may help would be awesome. Edited July 11, 2019 by Chrissy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BalletcoForum Moderators Posted July 11, 2019 Share Posted July 11, 2019 Hi Chrissy and welcome to the forum. I'm afraid discussion of Ballet West is not permitted on the forum at this time (see here) but I hope that people will be forthcoming with advice on Edinburgh Festival Ballet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pas de Quatre Posted July 11, 2019 Share Posted July 11, 2019 Peter Schaufuss on Wikipedia Hi Chrissy. Here is a link to a short biography of Peter Schaufuss. He was one of the top male dancers internationally and has had a stellar career. Although the school, Edinburgh Festival Ballet, is new, I would make it my first choice. The quality of teaching, and the contacts Peter Schaufuss has, will make the chance of a successful career for your daughter much higher. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxi4ballet Posted July 11, 2019 Share Posted July 11, 2019 There is also the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, they have a ballet course. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted July 11, 2019 Share Posted July 11, 2019 Just as long as Schaufuss' teaching performance is rather better than his more-recent artistic director one ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted July 11, 2019 Share Posted July 11, 2019 I was chatting to a dancer recently who had spent some time with the Schaufuss Ballet in Denmark. He said he loved Peter Schaufuss' classes. I don't know what the school would be like. Would location be another consideration? Edinburgh is such a fabulous city with lots going on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruby Foo Posted July 12, 2019 Share Posted July 12, 2019 Have heard from a student who has recently been at the school’s open day classes that Peter Schaufuss has a remarkably different approach to teaching and that treating dancers as individuals is a high priority. As it’s a new school it’s hard to comment any further. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anon2 Posted July 12, 2019 Share Posted July 12, 2019 14 minutes ago, valentina said: Have heard from a student who has recently been at the school’s open day classes that Peter Schaufuss has a remarkably different approach to teaching and that treating dancers as individuals is a high priority. As it’s a new school it’s hard to comment any further. Don’t all artistic directors tell prospective students and parents they treat the ‘dancers as individuals’? Once they’ve hooked you the reality is ‘you have to fit in’ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crystaltips Posted July 13, 2019 Share Posted July 13, 2019 On 12/07/2019 at 08:56, Jane said: Don’t all artistic directors tell prospective students and parents they treat the ‘dancers as individuals’? Once they’ve hooked you the reality is ‘you have to fit in’ Yes. I never heard of an Artistic Director/Vice Principal who wasn’t super nice to prospective parents. This is usually said to you just after they tell you about the fantastic new dance studios they would like to build. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canary Posted July 13, 2019 Share Posted July 13, 2019 Crystaltips you made me laugh out loud ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted July 13, 2019 Share Posted July 13, 2019 On 11/07/2019 at 13:48, Chrissy said: Hi everyone, I'm new hear and would like some information/help. We are on the Gold Coast of Australia where my daughter studies fulltime ballet. My partner is Scottish and we decided to apply to schools in Scotland to further our daughter's ballet journey. After viewing her audition she was offered a place in both Ballet West and the new Edinburgh Festival Ballet. We need to decide and being on the other side of the world would appreciate any help. We have found quite alot about Ballet West but was hoping to hear about anyone attending Edinburgh Festival for their new fulltime school. Anything else that may help would be awesome. I have no experience of either schools, but depending on your daughter's age, I must say that the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (as mentioned by taxi4ballet) seems to be a good bet regarding teaching faculty and graduate employment. Good luck ! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shygirlsmum Posted July 17, 2019 Share Posted July 17, 2019 I have nothing to add to topic but wanted to say crystaltips comment made me laugh. As our dance journey progresses I find myself getting more & more cynical about the dance world. I found myself saying at a recent dance school pta meeting that the pta needs to start recruiting younger kids parents before they become jaded like the rest of us 😀 next year is audition year so I’m expecting thi ha to get worse 😱 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katniss Posted November 7, 2019 Share Posted November 7, 2019 I cannot comment on Edinburgh Festival School as a full time course but my dd attended a recent masterclass and believed that Peter S teaching was among the best she had ever received . She currently attends WL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crystaltips Posted November 7, 2019 Share Posted November 7, 2019 I don’t think that any of the comments were about Edinburgh Festival School. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katniss Posted November 7, 2019 Share Posted November 7, 2019 Apologies my error - Edinburgh Festival Ballet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleKnowledge Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 On 07/11/2019 at 17:22, maddhead said: And how their pastoral care is second to none, when there's actually none. Some schools need to be given a wide berth and don't just listen to the owners of the school - talk to past pupils and parents - they'll give you the true picture. Definitely, but they have to be willing to be honest without fear of reprisal, which is why this forum is the place for honesty to allow for informed decisions to be made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crystaltips Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 5 hours ago, LittleKnowledge said: Definitely, but they have to be willing to be honest without fear of reprisal, which is why this forum is the place for honesty to allow for informed decisions to be made. Look at the locked threads and then draw your own conclusions about the openness of schools. Too much honesty can be legally actionable 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleKnowledge Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 (edited) Oh I am well aware of the threat of legal action when a school doesn’t like to see negative comments on here. Not the Forums fault but very sad situation when the threat is borne out of fear and control rather than allowing freedom of speech. Of course I am only aware one such situation regarding one particular school, so it may be a bigger issue than I realise. Edited December 29, 2019 by LittleKnowledge Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Picturesinthefirelight Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 31 minutes ago, LittleKnowledge said: Oh I am well aware of the threat of legal action when a school doesn’t like to see negative comments on here. Not the Forums fault but very sad situation when the threat is borne out of fear and control rather than allowing freedom of speech. Of course I am only aware one such situation regarding one particular school, so it may be a bigger issue than I realise. There are at least two schools we are not allowed to discuss on here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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