Royal ballet school new artistic director?

[mart]

Who could be in the running .

[MAX]

Zenaïda Yanowsky ?

Laura Morera  ?

 

Those two wonderfully intelligent women would certainly do a terrific job as RBS AD.

[Balletdoodah]

First: the position will no doubt be openly advertised for and I have no knowledge/connections/axe to grind)

 

Someone with a CV like Lisa Pavane would seem to me to have much to offer: https://www.royalacademyofdance.org/people/lisa-pavane/

(If she were interested or available. ABS are seeking a new Artistic Director: https://danceeurope.net/auditions/)

 

Regardless, let's wish the departing RBS AD success in his next engagements. 

Edited January 10 by Balletdoodah

[Sophoife]

I notice from the link @Balletdoodah posted that both Australian Ballet School and Canada's National Ballet School are looking for new artistic directors, as well as the Royal Ballet School.

 

That's three very plum posts with the potential to affect the next 20 or 30 years of professional ballet dancers, depending on the eventual duration of tenure.

 

Won't it be interesting to see who gets the jobs!

[Emeralds]

I think Laura Morera (RBS trained) and Zenaida Yanowsky (comes from a family of dancers and dance teachers- parents opened a dance school, she and her two siblings got jobs in 3 different countries, 2 continents, she has children) are excellent candidates- both have wonderful interpersonal qualities and a deep understanding of setbacks and difficulties students, parents and dancers face, plus have themselves attained the status of principals and know well what it really takes to get to the top. I don't know if either if them want the job or have applied, but both would be brilliant and either one would make a fantastic school director. 

[taxi4ballet]

Hopefully, it will be someone who is thoroughly familiar with what the Royal Ballet company is looking for in newly-graduated dancers.

[alison]

That's assuming that the company itself has a clear idea ...

[DVDfan]

Assuming that the AD is in effect the headteacher of a boarding school, the person chosen will be in loco parentis and their  commitment to this aspect of the role should be a major consideration for the selection board.

[mart]

3 hours ago, alison said:

That's assuming that the company itself has a clear idea ...

What an inane comment. 

[Peanut68]

1 hour ago, DVDfan said:

Assuming that the AD is in effect the headteacher of a boarding school, the person chosen will be in loco parentis and their  commitment to this aspect of the role should be a major consideration for the selection board.

I think that the roles in all vocational dance schools - especially those with boarding - need more clear delineation as to who heads up what. 
From experience most seem to have a ‘Head’ who is the figure head & certainly takes lead on academics & the ‘business’ side of school but often are not particularly involved (or even understand) the artistic side of schools. 
Re: RBS I do think that the lower & upper schools should have separate AD’s as they are very different institutions & not in same site. 

[Geoff]

11 hours ago, Peanut68 said:

I think that the roles in all vocational dance schools - especially those with boarding - need more clear delineation as to who heads up what. 
From experience most seem to have a ‘Head’ who is the figure head & certainly takes lead on academics & the ‘business’ side of school but often are not particularly involved (or even understand) the artistic side of schools. 
Re: RBS I do think that the lower & upper schools should have separate AD’s as they are very different institutions & not in same site. 

In the ‘disappeared’ thread about the recent person who has just announced they are stepping down from this post, there was some discussion about his twin role. For some ten years he has been the RBS AD but for the last year or so he has also held the title of CEO.
 

It will be interesting to see the job description when it is advertised. Will the board retain this twin function as the job they seek to fill, or will they make more than one appointment? 

[alison]

(To my inexperienced ears) It does sound as though it's a function which could be split, in the same way that it often is in ballet companies, doesn't it?

[Emeralds]

I thought the AD of RBS had a different role to a headteacher role, which is undertaken by a head of White Lodge for junior students and head of Upper School for the students in the pre-professional upper school. Unless things have changed recently? (Don't quote me)  The other obvious candidate if she is interested and wished to apply might be one of their most high profile alumni- Darcey Bussell. 

[Sophoife]

22 minutes ago, Emeralds said:

The other obvious candidate if she is interested and wished to apply might be one of their most high profile alumni- Darcey Bussell.

 

Alumnae please @Emeralds. She is after all an alumna, not an alumnus.

 

#NitPickersNotSoAnonymous 😉

[Emeralds]

12 minutes ago, Sophoife said:

 

Alumnae please @Emeralds. She is after all an alumna, not an alumnus.

 

#NitPickersNotSoAnonymous 😉

I  think we allow alumni for both male and female- that's why my very proper girls' school used. As long as you don’t call a boy an alumna. Just like female actors can be both actor or actress if they wish, as long as you don't call a male actor an actress. In my suggestion, Darcey is being singled out among both the male and female graduates- meaning she is famous among both male and female attendees of the school, not just among the females. That's why I picked "alumni". 

Edited January 12 by Emeralds

[Neverdancedjustamum]

1 hour ago, Emeralds said:

I  think we allow alumni for both male and female- that's why my very proper girls' school used. As long as you don’t call a boy an alumna. Just like female actors can be both actor or actress if they wish, as long as you don't call a male actor an actress. In my suggestion, Darcey is being singled out among both the male and female graduates- meaning she is famous among both male and female attendees of the school, not just among the females. That's why I picked "alumni". 

I also use “alumni” for both genders. This was also how I was taught in school. Also a plural form so there’s lots of coverage there.

[alison]

Does Darcey have a teaching qualification?

[Sophoife]

This is my hill to stand on.

 

Having chosen to get a tiny bit of Latin taught to me at university (it not having been available to me at any of my schools), I do not accept the use of the male singular alumnus for a woman or the male plural alumni for more than one woman. The female singular is alumna and plural is alumnae and I deplore the sloppiness, arrogance and casual sexism of using the male form for females.

 

On the use of the male plural for a mixed-sex group, I ask why not use the female plural for such a group?

 

One of my old schools, a K-12 school for girls, demonstrated breathtaking ignorance by renaming (without consultation) the Old Scholars Association the Alumni Association. When challenged on this, the reason given was that [said nobody ever] the boys who'd attended the school in the infant department might have felt excluded. By a gender-neutral word.

 

Dame Darcey does not hold any teaching qualification but she is Artist Laureate of the Royal Ballet School. On announcing this specially-created title, the RBS publicity machine referred to her as an alumna of the School.

[Emeralds]

I'm not saying you're wrong, Sophoife, simply that I'm just saying she is prominent among both male and female past students of the school, and since the convention is to use alumni when referring to all students, I'll go along with that. 

 

I don't think I've ever heard of Clark Gable or Brad Pitt being referred to as actresses while Cate Blanchett, Meryl Streep and Frances McDormand are now increasingly called actors rather than actresses to draw attention to their skill and stature. So....same thing.

 

The reason I wanted to include men as well as women is that the artistic director does not have to be a woman although I'm aware we've only suggested women so far. Since we're thinking of more names among RBS graduates (in contrast, the incumbent was not an alumnus of the school- he trained at Rambert after starting ballet aged 14 at a local school and Saturday classes with RAD) I think Jonathan Cope would be another excellent candidate, possessing a friendly, thoughtful and patient manner as a coach, and having trained at both the lower and upper schools. 

 

The one error I do own up to, due to my device messing about with auto correct, is the typo "why" (should be "what my very proper"). Oh, I just asked the Latin scholar (A grade certified and all) in our household what the correct term was to refer to men and women in the same group, and he said "alumni". 

 

Interestingly, Christopher Powney does have a formal teaching qualification, but given the experiences often mentioned by former students, positive and negative, I think it is more important to have been a former student who studied at the school -not just for 1 year while pretty much guaranteed a job with RB, but  throughout the entire upper school or both the lower and upper schools, so that he or she understands the pressures and strains the students feel.

[Sophoife]

Thank you @Emeralds. I'm happy to defer to a Proper Expert in the matter of mixed-sex groups being alumni, but I'll stubbornly continue to use the female form for one or more females 🤭

 

Someone who definitely qualifies from your last paragraph is Dame D, but I also wonder...would Gary Avis ever be interested in such a role? 

 

Lucinda Dunn (RBS US) has just finished as AD at a private ballet school (her own old school) in Sydney...

[LinMM]

I think Gary Avis would be a great choice if he should want it. He seems to enjoy teaching and coaching so might be a little more ‘hands on’ as an AD. 

[bridiem]

I think that Gary Avis is absolutely INVALUABLE where he is at the moment!

[Ian Macmillan]

Emeralds: Could you try "alumni alumnaeque" on your in-house Latinist?  Been a while since I was dabbling therein.  

[LinMM]

Yes I think “if he should want it” is the key here! 

[Doing Dance 1]

14 hours ago, Emeralds said:

I think it is more important to have been a former student who studied at the school -not just for 1 year while pretty much guaranteed a job with RB, but  throughout the entire upper school or both the lower and upper schools, so that he or she understands the pressures and strains the students feel.

I wholeheartedly disagree.

The pressures and expectations of young dancers today are worlds away from what they were a generation or so ago. 

If the position was only open to individuals who had been through the school it would run the risk of repeating mistakes from the past.

I would much rather an outstanding ‘outsider’ candidate rather than someone who just happened to have gone through the school and/ or company. 

[Emeralds]

5 hours ago, Ian Macmillan said:

Emeralds: Could you try "alumni alumnaeque" on your in-house Latinist?  Been a while since I was dabbling therein.  

The "in house Latinist" said: "No"  🙂

[Emeralds]

1 hour ago, Doing Dance 1 said:

I wholeheartedly disagree.

The pressures and expectations of young dancers today are worlds away from what they were a generation or so ago. 

If the position was only open to individuals who had been through the school it would run the risk of repeating mistakes from the past.

I would much rather an outstanding ‘outsider’ candidate rather than someone who just happened to have gone through the school and/ or company. 

Not saying that they should only recruit from candidates who were past RBS students of course-if you scroll back, I did agree with the recommendation of Ms Yanowsky, who is definitely not an RBS alumna ( @SophoifeI'm using it now in this context 😉 ) .

 

It was simply something that in Bussell's case is a positive quality-  she remembers and understands ballet school pressures acutely, and the challenge to young RBS students dealing with expectations and pressures (from others and within themselves). Most people probably imagine that Darcey Bussell was always a prodigy of sorts and had things easy- blessed with ideal limb lengths, bone structure and joint mobility, noticed in the school and job offered to her even without having to go through numerous auditions, cherry picked for soloist roles at SWRB/BRB - requested by Kenneth MacMillan and agreed by Peter Wright, title role in a new full length ballet and promotion to principal all arranged by MacMillan.

 

In fact, she remembers (her words recorded on camera)  the pressure of having to work and get better at 13 because of the worry of being assessed out if she didn't keep up with her peers. This was in response to her not having a formal teaching qualification and to explain that formal qualifications don't necessarily make you a better person in a leadership position.

 

I certainly know many educators (in dance schools as well as conventional schools) who have collected qualifications in order to get prestigious and better paid leadership posts, but turn out to be inadequate teachers and disappointing heads or leaders. 

 

They certainly can't and mustn't restrict applications only to former RBS students, as that would be discrimination,  nor should they restrict it only to candidates with paper teaching qualifications, as numerous examples show that those with paper qualifications can be poor at teaching or interacting with students or both, while many  without paper qualifications are actually very inspired teachers, effective motivators and supportive mentors. They may still end up appointing someone who has both....or neither. Depends on whom the best candidate is among the applicants. And we have no idea who is interested- all guesswork at the moment!

Edited January 13 by Emeralds

[Roberta]

If you look at the CV of the outgoing Artistic Director & CEO of the Royal Ballet School, you will see that the role is wide ranging, international, and a highly qualified and experienced person is required.  A dancing career, followed by teaching qualifications and experience, management and admin expertise and experience for this pressured role are all part of the expected skill set in these times. A life as a dancer and then coaching at the Royal Ballet once retired I doubt will even get anyone an interview in 2024.  https://www.royalballetschool.org.uk/discover/people/christopher-powney/

 

Darcey Bussell was a late entrant to White Lodge, so wasn't as advanced as other students in her year. She worked extremely hard as a student to catch up.  Her talent was obvious as a student. She was carefully nurtured. Her destination was always going to be Covent Garden, though this wasn't apparently communicated to her at the time; she was given a year in the touring company to gain more experience. Her first role was as a snowflake in Nutcracker.  Kenneth MacMillan chose her to create the lead in Prince of the Pagodas and so she was moved to the London Royal Ballet. She didn't spring from nowhere, undiscovered. 

 

Jonathan Cope is 60. I doubt he'd be interested in applying for the job, even if he had the skill set and qualifications. 

 

I think a certain amount of realism needs to come into play when bandying names around as the next AD?

 

[Ruby Foo]

You’re right Roberta. The new AD would need to be a giant in terms of a multi faceted skill set, a creative visionary etc etc etc.

Despite all that, a simple saying comes to mind -‘flowers bloom best when they are tended’.

[Sophoife]

18 hours ago, Roberta said:

If you look at the CV of the outgoing Artistic Director & CEO of the Royal Ballet School, you will see that the role is wide ranging, international, and a highly qualified and experienced person is required.

 

If you look at the activities of the outgoing AD/CEO of the RBS (two roles that should not be combined), you will see how very little time was actually spent at the School.

 

For a student at the RBS of seven years' standing to be able to say they never once had class with the outgoing AD ought to be shocking, but somehow is not.

 

I cannot imagine someone spending seven years at RBS or at ABS under Gailene Stock (both schools), Marilyn Rowe, Lisa Pavane, or Dame Margaret Scott and never having had a class taught by them. Of course, if I'm wrong, please correct me (with source).

[Roberta]

I don't know that being taught personally by the AD is really very relevant in 2024 TBH.  I'm not sure what it would add to the student experience or progress. The AD hires experienced staff to teach and how many classes are there at White Lodge and the upper school?  My view is it's better to have continuity, daily class with teachers who know each student from daily contact, with the AD perhaps sitting in on classes occasionally. 

 

[Ruby Foo]

Because Roberta, when there is a huge distance between management and students, students have no relationship with management whatsoever ( except fear) and vice versa to the point that management doesn’t even know a student’s name after several years. For a head of any school this is quite unbelievable and unacceptable. To the AD then, that student ceases to be a person and becomes a number or a commodity.

This is very poor management indeed! In any walk of life! A good manager makes it their job to be on the floor. To create positive relationships with all who work for them whether it be secretaries, cleaners, clients, consultants, contractors. This is the way you get the best from everyone and they teach you a great deal too! If you’re present and not too arrogant to learn. It’s a win, win situation where everyone is feeding and learning from everyone else. Everyone feels valued and ‘seen’. This is what is created when an AD teaches his/ her students. Nobody is suggesting the AD should be teaching every day but teaching is the medium for creating relationships and validates a student beyond being a monetary commodity. It is a commitment from the AD that he / she is working for the benefit of the student and is in touch with everything that is happening in his/ her school creating trust and loyalty. The AD knows his / her students well through teaching them and aids communications between staff and students. The fee paying student who are the clients are the most important. Being in touch with them is the key to success. All great leaders  throughout history know this. It’s how wars were won, how Prime Ministers get elected, how the best corporations survive.

When the heads of institutions remain distant and aloof from reality then trouble sets in.

I’ve left the most obvious reason till last - presumably the AD has an interest in teaching his/her students? Hopefully he/she feels they can add something valuable and worthy to a student’s training?

When my daughters attended their academic school in Scotland, the headmaster stood outside the school gate in his kilt every morning from 8am. He greeted every child by name as they came in ( despite being over 1000 students) and usually had something humorous or cheery to say. 
He appeared in the classrooms every day at some point, taught lessons and made it his job to find out how everyone was doing and feeling. The result? A school that was bonded together by him where each child felt they were part of something bigger than themselves.

What a contrast to hearing a child being referred to as ‘it’ in this particular institution which I personally  experienced.

 

Edited January 14 by Ruby Foo

[Roberta]

3 minutes ago, Ruby Foo said:

For a head of any school this is quite unbelievable and unacceptable.

 

I think you'll find this is something that occurs in many mainstream schools also, especially in large Academies, with a head who oversees more than one site. Many of those are quite successful schools.

 

A head of a smallish school (1000 isn't huge these days) who only has to oversee that school and not play a part on wider world stage of excellence really can't be compared to the AD of the RBS in these times I don't think. 

 

I don't see that dropping in and out and teaching one off classes is adding a great deal to individual student progress, and it all becomes too insular and the role really is much wider ranging and international now.  There are only so many hours in a day, and if you have excellent staff hired to teach, I think they should be allowed to get on with doing that.