16 Audition Basics and Pointers For Keeping A Positive Perspective

Expecting a certain outcome puts your mind in a place and time other than the audition and you’ll need to have your head in the present tense to do well. Clear your mind and dance because you love dancing, not because of the pot of gold that may or may not be at the end of this rainbow.

Guest Post: Insight Into ABT’s National Training Curriculum

Deb describes her own productive and exhilarating summer adventures as a participant in American Ballet Theater’s National Training Curriculum program in wonderful detail. “The Training is organized as week-long intensives; candidates are asked to obtain certification in Primary Level through Level 3 of the curriculum before being allowed to continue certification in Levels 4 and 5, and then 6, 7, and Partnering (taught as two separate intensives).”

Sunday Snapshot: Flying

Half of the students absolutely hated the Holga for different reasons, mostly because they felt they didn’t have any control over what they were doing. I disagreed. I felt I had more of a creative outlet without any boundaries and more control because I didn’t have to worry about the exposure.

Ready, Set, Stop: How To Teach Mind-Body Skills By Not Moving

To illustrate this, I ask my students to become aware of how their body feels as it works against gravity. I ask them to put their hands above their heads and then to be still. I remind them, “you are in charge of your body,” “your brain tells your body what to do,” and then we wait.

Why Does My Dance Teacher Make Me Go Slowly?

Maybe you are a dance student who just loves to move at a fast pace and find it difficult to slow down. Perhaps you are eager to try the more advanced or faster version and don’t like it when your dance instructor holds you back.

Possibly it annoys you. You wonder what’s wrong with you or what’s wrong with your teacher that you have to work through things so slowly. Maybe you even begin to think he or she is just being mean or controlling.

Summing Up The Summit

Instead of actual snapshots I’m sharing some of the thoughts and impressions I picked up along the yellow brick road. I hope you’ll use, think about, or act upon these little nuggets from the Dance Teacher Summit. I had a great time collecting them for you.

Sunday Snapshot: Port de Danseuse

Hannah is a young photographer and dancer who has been featured on the Dance Advantage Sunday Snapshot before. She has a knack for finding unique locations and using them to feature her favorite subject, dancers. “Dance is what I love to do so naturally, I am most inspired to photograph dancers,” she says. And in case you are doubting, yes, the boat really is named the Dancer.

Do Your Communications With Parents Pass The Scan, Scroll, Stroll Test?

Clearly this mom hadn’t ‘received’ the communication about recital tickets that we had been sending for two months leading up to the date. At the studio we had given verbal announcements, posted signs, printed memos and order forms were sent home, all of this, including when and where to pick up tickets, was posted on our website.

New Continents — From Royal Ballet School To Boston Ballet

“I once took six months off from ballet when I was 14. My school commitments were growing and it was becoming seriously difficult to juggle everything. It reaffirmed for me, however, that ballet was my one love and out of everything what I should have been doing.”

Sunday Snapshot: Ballet Zaida

According to Oliver Endahl, the photographer, the purpose of the Ballet Zaida photography project is to “educate and expose the public to ballet, as well as inspire the world through pictures.” A former ballet dancer himself, his work is definitely inspiring as well as inspired, featuring incredibly talented dancers in stunning locations. And there is just gallery after gallery of images – a visual feast.

How Do You Define “Dolly Dinkle” Dance Instruction?

Most of you have an idea about what it means to be a “Dolly Dinkle” (or Dolly Dingle) dance instructor or dance school. Weigh in with your definition of insufficient dance education.

Lightbulb Moments: Pas De Chat

Every jump in ballet is preceded by a counter-movement, namely, a plie, and this is exceedingly effective in getting more height out of a jump (try jumping from straight legs and see what happens), not to mention protecting the achilles tendon from injury. In fact, people have studied jump height and found that maximum vertical height in a jump is higher using a counter movement than not (3). So it makes sense that we bend our knees before jumping.

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