plansrme Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 Can anyone give me some input about summer intensives? My 11 yo dances and is a competitive gymnast. In a year or so, she is probably going to have to decide whether to scale back her gymnastics or drop ballet. If she keeps ballet, she will probably need to move to a more serious ballet school. I am thinking of sending her to a week-long summer intensive with the local professional company (the one with the school she would probably attend) this summer, so she'll have a better idea of what she may or may not be getting into. We don't know anyone who has done this. If your daughters (or sons, for that matter) have done this, was it worthwhile? What did you think of the experience? I don't even know what questions to ask, so I welcome anything you can tell me. Thanks for any input, Terri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
z2_mom Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 I think that it would be worth while for your daughter especially if this is the school that she may be attending. It would give her a good feel for the school and its teaching methods prior to attending. It would help give her some great background information to help her decide between ballet and gymnastics. It may be a good opportunity to explore something deeper without much pressure or commitment. we did something similar when we moved. My daughter was faced between choosing to stay with jazz and tap or moving onto a serious ballet academy for professional training. She attended several summer intensives or weeks at different dance studios to help her decide between the studios in our new town. It did help--there were some that after 2 days, she knew it was not the place for her. She did end up at a ballet only school with a company. I sometimes miss watching her dance tap and Jazz. But oh' how beautiful she is when dancing...and I can see that this truly was the right decision for her! Now, as far as summer intensives when they are a bit older and traveling. That is another beast and has other purposes. It seems as this point you are thinking that it may be a good opportunity to explore ballet as a more serious option. If you have more questions etc. feel free to email me. Lynda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 I agree with the previous poster, basically. One thing I wanted to mention though... You might check with the large studio running the summer intensive to find whether most of the instructors are their usual staff. Sometimes in summer programs, they'll bring in guest teachers and choreographers. That can be great! But it might mean that the experience would only partially reflect what regular study at the school would be like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krista in LA Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 My 13dd is required to go to a summer intensive in order to be in the dance company. Our school offers one with guest instructors for 2 weeks each summer. My dd loves it and I think it is good for her to have that extra time to devote to dance during the summer. The guest instructors they've had have been fabulous and always give additional advice/information that she wouldn't necessarily get in regular classes. If she didn't love dance so much, I don't think I would bother with it, but she loves it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonshineLearner Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 What type of Ballet does she study? My daughter is doing RAD (Royal Academy of Dance) and I know that if I were to move her (or more likely for us, her teacher retires) I'd take her to another RAD studio. She's 11. I suppose she's not at the level your daughter is. Our summer weeks are taught by our same teacher, but it's a small studio. Does she do ballet 3 times a week? Could she still not do at least jazz, once a week? I love hearing about the different ballet studies.... Although...I really want my daughter to do some form of martial arts before she graduates.... Too bad that probably won't work with ballet...:-( Carrie:-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plansrme Posted December 12, 2008 Author Share Posted December 12, 2008 Abbey's comment about guest versus home-town instructors is something I've tried to find out. They're all wrapped up on Nutcracker this month, but I'm hoping to get more of a response in January. Since auditions are 1/18, perhaps they'll have their acts together by then. These artistic temperaments (and their loosey-goosey timelines) are difficult for those of us who like to plan ahead. :glare: I agree that it would be better for her to have more of the home-company instructors this go 'round, so she can get to know them and they can get to know her. Another question--do you, the parent, typically get any feedback at the end of the week? It would be helpful for both of us to have some input on her potential from someone who hasn't taught her since she was 3. Terri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holly IN Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 This is what I have heard of others in my dd's ballet class did... They would spend the summer doing gymnastics to strengthen their legs and tone them up for the upcoming year of Ballet. Sorry not much help here. Holly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori C- Texas Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 We have just reached this with our dd11 also. She is old enough to audition for these summer intensive. So, I am very interested in hearing what others have to say. I am not ready for her to go out of town or state for some of these intensives. Nor, can we afford to send her! Dd's dance teacher says these auditions are great for dancers confidence and also great to put on dance resumes even if they don't attend. Her teacher also said it is great to go to these auditions because it is basically like taking a master class. Great dance instruction with great teachers for only $20!:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plansrme Posted December 12, 2008 Author Share Posted December 12, 2008 Well I just had no idea, but that's good to know. Terri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plansrme Posted December 12, 2008 Author Share Posted December 12, 2008 I sometimes miss watching her dance tap and Jazz. But oh' how beautiful she is when dancing... I meant to mention that this really resonated with me. I always thought that when the time came for her to choose, I would secretly root for gymnastics. But as I watch the pre-pro girls and the professional dancers, especially in the corps de ballet (is that how you spell it? you know--when a big group of them dance together), all I can think is how wonderful it must be to be part of something so beautiful. I don't tell her my preferences, of course, as it will ultimately be her decision, but good ballet is so darned beautiful, and the world needs more beautiful things. Terri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krista in LA Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 What type of Ballet does she study? My daughter is doing RAD (Royal Academy of Dance) and I know that if I were to move her (or more likely for us, her teacher retires) I'd take her to another RAD studio. She's 11. I suppose she's not at the level your daughter is. Our summer weeks are taught by our same teacher, but it's a small studio. Does she do ballet 3 times a week? Could she still not do at least jazz, once a week? I love hearing about the different ballet studies.... Although...I really want my daughter to do some form of martial arts before she graduates.... Too bad that probably won't work with ballet...:-(Carrie:-) My dd does RAD too! If you want your dd to do some martial arts, I'd just like to encourage you to have her try it. My 13dd has been dancing for years (she's in RAD grade 5) and also has a black belt in tae kwon do. The two really do complement each other well as they both require flexibility, strength and balance. She has the best kicks in tkd too. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonshineLearner Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 (edited) Does her ballet teacher know that she's doing martial arts? What kind? (Oops, you answered that) I don't think ours is keen on my daughter doing them..... But, maybe I'll check again for next year. Is Tae Kwan Do taught as a contact sport? Carrie:-) Edited December 13, 2008 by NayfiesMama I realized my question about what kind had been answered:-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 Does her ballet teacher know that she's doing martial arts? What kind? I don't think ours is keen on my daughter doing them.....Carrie:-) Hm, our RAD teacher doesn't appear to have anything against it. Yes, martial arts uses the body in different waya, but as long as the student can separate them out in their head, it seems to work okay. My kids (RAD grades 1 and 3) don't do martial arts, but certainly some of the other students at their school do... (Of course, the main challenge seems to be fitting both activities in!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
islandmama Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 I don't know what level of gymnastics your dd is in, but it will come to a point when she cannot do both. My dd competed to level 7 and with the time commitment required, there was no way she had the time or energy to do both. She eventually chose ballet because she had some injuries that she couldn't take time off to fully heal. Gymnastics is so hard on their bodies. But I let her be the one to choose so that she wouldn't blame me or regret the decision. She absolutely loves ballet now! She now goes to 7 classes a week, which is 4 days a week. Regarding a summer intensive, I think it's a great idea. And some don't require auditions. We are looking into them now because they start auditioning in January and they can be very expensive. (need to save up) My dd wants to try a school with a professional company. I hope this helps some. Feel free to pm me if you have any questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jg_puppy Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 How do you find out about these summer intensives? My dd is younger (8 years old) so we won't be doing anything right now, but I am curious about how this works. The studio where she dances is still very young and doesn't have some of the opportunities the rest of you are discussing. Jan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krista in LA Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 Does her ballet teacher know that she's doing martial arts? What kind? (Oops, you answered that) I don't think ours is keen on my daughter doing them..... But, maybe I'll check again for next year. Is Tae Kwan Do taught as a contact sport?Carrie:-) Yes, her ballet teacher knows about it and has no problems with her doing it. Is there some reason why yours doesn't approve? Most of our tkd classes do not involve contact or only slight contact in practicing our self-defense. On days that we spar, we wear protective gear on our heads, hands, and feet - I have shin guards too for those little ones that kick me there often. We only do light contact sparring at our school, but there is always a chance of getting hurt should a 13 yo boy decide to do a spin heel kick to your head and you move the wrong way and get kicked in the nose. Not that I know anything about that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plansrme Posted December 14, 2008 Author Share Posted December 14, 2008 Jan, The ones I know about are affiliated with our local (Atlanta) professional ballet company. Most professional companies have dance schools, and those schools will run summer intensives. Many of them are residential, so you need not live nearby to attend. Some are held on a college campus, and girls stay in the dorm; others seem to have girls staying in hotels with parents or chaperones. I think it's fairly common for girls to travel away from their home studio for one or more weeks of summer intensives. Most have a minimum age of 11 or 12. Auditions start in January and run through spring. Many of the schools do an audition tour, where they do auditions at other ballet schools around the country, so you needn't travel to the sponsoring school for the audition. Terri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
islandmama Posted December 14, 2008 Share Posted December 14, 2008 How do you find out about these summer intensives? My dd is younger (8 years old) so we won't be doing anything right now, but I am curious about how this works. The studio where she dances is still very young and doesn't have some of the opportunities the rest of you are discussing. Jan We actually went online and did a search of the nearby large cities and found several. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jg_puppy Posted December 14, 2008 Share Posted December 14, 2008 Thank you. That is something to keep in mind for when my dd gets older. Jan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LadyR Posted December 14, 2008 Share Posted December 14, 2008 My dd is a classical ballet student who attends summer programs and will begin auditioning again in January for the summer of 2009. Pointe Magazine is a good resource for finding summer programs, but I prefer the Ballet Talk For Dancers website. There is a specific forum just for summer programs which lists them in alphabetical order and has reviews from parents and dancers who have attended. You have to register to see all the forums, but it is well worth it. There's more information there than you ever thought you needed to know. http://dancers.invisionzone.com/index.php? p.s. I remember reading a thread there recently regarding gymnastics and ballet. It was very informative. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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