Month: November 2010

DVD Auditions for the Distance Dancer – Part 2

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Now that you know what you will perform for your video audition, it’s time to think logistics. When will you record you DVD? How? Who can help you? What if you don’t have a video recorder? What should you wear? What do you do once you have the footage? What should you include in the package with your disk? What else should you know about DVD auditions?

Ok, let’s start at the top…

All schools want to see recent footage taken at or perhaps soon after the time of their audition tour. Check their sites for deadlines. Make sure to record your footage no more than two months prior to the date that you mail your DVDs. Do not splice taping sessions from different days onto one audition DVD, and never try to make edits within a single exercise or splice two versions of an exercise together! I have seen some very embarrassing videos from young dancers who try to fool adjudicators into thinking that they finished an exercise as strongly as they finished it by editing two different tapings of a single exercise together.  It is always completely obvious.

A lot of families own a DVD recorder. If your family has one that you are allowed to use, you are a lucky duck. If not, you still have a few options. Check with classmates to see if you can borrow one, or look online for local videographers to see what they charge to make a professional DVD. Even if you do own a DVD recorder, a professional DVD can be easier (since you don’t have to deal with editing) and cleaner looking (since they have excellent editing software and high-resolution recorders) than a do-it-yourself DVD, if you can afford it. Alternatively, and perhaps best, ask your teacher if she has a recorder. Whether she does or doesn’t, ask if she would consider recording you and, as I mentioned in my last post, helping you choreograph and rehearse your audition exercises.

Often, the format of the DVD files are not important, so that an mpeg file from your iPod Nano, for example, might be perfectly sufficient. Resolution is important though – the footage needs to be clear and good quality. If you can play the files on a DVD player or on a computer with basic software, so can they. Just let them know what program or device to use if they will not be able to play it on a DVD player. You can always call ahead to work this out with the school.

You will be expected to dress properly for your video audition. That means you should follow the regular audition dress code guidelines for each school. They will tell you in their video requirements if there are any further attire rules specific to DVD auditions. You can’t really go wrong by wearing your best outfit of black leo, pink tights and pink shoes. Some schools will require you to pin an audition number card to your leotard, and they will tell you how to acquire or print it. [If a printed card is required, print it on the thickest paper you have, cut it down to a proper size (about 6”x7”) and pin it to the front of your leo below your bust with a safety pin at the top and at the bottom.] Wear your hair in a bun or French twist and apply full makeup – just make it a little less dramatic than stage makeup. Do not wear a costume, even if you are performing a variation. Do not include any performance footage for your audition video unless specifically and unmistakably requested by the school.

Most schools receive many DVD auditions, plus they have to review all the live auditionees. Respect your auditioners time by staying safely within the time limit for your DVD audition. If the specs say no more than 10 minutes, don’t decide that your introduction shouldn’t count just so you can fit in an extra 15 seconds of piqué turns. Ten minutes maximum is the most common request by the way, though Ballet Austin Academy, for example, asks for about 15 minutes of material.

Speaking of the introduction, you should either use a short portion of the DVD for a recording zoomed to your face where you state your name, age and city/state, or you should have a text page of this info inserted on a plain background to have up on the screen for a few seconds before your exercises begin. Either way, deduct the time that these items play on the screen from the total time allotted for your DVD so that you won’t go over the time limit.

Also on the subject of taping technique, make sure that a) your full body is visible at all times, b) each individual exercise is recorded in one “take” with no cuts or splices and c) the camera is held very steady so the footage is not shaky. For barre, stay with one perspective (record from directly side or straight on from the front) for each exercise. For center, it’s ok to pan and take a diagonal perspective if necessary as long as your whole body is in the frame at all times. For jumps, be sure that you are zoomed out enough that they can easily see your jump height in relation to the floor. Use a similar zoom setting for exercises that travel across the studio and variations, perhaps starting with a tight full-body zoom and zooming out gradually as you travel across the floor. A good videographer or teacher can help with these decisions. Record a performance of each exercise at least twice to the left and right.

Let me reiterate from Part 1: make sure you read the requirements of each school. Most of them just want a short barre and center and will give you a lot of leeway on the exercises, but there are some outliers. For example, the American Academy of Ballet does not want any barrework on video auditions. Also make sure you look for caveats to video audition acceptance. You don’t want to send in a video to San Francisco Ballet School only to have it rejected because you actually live within a 200 mile radius of one of their audition tour locations, their minimum distance for video audition eligibility.

Once you have your footage all done – including a spoken introduction if you want that instead of text – you’ll need to decide which side (left or right) to show for each of the barre exercises. You want to show your best execution of each one, but you also want some consistency with the format of your video, so you’ll have to decide which grouping of exercises looks best: all to the right, all to the left or alternating right and left evenly. Depending on the requirements of each school, you may have to do the same for the center exercises. Your videographer or teacher can help you select which exercises to include and splice them together in the right order using editing software. If you are sending videos to multiple schools, you might need to make different versions of the video for each one.

Once you DVD is finalized, burn a copy for yourself, a copy for whomever helped you and a copy for the school. Label each disk with your name, the date, your age, you city/state and your phone number. Some schools have a video audition card that you need to print out, complete and attach to the DVD or slip into the disk case. The properly labeled and encased DVD is the first item for your audition package.

The second item for your audition package is your audition fee. Video auditions are often $50 payable by check or money order, considerably more than live auditions.

Third is your paperwork. A video application form needs to be printed and completed for most schools. A few schools require a dance résumé instead of a form. Atlanta Ballet Centre for Dance Education has what they call an Absentee Audition Form – but they ask for a résumé also. I would also recommend a brief cover letter (on a business letter format) introducing yourself, explaining your interest in the school and thanking the adjudicators for reviewing your video audition application package. Once you have your paperwork together, make a complete copy to keep for your own record.

Fourth, you will need to include a few photos. Unfortunately, the schools can vary widely on what they need, more so than when it comes to live auditions. You may have to have quite a few poses photographed. You’ll just have to – you guessed it – refer to each school’s guidelines.

Finally, include an SASE (that’s a self-addressed and stamped envelope, kiddos!) that has enough postage for the weight of your video, unless the school does not wish to return videos.

You are now ready to mail your audition package! Check and double check that you have the proper mailing address for video audition packages, the properly labeled and correctly compiled DVD, the appropriate enclosures. Then, take your package to the local USPS, UPS or FedEx/Kinko’s to have it weighed, stamped, and sent on to its destination by trackable service. Now breathe a sigh of relief and begin your patient wait… Before you know it, you’ll be holding a response envelope in your hands!

Ballet in Print: Girl in Motion (with a sneak peek!)

Miriam Wenger-Landis, former professional dancer with Miami City Ballet, published a lovely novel this year for young dancers called Girl in Motion. This book chronicles the experiences of small-town girl Anna, a very talented young dancer who has been accepted to the year-round program at the fictional School of Ballet New York after attending their summer intensive.

Miriam Wenger-Landis trained at SAB as a young dancer and is able to use those experiences to write believably and compellingly about Anna’s world. Thanks to Dance Spirit Magazine, you can read two excerpts of Girl in Motion online – Part 1 was published on their site in September, and part 2 will be available next month!

Teacher Summer Intensives & Workshops

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Student dancers, this post is not for you, but I will be completing my tips on DVD auditioning very soon!

I was recently asked if I know of any good teacher workshops. I compiled a list this past summer for my own use, and I am happy to share that, though I can’t guarantee that it’s exhaustive.

Some of these require auditions, some require a paper application process and others will accept anyone who registers and pays. Gelsey Kirkland’s school and Royal Winnepeg are linked to year-round programs. ABT and perhaps one or two others offer a certification after completion of their program. I went ahead and left my old notes on estimated costs on this list, though I don’t know if they are still accurate. The last three I have heard of by word of mouth, but could not find information on them at the time.

I am personally most interested in John White’s (author of the great teachers’ books “Teaching Classical Ballet” and “Advanced Principles in Teaching Classical Ballet”) program, and Ruth Petrinovic’s (teacher of master teacher David Howard) program. Ruth was trained to teach by JoAnna Kneeland, who is famous for popularizing the therapeutic barre. (JoAnna, Ruth and David are all Harkness people, I believe.) John recently completed a few years of running his elementary to intermediate program and is now running his intermediate to advanced program. I am told that the program really does build, so that you need to take the former before the latter. I’m not sure how long it will be before he goes back to running lower level program.

In addition to my list here, Dance Teacher magazine keeps a long list of schools that supposedly run teacher programs, but somehow a lot of them don’t really seem to do so. I think many schools consider teachers eligible to attend their student SI, but that doesn’t qualify at all as continuing education if you ask me. So here’s my list of programs:

Gelsey Kirkland Academy Teacher Training
http://www.gelseykirklandballet.org/academyteachers.html

Royal Winnipeg Ballet School Teacher Program (course/room/board $1450)
http://www.rwbschool.com/pro/Programs/Teac…narProgram.aspx

Ballet Magnificat Teacher’s Workshop (course/room/board $943)
http://www.balletmagnificat.com/E_teacher.html

Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet with John White (course/room/board $925)
http://www.paacademyofballet.com/vaganova11.htm

American Ballet Theater Teacher Certification Programs
Primary-Level 3 Training (course only $1650)
Level 4-5 (course only $1350)
Level 6-Partnering (course only $1325)
http://www.abt.org/education/teachercertification.asp

Tampa Ballet Center Ruth – Petrinovic’s Teacher Training (course only $900)
http://tampaballetcenter.org/Ruth%20Brochure.pdf

CPYB Teacher Workshop (course only $675)
http://www.cpyb.org/summer-programs/teachers-program

Dance Teacher Summit (course only $550)
http://danceteachersummit.com/

Dance Masters of America (course/room/board $850)
http://www.dma-national.org/xftraining.htm

Dance Educators of America
Level 1 (course only $1000)
Level 2 (course only $1000)
Level 3 (course only $1000)
http://www.deadance.com/dea/menu2/program.htm

National Dance Education Organization
http://www.ndeo.org/content.aspx?page_id=2…module_id=66988

Vaganova Summer School with Mansur Kalametnidov
http://www.russianballet.net/teachers.html

Pacific Northwest Ballet Teacher Seminar (no info found)

Vail International Dance Festival Ballet Teacher’s Seminar (no info found)

National Ballet of Canada (no info found)

So that’s it. Hope this helps! If you know of any others, just put them in the comments, and I’ll add them to this list.

Dancewear en l’air: The Sunray Pleat Leotard

Mirella’s artists are at it again with super pretty options in their Holiday Fashion 2010 and Fall Fashion 2010 collections, which feature fabric knots, belts, corset lacing and pleating. While all the styles are very creative, their are a few definite standouts, including M2013L.

The signature of this leo is diagonal pleating which forms beautiful arrays across the bust. (If you can’t see it on the pic at left, click it once to see a large view.) The blackberry shade shown looks simply lush and accentuates the dimension of the pleating perfectly. This leo is also available in a dynamic garnet red which is bright but at the same time deep.

Two modern fabric options are available: a Diablo/Nylon/Lycra and a Meryl/Spandex combo. So lux, I would pair the blackberry leo with cashmere-feel thigh-high black legwarmers over theatrical pink tights.

DVD Auditions for the Distance Dancer – Part 1

Uh-oh! One of your top summer intensive choices isn’t auditioning anywhere near you this year, and you can’t travel to them. No worries – DVD auditions are accepted by many national and regional ballet schools. (Though some, like SAB, only accept videos from foreign students.) And with a few tips, you’ll be well on your way to an audition-worthy disk.

This post is in two parts because there are so many tips on this that I’d like to give you. Today, I’ll focus on the content – what you are going to perform for your video audition. In Part 2, we’ll talk logistics, filming style, how-to and putting together the audition packet.

Just as with live auditions, most schools devote at least one page on their website to video auditions: what to wear, what steps to include, what papers to include and how long it should be. Find this for each of your video audition schools and print out the pages for easy reference and comparison. In order to prevent yourself from having to make more than one audition video, read through the requirements of all your schools of interest to see if you can make one DVD to satisfy all of them. Usually, the only time this won’t work is when one school requires a you to send a variation – many schools will not want variations on your video, so you will need to make a separate disks for the two types.

Most schools will simply want a short barre and center class, but with special modifications. If you read all requirements carefully, you will find that most modifications can be combined and do not conflict with each other, so that you can make one class DVD to use for all your auditions. If you can’t however, don’t try to buck the rules. If you need to make different tapes, just go ahead and make different tapes. Run a single taping session and use editing to pick and choose what portions should be included for each school. Then, make darn sure not to mix up those different DVDs.

While some of us (ahem, moi) might make perfectly successful SI DVD auditions without rehearsing, that is not the recommended protocol! I only made my tapes with no rehearsal as a young dancer because I didn’t know any better, and that’s the very reason I created this blog – So other dancers won’t be as clueless as I once was!

You want to decide ahead of time exactly what exercises you will perform, which side you will perform for each, what music you will use for each, etc, and then practice, practice, clean, clean. Make yourself a list so you don’t accidentally forget to perform one during your taping. If you forget to perform a step, it will be impossible to tape a new session and splice it into your DVD without the details of your hair, makeup and background giving away your cheat.

One of your teachers can help you put together exercises that conform with the audition requirements. Make sure to provide them with the requirements well in advance. If all it says is to include barre and center, here are some sample (Vaganova) exercises you might include for the barre:

Pliés – Just do something straightforward like demi, demi, grand, and a port de bras or port de corp in first, second, fourth and fifth.

Tendu – Three battement tendus (from fifth, first, and then fifth again) ending the third one in demi plié. Instead of en croix, perhaps go front, side, back, and then balance in fifth or rétiré before your reversal. I would also recommend using a full port de bras in each direction to show your understanding of the lines involved there.

Jeté – Two quick battement jetés and one pas de cheval, perhaps with the arm in second and ending with a relevé rétiré balance with arms in first or, if you are advanced enough, with a single pirouette from fifth. Perform this devant, a lá seconde, and devant with your inside leg to jazz it up before reversing, but realize how that will change the pirouette directions.

Rond de Jambe – To a waltz: two slow ronds par terre, two quick ronds, degagé to 90 degrees, demi rond at 90 to a lá seconde, one rond de jambe en l’air, demi rond to derrière 90, close fifth. Reverse. Since this is an audition, I would save time and not include a port de corp if you have already included one with your plié exercise.

Frappé – Two (Cecchetti) frappés devant, one relevé, repeat a lá seconde, repeat derrière, then frappé a lá seconde into relevé and petit battements. Reverse and balance in relevé sur le coup de pied before closing fifth.

Adagio/Fondu – Developpé devant, battement fondu simple to 90 degrees en relevé, hold or balance for a moment and close fifth. Repeat a lá seconde. Repeat derrière/arabesque. Instead of repeating to the side, hold the balance in arabesque for the final counts. Do not reverse.

Grand Battement – Keep it simple with two grand battements en croix with arm in third for devant and derrière.

You’ll note that this is a very short barre with few balances and port de corps. Remember that your adjudicators need only a snapshot of a class.

Center should include an adage, pirouettes, petit allegro, grand allegro and pointework for ladies so advanced. Some sample exercises:

Adagio – Beginning croisé, developpé croisé devant, passé through rétiré to attitude éffacé, stretch to second arabesque, relevé to pas de bourée into demi plié fifth, developpé écarté devant, promenade to écarté derrière, relevé and tombé into balancé to the right, devellopé the left leg through sur le coup de pied to chassé croisé en avant on the left and close the right leg back. Repeat left.

Tours – On the diagonal in fifth croisé with right foot front, chasse croisé en avant to prepare. Tombé pas de bourée to the right, piqué to first arabesque, land in fourth position with left leg front, single pirouette en dehors to fourth, double pirouette en dehors to fourth. (Or balance in retiré and then a single pirouette if that better suits your level.) Perform once right and once left, preferably without a break – Just rond the right leg around at the end of right side.

Petit allegro – From fifth en face, right foot behind: Glissade, jeté right, glissade, jeté left, balloté devant éffacé, balloté derrière éffacé, coupé and brush to assémblé side with the left leg, closing back. Peform right and left, with battu on the jetés and assemblé if you are advanced enough.

Grand allegro – Same preparation as pirouette exercise. Sauté first arabesque, glissade, pas de chat, sauté first arabesque, glissade, grand jeté, pas couru and piqué into third arabesque, chasse into grand jeté en tournant entrelacé landing in fourth arabesque, small devellopé through to devant and chassé into chainés, chassé out and into first arabesque a térre.

If you are over 13, you may be required to perform the whole video en pointe in addition to the next section.

Pointework 1 – En face: two echappés changée to second, one to fourth, and one passé through retire; repeat that phrase to the left; pique with the right leg into pas de bourée suivi traveling right, continue into a small circle around yourself, changée fifth in sous-sous, chassé an avant croisé on the left foot and close right foot behind to fifth. Repeat to the left.

Pointework 2 – En diagonale: pique first arabesque, tombé over, coupe under to renversé, pas de bourée en tournant, coupé over on the left foot into piqué pas de bourée closing in fifth position demi plié, and chassé en arriére to croisé devant in prep for left. Repeat to the left.

Pointework 3 –  Piqué turns en diagonale.

Pointework 4 – If you have enough room on your tape, show off any pointe strengths that you would like in a set of 16 or 32 counts. I always added hops on pointe to my audition videos. Fouetté rond de jambes en tournant (foutté turns) are rarely requested, but do include them if they are a specialty of yours.

Remember to finish each exercise cleanly. And check those requirements – San Fransisco and Miami City have very specific DVD choreography specifications that would not be satisfied by the above sample.

If a variation is requested, make sure you don’t include something so long that you can’t also fit your barre and center while accommodating the time limit. Two of my favorite short variations for pre-pro dancers are Bluebird from Sleeping Beauty and Kitri’s (second) first act variation from Don Quixote. Each one is only about a minute, and both feature jumps, turns and pointework.

See? This won’t be so bad. Videos let you a) audition in the comfort of your home-field-advantage studio, b) create exercises that present you at your very best, c) practice the exercises ahead of time and d) take multiple recordings from which to choose your best execution. In the next post, I’ll help you get this awesome DVD made and help you put together your best video application packet.

Preparing Your SI Audition Season

You have reviewed the summer intensive audition tours for this season and know what schools are visiting your area… You have been taking classes for a few years at least and are excited to see what the student audition circuit will be like… Visions of acceptance letters are dancing in your head! But wait – how do you get from sitting in front of your computer to opening one of those promising envelopes?

Preparing an optimal audition season for yourself takes thoughtfulness and preparation. You are going to have to be very proactive and responsible. There are a lot of to-dos, but it’s all very straightforward. And wouldn’t you know, I’ve got it all laid out for you in a nice checklist!

_____ 1. Get organized! Open a Word document and start a numbered list of the auditions you want to attend. Include all of the auditions that you are interested in, even if you’re not sure you can make it. Note the date, time and location (studio and city) for each one.

_____ 2. Rearrange your list by date, placing the earliest audition at the top. Look for conflicts. Inevitably, two good schools will overlap on one date, and you will have to choose between the two. If this happens, take a good look at the schools and talk to your teachers to decide which one you prefer.

_____ 3. Go down your list and ask yourself – What auditions are coming within easy traveling distance of your hometown? Which ones would require significant travel? Are those auditions worth a road trip? Can you get together a group of other dancers for a carpool to some of the auditions that are farther away? Make notes about this for each audition.

_____ 4. Share the list with your parents. Talk to them about your desired audition schedule and which auditions they will drive you to or that you will be allowed to drive to. Mark all of those auditions on your calendar and on your family calendar.

_____ 5. For those auditions that your parents either cannot drive you to (or that you are not allowed to drive to), ask if you would be permitted to go with a friend or with another dance parent. Contact dance friends that might be interested in carpooling and see if they (or their parents) can take you together or with a group, and then put these auditions on your calendar and your family calendar. (If you are unable to get to an audition that you really wanted to attend, don’t worry – a DVD audition is a good alternative. I’ll talk about those in a later post.)

_____ 6. You should now have your final schedule! It’s time to preregister. Quite a few schools have made preregistration available on their websites. Carefully check each school’s site to see if this option is available. Some schools have made online preregistration mandatory! It would be very embarrassing to get turned away for overlooking this step.

_____ 7. It’s time to get prepare your audition materials. Most schools have a page on their website describing the audition requirements in detail. Print out this out for each of your auditions.

_____ 8. Let’s talk about photos first. Each school has unique photo requests that are usually listed on their website, but you will be pretty much set for anything if you take the following shots in pink tights and a black leo (no skirt) with full stage hair and makeup and in pointe shoes (if you are that advanced): 1) a close-up headshot from the collarbone up, 2) full body first arabesque, 3) full body tendu a lá seconde with arms in second, 4) full body favorite pose. Professional photos are not necessary and are not the norm for students, but a teacher may be able to better than a parent for taking photos that show you to your best advantage. A size of 5×7″ is usually preferred. Write your full name and age on the back of each print.

_____ 9. Next is money, honey. SI auditions usually cost between $30 and $35 payable in cash, check or money order. You will have to check the audition information for each SI to find out which payment methods are preferred for each. Be up front with your parents from the get-go about this if you are relying on them to cough up these fees. If they cannot or will not subsidize your auditions (or any other aspect of your training for that matter), you are going to have to decide how important this is to you and, if it is truly important, how you can earn the money you need perhaps by becoming an assistant teacher or offering to clean the studio for your directors.

____ 10. Finally, there’s always random stuff that schools will want. (For example, SAB requires proof of birth at the audition.) You need to carefully read the websites and maybe even make a few phone calls to make sure you collect what you need to have.

You’ll notice that as a student, résumés, professional photos and recommendation letters are not a part of most auditions. Not only that, such materials will often be turned away by schools that do not specifically ask for them.

Now that you have your materials, go back to your list and create an audition packet for each school. Pay special attention to photo size and type specifications, payment preferences and preregistration. If you have read each school’s website carefully, you will be a-okay.

You have now prepared an excellent SI audition season for yourself – Well done! In my next post, I’ll let you know what to do on the day of an audition – and what to expect.

Inspiration: Carla Körbes

Carla Körbes is a principal dancer with Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle. Carla was born in Porto Alegre, Brazil, where she began her training with local teachers. Famed NYCB dancer Peter Boal encouraged her to go to the School of American Ballet after dancing with her at Ballet Vera Bublitz as a guest artist. Carla did so and for the 1997-1998 term was under the sponsorship of the legendary Alexandra Danilova.

Carla accepted an apprenticeship with NYCB in 1999, joined the corps de ballet in 2000 and was promoted to soloist in 2005.  Later that same year, she joined PNB as a soloist and was promoted to principal in 2006.

Carla has performed countless leading roles and received many high awards and honors. You might enjoy reading blog posts authored by Carla (at The Winger), which include loads of amazing photographs of her in rehearsal.

2011 Summer Intensive Auditions!

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PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR 2012 AUDITIONS.

Here it is: the 2011 audition schedule of the best of the best summer intensives. You don’t want to miss auditioning for these major players. (As you might have guessed, most are affiliated with professional companies.) Check out the tours and start planning your audition schedule for 2011. I’ll be posting soon on how you should prepare your annual SI audition season!

(Want to know what the audition judges will be looking for? Click here for my recent post on that very topic. Accepted to multiple programs? Click here for tips on choosing your SI.)

So without further ado, here’s The List:

School of American Ballet
Affiliated with New York City Ballet: http://nycballet.org/nycb/home/
Summer Course: http://www.sab.org/summercourse/overview.php
Audition Tour: http://www.sab.org/summercourse/national_auditions/audition_tour_schedule.php

Ah, the Big Kahuna of SI auditions, the SAB audition may be the most selective and toughest audition that will tour near your town. High arches and hyperextension are pretty much requisite. Not to fear, while making it into the SAB SI (not to be confused with their LA young dancer’s two-week session) is often the only way to get into their year-round program, it is certainly not the only path to a professional career. This is a must for your audition list, but don’t be shocked if you are one of those who don’t make it. If you do, check out some Balanchine videos to decide if you are interested in being trained at the school, and be forewarned that the highly competitive lifestyle of the program is similar to European state schools like the Paris Opera Ballet School and the Vaganova Academy.

ABT Summer Intensive (Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at American Ballet Theatre)
Affiliated with American Ballet Theatre: http://abt.org/
Summer Intensive: http://www.abt.org/education/summerintensive.asp
Audition Tour: http://www.abt.org/education/nationalaudition.asp

This one is also a must for your schedule. ABT and NYCB are the top New York City ballet companies, but they feature totally different techniques and their ballet schools are similarly contrasted. While SAB and NYCB train and feature Balanchine-style exclusively, ABT is accepting of many techniques and has developed its own synthesized training curriculum. Their audition tour is comprehensive, and they offer extension programs in addition to their main New York City program. Be advised however, that while some students who only make it into a satellite are able to get into the elite NYC program in a subsequent summer, the satellite programs are not nearly as revered as the NYC program and are thought to be more on the level of a good quality regional school’s program. This year, the satellites include Detroit, MI; Tuscaloosa, AL; Austin, TX; and Costa Mesa, CA.

Bolshoi Ballet Academy
Affiliated with the Bolshoi Ballet: http://www.bolshoi.ru/en/
Summer Intensive: http://www.bolshoiballetacademy.com/program.htm
Audition Tour: http://www.bolshoiballetacademy.com/auditions.htm

This program takes place in two U.S. locations, Middlebury, CT, and NYC. It is affiliated with the world-famous Bolshoi, and will pay all expenses for 10 select students to attend their SI in Moscow. For more information on the Moscow program, see http://www.bolshoiballetacademy.com/nsli.php. Additionally, two students will be selected to perform in the Academy’s Gala Performance in Moscow, all expenses paid. Highly elite.

Kirov Ballet School
Affiliated (informally) with the Kirov Ballet: http://www.mariinsky.ru/en
Summer Intensive: http://www.kirovacademydc.org/curr/summer_index.html
Audition Tour: http://www.kirovacademydc.org/news/cal_index.html

Audition dates are not yet listed for this prestigious Vaganova technique school, but check back regularly. The fall/winter session is an academic boarding school for dancers. Safe to say this school is one of the top 5 nationally.

Harid Conservatory
No Affiliation
Summer School: http://harid.edu/Summer%20School.htm
Audition Tour: http://harid.edu/auditions.htm

Harid offers some of the most solid training in the U.S. Very competitive school, very superior training. Like the Kirov, the Harid school is an academic boarding school in the fall/winter. Easily a top 10 school; I believe they only accept 50-60 students for the summer.

Royal Winnipeg Ballet School (Canada)
Affiliated with Royal Winnipeg Ballet: http://www.rwb.org/
Summer Intensive: http://www.rwbschool.com/
Audition Tour: http://www.rwbschool.com/pro/Auditions/AuditionTourSchedule.aspx

Just like at SAB and many other top schools, Royal Winnipeg’s summer session serves as the second portion of the audition for their fall/winter session. (The first part of the winter audition is the audition tour.) RWBS teaches the Cecchetti technique and is a partner school of the prestigious Prix de Lausanne. See my earlier post about the documentary TuTuMuch for additional information. Also, check out the School of National Ballet of Canada, a state-funded school with a similar audition process.

Gelsey Kirkland Academy of Classical Ballet
No Affiliation
Summer Intensive: http://www.gelseykirklandballet.org/summer.html
Audition Tour: http://www.gelseykirklandballet.org/academyauditions.html

This very new and very elite school is the brain child of Gelsey Kirkland – if you don’t know who that is, please get your google on and educate yourself! Gelsey envisioned a ballet school that would not only train superior technicians but also superior artists. The focus at this school is on expression and the art of performing story ballets, and the faculty includes legendary master teachers like Gelsey’s former mentor David Howard. You are going to need to have your technical ducks in a row or have exceptional potential if you want to be accepted into this school.

Kaatsbaan International Dance Center Extreme Ballet
No Affiliation
Summer Intensive: http://www.kaatsbaan.org/extreme.html
Audition Tour: (At the bottom of the above linked page.)

This outstanding and selective program takes place in Tivoli, NY, and boasts some of the finest faculty and founders that the U.S. has to offer. When I auditioned many years ago (and was accepted – woohoo!) I believe that they were only accepting 35 students nationally, so it is competitive to enter. The program is for dance students who are deemed truly capable of becoming professional artists. During the program, students are divided into small groups for personal mentoring and coaching.

Boston Ballet School
Affiliated with Boston Ballet: http://bostonballet.org/
Summer Dance Program: http://www.bostonballet.org/sdp.html
Audition Tour: http://www.bostonballet.org/school/summer/SDP-Auditions.html

The Boston Ballet School Summer Dance Program, is highly competitive to enter and provides one of the most elite programs in the nation. Like SAB, this one truly is a must for your SI auditions list… Ok, so I’m a little partial! Once in the program, you will have an opportunity to audition for their excellent school year programs.

Pacific Northwest Ballet School
Affiliated with Pacific Northwest Ballet: http://www.pnb.org/default.aspx
Summer Course: http://www.pnb.org/PNBSchool/Classes/SummerCourse/
Audition Tour: http://www.pnb.org/PNBSchool/Classes/SummerCourse/#AuditionTour

Possibly one of the top ten ballet schools in the country, PNB School in Seattle is without question worth your audition time. Famous for accepting a young Jenna Elfman into their program, they do tend to often favor taller blondes.

San Francisco Ballet School
Affiliated with San Francisco Ballet: http://www.sfballet.org/
Summer Summer Session: http://www.sfballet.org/balletschool/summersession.asp
Audition Tour: http://www.sfballet.org/balletschool/summersession/auditions.asp

San Francisco Ballet and Pacific Northwest Ballet are the two most prestigious ballet companies on the west coast. This is definitely a top ten school and one for your audition list.

Joffrey Ballet School (NYC)
Affiliated with three pre-professional touring companies: http://www.joffreyballetschool.com/touring-company-overview.html
Summer School: http://www.joffreyballetschool.com/summer-program-auditions.html
Audition Tour: https://thriva.activenetwork.com/Reg4/(S(jsm3oejrjzusn255awyuda45))/Form.aspx?regkey=RpYOYPxE378wNjTYCkFkMw%3d%3d

As the original school of the Joffrey Ballet when it was still in NYC, I understand that it holds no formal affiliation with the company today, but does enjoy an informal linkage. Many graduates of the NYC school have gone on to professional careers with the Joffrey Ballet in Chicago. This is a highly competitive and historically prestigious school, easily in the top 15 nationally. Receive training from outstanding former dancers and master teachers like Gelsey Kirkland while experiencing NYC life. In order to see the audition schedule, you will need to select the programs of interest while creating a free account at the above link.

The Rock School for Dance Education
No affiliations, though formerly attached to Pennsylvania Ballet
Summer Ballet Intensive: http://therockschool.org/summer/ballet_intensive
Audition Tour: http://therockschool.org/summer/audition

The Rock usually has one of the more comprehensive tours, so if you are in a state that isn’t visited often by major schools, you may be pleasantly surprised by this one. The Rock is a great beginner audition because usually they do not have a limit on how many students they accept. In other words, if there are 20 students from one city that they like, they will invite all 20 instead of having to cut it down to fit a set acceptance limit. If you’re good, they will accept you. Also, they are somewhat flexible on body type. If you love Balanchine style but were not accepted to SAB, Rock is an excellent possible alternative for you. In addition to the SI, check out the very selective coaching intensive at http://therockschool.org/summer/coaching_intensive.

Miami City Ballet School
Affiliated with Miami City Ballet: http://www.miamicityballet.org/
Summer Program: http://www.miamicityballet.org/school/summer_program.php
Audition Tour: http://www.miamicityballet.org/school/admissions_auditions.php

Even before Alex Wong made it big on SYTYCD, Miami City was a highly revered ballet company and school. If you love Balanchine technique, this is an excellent alternative to SAB. Very competitive.

Joffrey Ballet Academy of Dance
Affiliated with Joffrey Ballet: http://www.joffrey.com/
Summer Intensives: http://www.joffrey.com/academy/programs/summerintensives
Audition Tour: http://www.joffrey.com/academy/programs/summerintensives

Joffrey Ballet’s Chicago home is the site for their Chicago Academy’s summer intensive. See above for the famed NYC Joffrey Ballet School summer info. Joffrey Academy is pretty flexible on body type acceptance, even more so than the NYC version I believe.

Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet
No Affiliation
Summer Program: http://www.cpyb.org/summer-programs/5-week-summer-program
Audition Tour: See Below

Marcia Dale Weary is a true teachers’ teacher. She has turned out countless professional dancers and contributed significantly to pedagogical study. To apply to the CPYB Summer Ballet Program, fill out the form at http://www.cpyb.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/2011-5_Week-Summer-Ballet-Program-Application-1110.pdf.

There are countless very worthwhile SI’s hosted by regional companies and schools. I’d recommend that you check out these links to good quality regional SIs: Alvin Ailey, Anaheim Ballet, Atlanta Ballet, American Academy of Ballet, Ballet Austin, Ballet Chicago, Carolina Ballet, Cary Ballet, Festival Ballet of Rhode Island, Goh Ballet, Houston Ballet, Julliard, Kansas City Ballet, LINES Ballet, Long Beach Ballet, Louisville Ballet, Maryland Youth Ballet, Milwaukee Ballet, Nashville Ballet, Nutmeg Conservatory, Orlando Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Texas Ballet Theatre, Virginia School of the Arts, Walnut Hill, Washington Ballet.  In the U.S., there are good quality SI programs in nearly every major city. Compared to the national-level programs I have featured, these good quality second-tier schools accept more students, are often willing to overlook technique in favor of very good potential and are more accepting of different body types. Additionally if you are not quite competitive at a national level but are getting old enough to start planning your professional career, regional schools and companies may be a smarter choice for you in order to look for potential work opportunities.

For a complete list of all of your SI options (but with only basic data and contact info), check out Pointe Magazine’s summer intensives audition issue (Dec 2010/Jan 2011, available now) or their online summer study guide. Currently, Pointe has yet to update their online guide, but things don’t change that much from year to year, so you can check it out now to get a feel for things and check back later or buy the print version for the 2011 info.

Update: Comments are now closed for this post and for those older than 90 days. However, you are invited to comment on newer ones. Just visit the home page to see the latest posts! If you are looking for advice on choosing the right SI for you, read this post and comment there if you need further info. If you are looking for 2012 information, look for my 2012 list this fall. Thanks!

The 2011 SI Audition Season is Here!

People, it’s time. Time to get prepared for the 2011 Summer Intensive audition season!! For serious dancers – whether aiming for a pro or college career out of high school, summer intensives with top schools are a vital part of thorough dance training. And top SIs do not admit students without an audition.

There are a lot of considerations that dance students and their families should discuss before an SI is chosen. We’ll get into those in another post. Focusing on the audition season itself, you need to know that even if you are 100% positive that you will not be able to attend an out-of-town summer intensive, it is still an absolute must for you to attend the summer intensive auditions that tour to your town. Why?

First off,  the more experience you have taking part in auditions, the better. Auditions are a way of life for dancers, and getting comfortable with the process is best accomplished by experience. You should consider auditions to be a vital part of your dance education.

Secondly, the audition results can give you an idea of how you are progressing. Are you good? How good? It can be nearly impossible to get a feel for your own talent and technique just from taking daily class at a small-town studio. Finding out what major schools are interested in you – and which ones aren’t – can help you understand how you are perceived and what kind of potential you are thought to have.

In addition, you will have a chance to be seen by top companies and schools who may recognize you next year if you are unable to attend the SI but do audition again. Often, SI schools send the same few people to the same cities, so that the Tulsa team, for example, will be fairly unchanged year after year. If you stood out at all, you may have made an enough of an impression with the adjudicators that they remember you from the prior year. You’d be surprised how often this happens and how much it can help with your training career.

For dancers located in areas without access to the very best schools, summer intensives can be their only access to opportunities to be trained by national master teachers, to be taught by professionals currently dancing with top companies, to meet other serious young dancers, to be seen by artistic directors and to devote a whole month or more of full 8-hour days to their dance training.

Summer is often the only time a young dancer has when time is not split between school, homework and other activities. Those dancers who do not take advantage of this time – even by attending just a local dance intensive – are not only wasting an opportunity to focus on dance without distraction; they are creating large developmental gaps between themselves and their many peers who do attend intensives.

These are just a few of the reasons that you should make SI auditions an annual part of your training process. In the next post, I will be providing links to audition tours and websites for the best of the best in SIs. Take a look, and start planning your 2011 audition schedule!

Inspiration: Kathryn Morgan

Young NYCB soloist Kathryn Morgan hails from Fayetteville, North Carolina, and received her initial training from Mobile Ballet in Alabama, where she recently returned to perform as a guest artist. In 2004, Kathryn went to the legendary School of American Ballet, moving into an apprenticeship with NYCB in 2006 and a corps de ballet post in 2007. Her promotion to soloist happened just over a year ago, in October of 2009.

Kathryn, or “Katie”, is perhaps one of the company’s most charming ballerinas, and her quiet, radiant grace is apparent in every role. She has been featured by the New York Times, Dance Spirit and Pointe Magazine and guest-blogged for the latter. You’ll be truly inspired by the gorgeous photos on her website – it took me quite a while to decide which one was prettiest for this post!

UPDATE: Kathryn has a new website now, with a fabulous blog of her own. Check it out! It’s called IfThePointeShoeFits.

Dancewear en l’air: The Diamond Leotard

This thoughtfully cut leo features criss-crossing panels of fabric that narrow towards the hips making a flattering hourglass effect and creating a small diamond in the center bust. The criss-cross pieces wrap low around the back of the leotard creating a cute hip-skimming accent.

I hesitated to feature this interestingly cut leotard because, since Bloch’s recent purchase of Mirella, not all of their leotards are featured on either site. This particular leo is tough to find anywhere, but if you know the model number (MJ7115) you can find it in online discount stores, particularly if you’re willing to order from the UK. It’s available in a slate-like indigo, true red and classic black.

The 360 design of this leotard is what makes it so gorgeous. I’d pair it legwarmers or just pink tights so as not to obsure its pretty and flattering shape.

Supercharge Your Pointework!

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The American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society agrees: pointework is a serious undertaking. They endorse several tried-and-true dancer exercises that you will find enormously impactful for your oh-so-important foot and ankle training to enhance stabilization, strength and articulation. Add these simple, technique-cleansing routines to your regimen today (You’ll thank me later!):

Doming Exercise

The dancer sits on a chair with knees bent to 90 degrees and feet flat on floor. The dancer then tries to make an arch under the metatarsal heads while keeping the toes flat and long, not allowing any curling of toes. Hold for count of ten, repeat 5 times with each foot. This helps strengthen the intrinsic muscles (the small muscles between the metatarsal bones.

Marble Exercise

Place 20 marbles on the floor. Pick them up one at a time by curling the toes around them. Move each marble to a jar and when dropping in the jar, spread the toes apart as widely as possible. Repeat with other foot.

Alphabet Exercise

Write A to Z with each foot, using the foot and ankle and not the leg to draw the letters. This is a good overall ankle strengthening exercise.

Theraband (Sport Cord) Exercise

Dancers should move their ankle in 4 directions against the theraband. Flex (dorsiflexion), pointe (plantarflexion), sickle (inversion) and wing (eversion). Dancers should first point their foot followed by trying to turn the foot in (“sickle”) against the resistance of the theraband. A dancer should be able to see the tendon just behind the inside of their ankle working. This tendon is the tibialis posterior which is crucial for rising up on the toes.

Releves

The dancer should do calf raises with their feet in a parallel position, otherwise known as a releve. After barre work, it is good to do 24 single leg releves in parallel on each leg. This will help strengthen the Achilles tendon and calves.

Inspiration: Sarah Van Patten

Sarah Van Patten has been a principal dancer with San Francisco Ballet for three years and is an exceptional talent and an elegant ballerina with artistic sincerity.

Born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts, Van Patten began her serious training at Boston Ballet School under Caroline Eaton, Jill Silverman and Kristen Beckwith and later trained under Jacqueline Cronsberg of Ballet Workshop of New England. She summered at the latter and also at SAB, Brianksy and Chautauqua.

Van Patten began her professional career as an apprentice at the age of 15 with the Royal Danish Ballet and was cast as the lead in Romeo & Juliet. A promotion to corps de ballet soon followed. In 2002, she moved to San Francisco Ballet to take a soloist position.

Check out Sarah Van Patten’s website and get inspired to reach for the stars in your next ballet class!

Ballet in College = Smart Ballerina!

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Still deciding whether to go to college before trying to have a dance career? You’ve gotta read this article from the recent issue of Pointe Magazine!

I’m a huge proponent of dancing in college before taking on a career – and of doubling your major so you can have a marketable non-dance career track available. The refinement and maturity that a good college experience provides combined with a respected dance program experience can make the difference for your dancing between student-quality and professional artist-quality.

Going to college before you invest time and money in pro auditions is a very smart move for many reasons. Just ask any of the dancers in the feature article or professional dancer Lindsey Fitzmorris, graduate of SUNY Purchase and official graphical image of BalletScoop!