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Summer Intensive Auditions End, REAL Auditions Start

Tuesday, March 6th, 2012

A lot has happened since my last post…I’ve just been too busy to write. I apologize. I’ve got a non-dance related book coming out in a few months, and getting ready for that launch has been taking up all my time.

Anyhoo. Since I wrote last Julian has been struggling with his tendon tear. He has gone to PT twice a week, and that has been helping. Initially, it didn’t seem to do much, but then something kicked in and the tendon appeared to start healing. Tendons don’t get a lot of blood flow, so their healing process is a bit iffy in general.

Julian went from not doing much on that right foot to doing more–releves, some turns, but still nothing that wasn’t two footed. He had been taking class all along, but he was sitting out during the latter part of class. He began to do more.

Additionally, he was “saving” himself for summer intensive auditions. So, he would only do what was necessary in class. Then he’d go full out in auditions. He skipped a few summer intensive auditions, like Houston, after he got the great deal from San Francisco Ballet. Basically, he decided that was where he’d go this summer–unless he ends up needing surgery.

At this point in time, summer intensive auditions are over. However, auditions for companies have begun. Although Julian is a bit young–he turns 18 this summer, he’s been told to audition. He’d like to return to SAB next year and try for a spot as an apprentice at NYCB. However, it seems there are less and less spots in companies, especially given the economy. The boys have been told to take a job–even a trainee position–if they are offered one–including Julian.

He might have some tough decisions to make by June or so.

In the meantime, he dances full out in company auditions, and does what is necessary in class. He pushed himself recently while being auditioned for choreographic institute numbers. And then he regretted it. Not only that…the faculty at SAB decided not to allow him to participate in the choreographic institute numbers because of his ankle, preferring to “save” him for Workshop, the end of the year performance. This one is attended by representatives from ballet companies from around the nation and from Europe, from what I understand (a bit like when recruiters come to watch athletes at sporting events). This hit Julian really hard, since it came on the heels of being cut out of the Winter Ball choreography because of his ankle as well.

We called SAB to ask about the latter decision (choreographic institute) and were told the school is not focused on performance opportunities. The only thing that really matters is that Julian perform 100% in class and in Workshop. Okay then.

He was very upset but got over it. I guess it’s all a lesson in learning to take care of his body better. Don’t push past your limits. Listen to what your body is telling you. Go to the chiropractor, for massage, to the PT, etc. Warm up!

We’ll see what happens with Workshop. They get their roles next week, I think.

As for college auditions (I throw my hands in the air), forget about a Plan B–at least a Plan B for failure or for not dancing right away. We had to call Juilliard and discuss his injury; Julian couldn’t rehearse his solo even once after choreographing it. In the end, two days before the audition he went to speak to the rep at Juilliard who invited him to audition and discussed it personally with her. They both agreed he shouldn’t risk hurting himself and that he had no chance really of getting admitted without a solo. So…no Juilliard audition. (I wipe away a tear…)

We haven’t heard from Indiana, but he won’t be able to audition anyway. We haven’t heard from Oklahoma; he’s into that dance program already. He’s on the waiting list at Butler–guess why? His grades last quarter were less than stellar, so we’ll see what the other schools say.

Well, he doesn’t want to go to college anyway, at least not full time. He just wants to take classes while he dances professionally. So, I have a new Plan B–Plan B for success. He simply must get a job in a company, succeed at dance and become a choreographer along the way. If he also gets a college degree along the way and learns to be a body worker (Plan C), super.

As for the surgery…we won’t know about that until June. He was even told by one of the SAB school representatives that he should simply dance full out for Workshop and then have the surgery afterward if need be–if the tendon gets worse. In other words, take a risk to show all those reps from companies (and Peter Martins of NYCB) what he has. Then go have the second MRI and handle the consequences.

My response? Go check in with the doctor. Then go dance your heart out. Focus on Plan B for Success.

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Posted in auditions, choreography, College, dance injuries, foot problems, grades, performance, professional dance, recovery from dance injury, summer dance programs | 2 Comments »

Looking for a Summer Dance Intensive for Your Son?

Tuesday, December 13th, 2011

It’s that time of year again…time to audition for summer dance intensives. I feel quite removed from the process this year because Julian will be handling it by himself in New York. He’s made his own decisions about which intensives he wants to attend, and he will sign up and audition on his own as well. He will do all of this from New York, since all of the major schools hold their auditions at the School of American Ballet (SAB).

Now, as I write this I’m thinking… “Hmmm. Wonder if there’s a deadline? Wonder if he needs to actually send in a registration form and fee? Maybe we need to do all of this together when he gets home.” Yes, the likelihood is that I will help him at least get registered for the auditions if they are not open auditions–or if SAB doesn’t have some arrangement with these schools.

Julian plans to audition for Pacific Northwest, Boston Ballet, Houston Ballet, and San Francisco Ballet. He is not allowed to attend the SAB summer intensive again now that he is in the school. (I mentioned a bit more about Julian’s choices in this post.) And he no longer has a desire to go back to American Ballet Theatre (ABT).

For those of you who have no idea where to start, who are still looking or who would like some help, last year I put together The Summer Dance Intensive Handbook. I know that choosing the right summer dance program and preparing for it can prove a stressful experience for parents and dancers. So, I took all my experience and the interviews I’ve done that relate to the topic and compiled them all into this handbook ,which offers practical advice for parents and dancers so they make the right choice, prepare appropriately, conduct themselves well, stay healthy, and learn as much as possible while enjoying themselves as well.

You can purchase The Handbook for the Kindle at Amazon.com or as a PDF or for any other ereader at Smashwords.com.

Price: $7.99 US

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Attending a summer dance intensive was the best thing Julian ever did to advance his dancing and change his attitude about dance. After his first summer at ABT, he became much more serious and motivated. I highly recommend boys attend one. Plus, it may be the first  time they get to be in class with 15-30 other boys their age. That, in and of itself, is worth the experience. The camaraderie and friendly competition between the boys can’t be recreated anywhere else  (except maybe in the year-long programs). It pushes them along much faster than anything else. In fact, I’d attribute Julian’s advancement over the summer to being in the boys’ classes more than anything else.

There are lot’s of great summer dance intensives for boys. I highly recommend those affiliated with ballet companies, if your son is focused on ballet. If not, choose a regional program that offers many styles. I’ve not mentioned it before, but Debbie Allen has a high-quality program we always hoped to have Julian attend down in Los Angeles, and it covers all styles (hip hop, jazz, tap, ballet, contemporary)–and has top notch ballet instructors as well. If your son is into tap, follow the tap festivals around all summer. These can be a great learning experience with some of the top tappers around. Julian used to love going to the San Francisco Tap Festival and we had hoped to make it to the LA Festival but never did.

Dance abounds all summer. Just because your regular dance school may be closed, don’t let that stop your son from dancing. See it as an opportunity to take his dancing to the next level by enrolling him in a summer dance intensive–even if it means taking the leap and letting him go away from home for a few weeks.

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Posted in auditions, boys dance classes, summer dance intensives, summer dance programs | No Comments »

Time to Start Auditioning for Companies & Summer Intensives

Monday, November 28th, 2011

The School of American Ballet (SAB) students receive guidance about summer intensives and company auditions just before Thanksgiving break. The boys are brought in to see Jock Soto, the head of the men’s division, and he asks them what summer programs they might be interested in attending. He then advises them on their choices. He also tells them if they are ready to begin auditioning for professional positions and if they can return to the school the following year. Some of this depends upon age; some depends upon skill level.

Numerous ballet companies from around the nation (and possibly from Europe…I’m not sure) conduct their auditions right there at SAB starting in the New Year. Most companies with summer intensives hold their auditions at SAB as well.

As for next year, Julian’s age puts him in an odd category. He turns 18 this summer. If he were already 18—or was 18 for part of this school year, he might be deemed too old to come back for another year. Because he will have just turned 18, he can return for one more year—and that’s what Jock told him. He could return if he wanted to do so—and they would be happy to have him. However, he also was told to go ahead and start auditioning for ballet companies. He’s ready.

Jock also asked Julian what type of companies he might like to dance for, and Julian replied, “Large ones.” (Duh.) So, his choice of what to do next year will be dependent upon his offers, if any come. And, of course, he hopes New York City Ballet might make him one—but that could take another year at SAB, if it happens at all.

In the meantime, he is also filling out college applications. Some of you may disagree with the idea of having your son implement a “Plan B.” I understand this totally—and I’ve even played devil’s advocate for the “Only Plan A” route. As parents, my husband and I have decided to stick with our initial feeling that we want Julian to have all his options open at the end of the year.

As for summer intensives, he’ll be auditioning for summer intensives at Boston Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and San Francisco Ballet—among others. Pacific Northwest Ballet is his first choice. Jock said to go wherever he was given the best scholarship. I’ve done a little research and found that Pacific Northwest and Boston are chaperoned and provide housing. Whoo-hoo! As I write this, though, I’m feeling stressed about the idea of him going to a new city all alone. Of course, San Francisco is just an hour and a half from our home.

By the way, it is the season for summer intensive auditions. If you haven’t seen it already, The Summer Intensive Handbook is now available for the Kindle at Amazon.com as well as in most other digital formats at Smashwords.com. You might find it helpful when choosing an intensive for your son or preparing him for one. (Here’s a special coupon code for 15% of the $7.99 price –just for My Son Can Dance blog readers good at Smashwords.com: Coupon Code: QK67P Expires: December 28, 2011.)

While in New York before Thanksgiving I got to observe Julian’s ballet class again, but this was an exception to the rule since parents only get to observe every other month. We don’t normally come to NYC so often—awfully far to go for us folk in CA, so SAB agreed to let us observe after just a month, but now we are banned until March. I’ll be in NYC in January, but I won’t have time to watch class anyway. I’m sure we won’t have a reason to be back again until at least March.

Anyway, Julian looked really good. I think he’s improving by leaps and bounds, and I don’t see a whole lot of difference between him and some of the boys who have been there a long time. I know I don’t see the little technique differences, though—and I’m his mom! I’m biased. He says he still has a way to go to catch up.

I enjoy the fact that some of the core members, soloists and principle dancers take class with the boys—and some of the ballerinas in the company, too. They all show up for the advanced men’s class! They say it’s the hardest one around. It’s fun to watch these beautiful dancers try to do the really difficult combinations Jock throws at the boys and to seem all of them—professionals and students alike—struggle with them. Of course, the company members struggle with them less and get them right more often. But I can compare Julian to these dancers as well as to the other boys, which is really a unique opportunity.

Julian seems to be doing really well in partnering—from what he tells me. I didn’t watch a class this time.  He is trying to do some of the partnering moves one handed! And he has gained a regular partner who is a company member—after having no partner at all. (Company members come to partnering class during off season.) Some of the girls are now asking to partner Julian as well. So no more being a wallflower for him.

We are still struggling with preparation for Regents tests, though. Really too bad he has to take them to graduate high school when he already passed the California Exit Exam. I finally called the school and made arrangements for tutoring and some sort of monitoring of his studying—or lack thereof. SAB has gotten involved as well, much to Julian’s dismay. Well, what can I say. He has to pass to graduate, and he has three test to take (and one mock test). After January—if and when he has passed them—he can relax knowing he’s fulfilled his requirements. Then he just needs to finish his two humanities courses, and he’s doing okay in those. His report card was good—should be with just two darn courses. (Could have been a tad better given the fact that he has so few classes…)

He comes home in three weeks for the first time since he left in the fall! We’ll see how that goes. His “requested” plans for the vacation—and some of the summer—are worth another post.

 

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Posted in Attitude, auditions, Ballet, College, college dance programs, dance scholarships, Partnering, SAB year-round ballet program, summer dance intensives, summer dance programs | 1 Comment »

SAB Summer Intensive Ends with School Year Offer

Tuesday, August 2nd, 2011

The SAB Summer Intensive is over. It feels like it just started, and I’m already in NY.

Julian loved the SAB Summer Intensive, which ended on Saturday. I arrived in New York City on Wednesday night and at Lincoln Center and the Juilliard Dorm, which is also where all the studios are for SAB, the next morning to watch class. I got to see Julian take a technique class and then I had lunch with him in the cafeteria, where the food really was not bad. The class was excellent, and he got great corrections. Boy, was the Balanchine fast! They are required to move so much faster than Vaganova, which is sloooooow!

I left after lunch, because Julian had a rehearsal for his evening performances for the Choreographic Institute; only two apprentices had choreographed pieces, and Julian was in one of them. I returned to watch the performance later. I was quite impressed with the pieces, and loved seeing Julian perform. Of course, I thought he looked great! The piece he was in was contemporary, not Balanchine.

Julian was feeling quite frustrated because most of the boys he knew had been asked to attend SAB during the school year, but he had not. On our way down to lunch that day the teacher in charge of the advanced male division, Jock Soto, asked him what his plans were for next year. Julian replied that he had not yet been asked to stay, and Jock said he would be. Jock came to find me during lunch and asked me to go see the registrar, who, as it turned out, had called me while I was watching class.

Here was what she told me: The teachers had asked more kids than usual to attend the school next year, and more than usual (almost all) had accepted. Therefore, they had waited until the last minute to ask the older boys (16+) to attend, assuming, I suppose, that their parents would be more likely to allow them to attend anyway and find them some sort of (possibly unchaperoned) housing in the city.

Right. I entertained that thought briefly. What were they thinking? I guess parents in the past had let their sons stay unchaperoned. Again…right. Not mine.

The next day I watched a technique class and a partnering class. Julian was corrected quite a bit by Jock, who reiterated to me that he would really like to see Julian attend SAB next year. (Julian says Jock was trying to impress me with all those corrections…) Jock mentioned that all the major ballet companies in the states and Europe come to the final SAB performance of the year and make offers to the kids. (Hmmm. That would negate the need for all the money we would spend on RDA and YAGP next year.)

Oh, by the way, while staying in the dorm (Juilliard’s dorm) during the school year meant Julian would be chaperoned just like during the summer and SAB would take custody of him and the academic advisor watch over his grades, etc., it is enormously expensive. The whole deal — SAB and room and board, comes to more than $21,000. They only offer financial aid — no scholarships. (ABT offers scholarships, but no housing.) Who knows if we would have received any aid. (So far, no forms have showed up for aid for the SAB portion — just the ballet program; maybe none is offered?)

We were planning to do Regional Dance America (RDA) again and a YAGP (Youth American Grand Prix) solo (contemporary and classical) as well as possibly a pax this year. This might also mean going to NYC. Plus all the training expense. Then there were trips for college auditions, and maybe even the need to go to Europe to audition or to companies around the country….all to decide what he might do: college or a company. This could have amounted to a fair amount of cash.

If he attends SAB, we would still have to do some of the college auditions. We would not need to do the auditions for companies or RDA or YAGP, though. The latter two would not even be allowed.

Julian informed me he really wanted to attend SAB, even though it will be his senior year. He hates his current school, where he still gets called gay. His only good friends are from BBYO, his Jewish youth organization. he’s never had a long-term girlfriend. He’d only miss going to prom. (Maybe he could go back for prom?) He told me three days later that he guessed he had a big decision to make over the next four weeks; I guess he hasn’t totally made up his mind.

Should we, my husband and I, make this happen for our son? Why should we? My son has never danced with a group of boys for more than six weeks and then only during each of the last three summers. He has missed out on having consistent male friends–and girl friends. He has never gone to a school where he was totally accepted. He could put this on his resume. He might get to dance for NYC Ballet one day.

So, how to make this happen? After a conversation with my sister, I decided to look into chaperoning a few of the boys. (Julian picked 5…too many!) Maybe this could be affordable — cheaper than the dorm. We’ll also look into house swapping. Could I live in NYC for 10 or 11 months? Would I want to? Do I have a choice? (I guess so, but not really.) We have one boy on board already (and a grateful parent).

In the meantime, I’m trying to work while Julian goes to Complexions, where he has discovered that Dwight Rhoden wants him doing six hours rather than four of class. We still plan to take him up to Steps to take Willy Burmann’s ballet class many mornings. Long day… He may skips two hours of Complexions on some of the days. I’ll also have to start apartment hunting in my “spare” time. Blech.

And we have asked Dwight (and Desmond Richardson) to tell us what they think about Julian attending SAB this year. Dwight’s first reaction: SAB is a great finishing school. Ah. One more reason to say “Yes” to attending.

We will also ask Willy Burmann’s opinion…and maybe David Howard, another famous ballet teacher.

These are people with no investment in Julian’s future other than a sincere desire to help him succeed. They will make no money on him attending or not attending SAB. They all (with the exception of David Howard) have said they want to help him get where he is going. We can trust them.

That’s all you can do in a situation like this–seek out people you can trust and who know the industry better than you do. People who have no reason to mislead you, no ulterior motives.

We can’t ask at City Ballet, although I already did three or four weeks ago. Their response was that he needed to come back and do another year of straight classical (Vaganova). I don’t disagree. But they also have something to lose if he doesn’t come back. I don’t think Julian would be hurt by returning there. I think another year of Russian training would be good. But I think he might gain more by going to SAB…

Decisions. Always decisions to make when it comes to my son, the dancin’ boy. Hard decisions. And he must make them, too.

At least this year he was asked to attend year ’round. Last year at the end of ABT, he was not asked to attend the JKO School. That’s a step in the right direction.

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Posted in Ballet, SAB year-round ballet program, summer dance programs | 2 Comments »

The 1st 2 Weeks at School of American Ballet’s Intensive

Tuesday, July 12th, 2011

First, let me apologize for my long silence. Life is still crazy in the Lacey/Amir household. Ron and Julian went off to the airport on Saturday morning the 25th of July. Julian took off for NYC and Ron for Germany. I took off for a workshop I had to teach for 30 people. I left the next day for a week long conference. Ron and Ariel, my daughter, came back on July 2nd, Ariel in the morning and Ron at night, and I returned the next day. (Ariel has been off at school in NYC and stayed there for the summer for an internship.) I sealed a book deal before everyone went away and returned with three and a half week before I leave for NYC and just six and a half week to finish the book and turn it in to my publisher. So… Even though Julian is not home, things are still crazy. I’m just not driving anywhere, thank goodness.

As for Julian, he is loving the School of American Ballet’s summer intensive. He says that even though they have less classes per day — two on some days and three on others — they are much harder and he is very tired. We thought he would sneak out to take a class up at Steps, but he hasn’t had the energy so far.

Technique classes are all with just the boys–about 27 of them in his level (advanced), I think. Many of them are from other countries. The classes are so hard that many New York City Ballet, the company associated with SAB, company members and apprentices take class with them. The only time they take class with the girls is when they have partnering. They do weight lifting a few times a week as well, and this involves girls as well — as weights. On Saturdays, they take ballroom. He says that’s fun.

Of course, NYCB is known for doing Ballanchine’s work, and he is learning a whole new style of ballet. He says this is very hard, but he is enjoying it as well. I keep asking how it will translate into the Vagonova work he will do when he returns or whatever other classical ballet work he will do. He just says you learn it and use it for Ballanchine and that’s it. It’s part of your bag of tricks as a dancer, I suppose. Anyway, he seems quite interested in NYCB and finds the style interesting because it isn’t the same ol’ same ol’ classical ballet…interesting from the boy who suddenly was so interested in classical ballet.

He is, not surprisingly, loving living in the Juilliard dorm with the other boys. They put a slew of merit scholars (not sure if it was all of them) in a suite together. Julian lucked out and got one of only two singles. Many of the boys are Spaniards, and he befriended them; thus, his two years of Spanish have finally come in handy and he is speaking Spanish every day all day. He also has several French boys and one American boy in his suite. This is like dance camp, and he loved Jewish camp, so he has gone to heaven.

Plus….he already has a Spanish girlfriend!

He’s gone to see two ABT performances, and says he’s no longer so impressed with the dancers. Funny how things change. We’ll see what he thinks of the NYCB dancers. They are taking a bus trip up to Saratago, NY, this weekend to see them perform.

He hates the food and wasn’t getting enough to eat in the cafeteria. We had to add more money to his meal ticket. There was some question about what exactly he was buying in the cafeteria.

The people at SAB have been wonderful…accessible, nice, easy to deal with. This is NOT ABT. At least, the people handling the kids in the dorms are much more like camp personnel. I’m very happy about that.

And Julian turned 17 last week and celebrated there with his friends, including three girls from City Ballet, who are attending the Boilshoi intensive. There classes are up at Lincoln Center also, but their dorm is down near Union Square.

Last, but not least, the teachers (2) there seem to like Julian (and he likes them)and be offering him good corrections. And while none of the other kids know that there even is a choreography event that happens, Julian has been told by a NYCB apprentice who has taken a liking to him that he has been selected to be in a choreography piece. The apprentices choose intensive attendees to be in their pieces. I don’t know if they are performed or not. Maybe I’ll get to see it when I show up at the end of the month.

All in all, a good report so far. I gotta say I’m thrilled that Julian is in NYC on his own and I’m not worried. Plus, he’s happy with the program and seems well chaperoned; he’s gotten a “pink slip” for being late, been called while down in Times Square to find out why he wasn’t back at the dorm, and even gotten another “pink slip” for not signing in when he was in his room because he was in his room early because of the last “pink slip”! They are tight! He’s fed. He’s in class and happy. The program is good by his high standards. And I didn’t have to pay a fortune or find housing for him. (Well, I did have to find housing for August, but that’s another story.)

I will admit that I did not deal with the whole going away thing until he was going out the door. I’ve always cried when I dropped him off at camp, but I was really pretty upset when I realized he was going on an airplane alone and to the BIG CITY to boot. And without ME!!!!

I tell you more when I hear more. In the meantime, I’m off to work on my book. I’m sure I’ll also have a lot more to write when I get to NY, where I plan to also conduct some interviews for the blog.

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Posted in boys dance classes, summer dance programs | 2 Comments »

Summer Dance Intensive Handbook Available on Kindle

Wednesday, June 29th, 2011

The Summer Dance Intensive Handbook: How to Choose the Best Program for Your Child and Help Your Dancer Get the Most Out of the Experience is now available on Kindle! It is still available in all other formats from Smashwords byclicking here.

I know most kids have left for their programs, but you might still find some gems…like how to behave while at the program or how to choose a local program. Or use it for next year!

Julian left for SAB on Saturday. I’m away this week. I’ll write next week about his first week in NYC without good ol’ mum.

Posted in summer dance programs | 3 Comments »

Now Available! The Summer Dance Intensive Handbook

Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011

Better late than never…and not glitch free yet. You can purchase and download my newest product at Smashwords, A Summer Dance Intensive Handbook, in any e-reader format (but the formatting is not yet perfect). Just click on the link:

The Summer Dance Intensive Handbook
How to Choose the Best Program for Your Child and Help Your Dancer Get the Most Out of the Experience

I uploaded it and made it available in a hurry when my formatter was still out of town…all of June. Ack. She’ll fix the formatting in July…way too late for most of you to really benefit from all the great info in this guide. But the info is there, and you can read it. You might still find something useful for this summer, especially if you are attending a local intensive or off to ABT. And there are lots of tips on how to get the most out of an intensive, so…you’ll find it useful no matter what.

Here’s the description of A Summer Dance Intensive Handbook: Thousands of girls and boys attend summer dance intensives every year. Choosing the right one and preparing for it can prove a stressful experience — until the creation of this handbook. Prepared by the mother of a male dancer who has “been there and done that,” including chaperoning her son in New York City during the prestigious American Ballet Theatre summer ballet intensive, this handbook offers practical advice for parents and dancers so they make the right choice, prepare appropriately, conduct themselves well, stay healthy, and learn as much as possible while enjoying themselves as well. You won’t want to choose a summer intensive or send a dancer off for to a program without it.

The cost is $9.99.

If you read the handbook and like it, please leave a review at Smashwords. That will help more dancers and parents of dancers find the ebook. It will be loaded up at Amazon for Kindle in July! Hopefully next year the handbook will help lots of dancers and parents. Sorry for the late upload….too much going on at this end.

Julian leaves for School of American Ballet on Saturday. I leave for a conference on Sunday. His Dad leaves for work in Germany on Saturday just three hours after seeing Julian off. Life is crazy.

Posted in Ballet, summer dance programs | No Comments »

Our First Regional Dance America Experience

Thursday, May 26th, 2011

We returned from Regional Dance America (RDA) in Los Vegas a week ago. We haven’t had a break. My husband, Ron, flew in from Germany the day before we left and flew out to Missouri to care for his mother a day after we returned. Julian had rehearsals up until the evening before we left and had just one day off before he began full days of rehearsals again for the spring City Ballet School show, Peter and the Wolf and Don Q plus Rossini’s Madness, a Yuri Zhukov creation. I did, however, promise to tell you all about RDA.

On one hand, RDA is just another convention. We’ve been to a lot of conventions in our day. On the other hand, RDA is a very special convention; it’s totally focused on ballet and ballet at a fairly high level, although there are two levels of classes. That said, there are some mime, massage , and modern classe–which ballet dancers need, too. And there are seminars on such things as career transitions, managing dance and school, and preparing for college. Additionally, there were college auditions and summer intensive scholarship auditions. Also there were performances every night–emerging choreographers (student choreography) and regular choreography from each school (both classical and contemporary). These were judged and on the last night awards were given at a banquet.

The student choreography and college and summer intensive auditions, I felt, set this convention apart from others. (Oh…and the fact that they put down nice floors for the kids to dance on rather than just rugs in conference rooms.) It was great for Julian to be able to showcase his second piece of choreography before so many people, including the artistic directors of all the members of the RDA Western Region–and, for example, the artistic director of Kansas City Ballet. He also did the college auditions despite the fact that  he is torn about going to college or going straight into a company. These were broken into a morning modern audition and an afternoon ballet audition.

Here are the results of his three days, one performance and college auditions: His emerging choreography did not win anything–although his teachers assure us his piece was the second strongest of the bunch. (I’m of the mind that it had the most interesting choreographic elements but needed more polish.) Yuri’s piece had the place of honor as the very last one on the last night; it received a standing ovation–the only standing ovation of three nights–but it did not win anything. (I’d call that successful anyway.) Julian got accepted into University of California Long Beach (even after the rep told him it wasn’t the right school for him), Butler University and the University of Oklahoma with a scholarship, and he was invited to audition for Juilliard. Plus, after his performance in Rossini’s Madness he was asked to contact someone (not naming names…) who offered to pass his name along to a famous choreographer (also not naming names).  (So, I’d say he won in many ways.)

In the process of talking to the college reps (and me attending the seminars), we all got to hear something we had not heard before: ballet companies are getting tired of bringing in young dancers right out of high school as trainees and apprentices. Many of these dancers don’t realize how much work is involved and after six months say, “Wow, I had a bright moment back there when I was really enjoying performing and dancing and thought this was my passion…but not now! This is too hard!” And then they quit. Companies are starting to look for more mature dancers–ones coming out of colleges that have given them more technique and performing experiences and who are ready and willing to do the hard work.

This is a different message than “become a trainee or apprentice right out of high school and work your way up to a corps member.” Or even “go into a ballet school run by the company of your choice and hope you then can become a trainee  or get into their second company and work your way up to the corps.” Julian’s looking at those applications… And Ron and I are salivating over an $8,000+ scholarship at a school that costs only a little more than $17,000 per year. That’s a far cry from Juilliard at $50,o00 a year with no academics of which to speak–but it does have that name (but isn’t so ballet oriented).  Supposedly UO has beefed up it’s men’s ballet program and is hoping to feed men into big ballet companies–ABT, Boston, Joffrey, and the like. The director there used to dance at Houston Ballet, so he has a nice relationship with them. We’ll watch and see what happens with the graduating class of boys…That will help make up Julian’s mind, but he still wants to see what happens next year if he goes to YAGP. Plus, there’s next year’s RDA to consider; anything could happen there as well.

By the way, there were men’s classes and a partnering demo. Julian was able to ask about a particular lift he was having trouble with, and that was nice. The learning that goes on is a great reason to go to RDA; I thought the teachers were phenomenal (a few in particular, like one modern teacher). Julian enjoyed the classes as well.

However, Julian did get injured the first evening during a rehearsal–a lift gone bad. Since his shoulder was not in perfect shape (he knocked out a rib and possible his collar bone a little bit–a trip to the chiropractor when we got home fixed it and an osteopath at RDA fixed him up until then), he had to only do the college auditions on Tuesday and no other classes. He felt better on Wednesday, but because he was performing that night, he did not take the men’s class, which he was very disappointed about. (So was I…)

So, why go to RDA? It’s another great place to showcase your son’s talent and to land a summer intensive scholarship or to audition for college! Julian does not have to audition for Butler or UC Long Beach. We are a bit confused about UO–there was talk of an audition still though we are not sure why.

Anyway, if your son is interested in ballet and is dancing at a good ballet school, find out if the school has joined RDA. It might be worth their while to do so–and to go to the convention. Next year the convention is in Montreal and all five regions will converge at once. It’s supposed to be a REALLY AWESOME chance to for your sons to get seen. Julian is really looking forward to it.

Last…if you didn’t notice, I added a Video page. Not all the videos are good ones. I’ll be adding more little by little.

Posted in auditions, Ballet, choreography, College, college dance programs, conventions, dance scholarships, Regional Dance America, summer dance programs | 2 Comments »

Happy Mother’s Day to All Dancin’ Boys’ Moms

Saturday, May 7th, 2011

This is a special blog post for all those dancin’ boys’ moms: Happy Mother’s Day! You deserve some credit, appreciation and…time off. Without your support, where would your dancin’ boys be–even if they won’t admit to your part in their success? So, enjoy yourselves today and give yourselves a pat on the back.

As for me…well…my husband has flown off to Germany on business and I am left driving to and from San Francisco for eight days straight including on Mother’s Day, because Julian not only has ballet class but rehearsals for the City Ballet Spring Show but also for the upcoming Regional Dance America convention and competition, which is just a week away. No rest for this weary mom, not this Mother’s Day anyway.

Julian is gearing up for RDA; he’ll be presenting his second ever piece of contemporary choreography–this time with12 girls (instead of just 3 like last time) and with very little help (unlike last time). City Ballet will also showcase a contemporary piece there.

The City Ballet School show will include Don Q and Peter and the Wolf. Julian has a large part in Don Q and is the grandpa in Peter and the Wolf.

He is feeling a bit uninspired–burned out–after a whole year of hard work at City and ready to take off for New York and the School of American Ballet (SAB) in mid June. I’ll join him in August when he attends Complexions. He’s really looking forward to those four weeks…

I’m looking forward to five weeks of no driving…I’ll be away for one week, and then my husband and I will get to experience an empty nest for the first time in quite a number of years–since both kids went off to Jewish camp. My daughter is staying in New York City for the summer, so, it will be just the two of us for all of July.

The only other news here is that our old 2002 Honda Odyssey with 198,3800 some miles finally bit the dust. Too many trips to San Francisco, I suppose. The transmission finally went (for the second time). We were forced to find the money to afford a brand new 2012 Honda Civic. Great mileage! And Julian, who had just gotten his license, seems to think this is “his” car since he drives it to school each morning.

I had some major stuff come up around letting him drive a brand new car, but I keep reminding myself it is way safer than what he was driving before.

So, on tomorrow, Mother’s Day, he and I will be off in the new car to SF…Maybe we’ll at least stop for a nice dinner on the way home.

Hope you have a more relaxing day!

Posted in choreography, conventions, performance, summer dance programs | 1 Comment »

Our First Regional YAGP Experience and Results

Thursday, March 3rd, 2011

Well, the Northern California regional YAGP results are in…on many levels–at least for us. Julian and his partners did really well, as did the other dancers from City Ballet. He and his young partner came in first in the ensemble division for their Nutcracker Grand Pax.  Whoo hoo! He and his other partner came in third for their Corsaire pax. Yea! Everyone thought the two pieces would be reversed, but the judges thought otherwise.

While the pieces could be taken to New York for the finals, the studio has decided not to do so. The older girl no longer needs the exposure; she has landed a job with a company. The younger girl has a hurt foot and didn’t score as well in her solo pieces–a fact that no one can totally understand–even though she came in in the top 12 in each category.

Overall, the experience was a good one, however, we’ve seen a bit of the political nature of YAGP that I’d rather not go into in detail. Suffice it to say that politics and money do make a difference, at least on the regional level. This can be a turn off to some people, coaches and dancers.

Julian learned a ton this year simply by partnering the two girls and working one-on-one with his coaches. He feels his partnering has improved tremendously, as has his technique. He would do it again in an instant, and he hopes to do so next year. In fact, he hopes to take both a contemporary and a classical solo to regionals and to nationals.

As for getting “seen,” this is definitely a reason to do YAGP. Julian was approached immediately after his performance by the ballet master from Houston Ballet. In fact, he was called to the judges desk, where this person was, indeed, judging and invited to attend the Houston Ballet summer intensive. When he said he was already committed this summer, he was told the “doors would be open to him” to attend class for a week at the Houston Ballet School.Houston Ballet is the fourth largest ballet company in the nation.

There was interest from Ballet West to have Julian attend their summer intensive as well. They are located in Salt Lake City.

All in all, a worthwhile experience. That said, my husband and I sat through a lot of dancing that was not at all at the standard we thought it should be at a YAGP competition. Seems no one screens the contestants at all. No one defines contemporary dance. Some contestants really should not have been at a competition of this caliber–or maybe we misunderstood the caliber of the competition. I suppose those dancers who are not so good do get weeded out prior to getting to nationals, but it leave one to wonder about the motivation behind the competition. That said, I suppose all competitions really are just a business; they are just about making money. If you keep that in mind, you stop wondering about the level of the entrants. However, when you have one entrant who is there to make it to New York and get seen so she gets a job with a ballet company and you have another who will simply be happy if she doesn’t fall during her performance and another that performs exquisite professional choreography and yet one more that takes the stage with her own (Dare I say it?) mediocre choreography, that’s a rather large dichotomy.

Anyway…until next year, YAGP is over and we are on to the next challenge–Regional Dance America. Julian has to polish up his choreography (which I hope is not mediocre) and the kids have to continue working on the classical piece created by Yuri Zukhov. Plus, they are now learning a new contemporary piece for the spring show.

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Posted in choreography, competitions, summer dance programs, YAGP | 2 Comments »

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