4teachers – Page 28

Back To Ballet: How To Re-Enter The Classroom

April 20, 2011 by 4dancers

As many of you already know, I teach a ballet class for adults. There are quite a few places out there that have classes for returning students–but they are not all created equal. Some are very serious, while others are more geared toward getting fit. (Mine is somewhere in the middle.)

As an adult, there are some things you’ll want to consider if you are going to take a ballet class. Finding the right match can be a bit challenging, but it pays off to do a little groundwork before signing up. Here are some tips that should help:

Observe a class if possible. Watching a class is the best way to see if you will enjoy it. If you can’t do that, see if you can try one class out before signing up for a session.
Talk to the instructor. Ask him/her about their philosophy regarding the class. What they tell you will help you evaluate whether or not you are on the same page.
Ask for recommendations. Do you know anyone who has taken an adult ballet class in the area? If so, inquire as to what their experience was. Would they go back? How difficult was it?
Check the dress code. At this stage of the game you may or may not be up for wearing tights and a leotard. In either case, you’ll want to know what people typically wear to class to see if you’ll be comfortable.
Ask about the flooring. A floor that is designed specifically for dance is crucial for protecting your body–and even more so as you age.

Once you find a good fit in terms of a studio, there are a few other things to keep in mind as well. If you haven’t taken class in some time, you may find your body uncooperative at first. In order to get back in the groove safely, take some of these suggestions into consideration–depending on your current fitness level:

Think about just doing the barre for a week or two. Ease back in and do it with the support of the barre. Just make sure to keep the teacher informed if you will be leaving prior to the end of class.
Stretch. Then stretch some more. You don’t have to wait for class to begin. Start now. You’ll thank yourself.
Brush up on terminology. Things may sound vaguely familiar, yet elude you for a bit at first. Refreshing yourself on the terms can be a confidence builder. Try ABT’s Dance Dictionary online to jump-start your memory.
Join with a friend. You can support and encourage each other through the tough times.
Talk with the instructor prior to class. Let them know where you are at in terms of your current fitness level and prior dance training. Also, be sure to communicate with them about any injuries you have.
Get to the studio early and warm up well. This can help prevent injuries.

Going back to ballet class after a long while away can be intimidating, but it can also be a lot of fun. Hopefully some of these suggestions will help you navigate your re-entry seamlessly.

If you are a teacher or someone who has returned to ballet class after a break–feel free to share any tips you might have!

Costuming For Black Swan – An Inside Look

April 18, 2011 by 4dancers

As many of you already know, Black Swan was released on DVD at the end of March. What you may not know is what type of work went into the costuming for this popular movie.

Amy Westcott was the designer for these pieces, and you can get the inside story on how she came up with the various looks for the characters in the movie in a series of webisodes on YouTube. Pretty interesting–thought you might want to take a look.

I have yet to see the movie myself (I know, I know, it’s terrible to say, seeing as that I’m a dance blogger), but the little bit I have seen of the costuming looks fabulous. I’m looking forward to checking out the webisodes myself.

If you happen to take a peek at them, let us know what you think…

Ahhhh….Stretching

April 15, 2011 by 4dancers

I’m curious. I find myself wondering what other dancers think of stretching…

For you, is it:

1. A necessary evil.

2. An enjoyable way to unwind and relax.

3. Just one more part of dance training that is needed.

4. One of the best parts about being a dancer.

Or…fill in your own…

As for me, I have always thought of it as a part of dance training–but one that I didn’t really adore. Stretching is time-consuming, and although I have been lucky enough to be fairly flexible, I’ve always had to keep at it.

Everyone’s body is a bit different. Some of us are tight in the hamstrings, while others have hips that just don’t want to rotate easily. Injuries further complicate matters, as does age. I find now that the importance of a proper warm-up and stretching has taken on a new meaning. At 43, you just have to do it.

So what’s your deal? What is your philosophy on stretching? I’d love to hear from other dancers and teachers and see what they have to say…

Teaching Tip: How To Explain

April 5, 2011 by 4dancers

One thing I’ve learned in my 24 years of teaching dance is that not everyone hears a correction or explanation the same way. As an instructor, you are trying to give students that “aha” moment, and it can be a challenge. In order to be effective, you need to come up with a variety of ways of saying the same thing. Just because it makes sense to you doesn’t mean it will ring true for everyone else.

I was thinking about this in class last night when I was teaching. I had instructors who would always say the exact same thing. “Pull up–like there is a string attached to the top of your head” or “tuck your bottom under” – and I don’t think they made a lot of sense to me. When I pulled up under those directions, I became stiff and held my breath. When I “tucked my bottom” I would respectively hunch my shoulders forward.

This isn’t to say that these corrections are wrong–I understand the meaning now–but at the time I didn’t understand how to make my body obey. If the teachers would have given several different explanations, it may have saved me some time.

You never know what a student will respond best to, so the more ways you can communicate what you are trying to say, the better. It will challenge your mind as a teacher, and it will help students have a larger framework to draw from as they try to master technique. Make it part of your lesson plan time–you won’t regret it.

10 Questions With…Suzanne Blake Gerety

March 30, 2011 by 4dancers

SuzanneBlakeGeretyRecital1982 — Suzanne Blake Gerety, Recital, 1982

Today we are happy to present Suzanne Blake Gerety for our “10 Questions With…” feature…

1. Can you tell readers who you are and how you are involved with the dance world?

I was born into the dance world: it is all I have known, my entire life. I’m an only child, the daughter of two parents who were both talented dancers. While other kids may have grown up playing little league and going on trips to Disney, I spent my days at dance competitions and traveling the world via cruise ship where my mom was a guest ballroom instructor for many years.

Personally, my own training peaked when I was thirteen. Having learned to sew fringe on leotards and the basic steps to the cha-cha before middle school, it was at this time I realized I was most comfortable backstage calling the show, working on costumes, and organizing the productions. My mom was so supportive and encouraged me to follow my heart, I stayed involved in the studio but also ended up excelling in sports in high school and college and knew that my dance training contributed to that success.

Fast forward about 20 years, I’m now a mom of two, my son is 6 and daughter is 4, I have an entrepreneurial spirit and heart I’m proud to be the 2nd generation in the family business of owning and operating the dance studio. I get to experience the joy of dance not only through the eyes of our students, but also through my own children.

2. How does Dance Studio Owner serve the dance community?

Primarily through our website and also by speaking at live events such as the Dance Teacher Summit and other dance conventions, we work with new and experienced studio owners who are interested in resources and support to start, run and grow their business. It’s like having a dance studio management team at your fingertips 24/7.

Our big focus is in giving our members and readers information that not only saves them time and money but also contributes to growth in their business both financially and artistically. It’s easy to burn out if you are trying to do everything yourself, working fourteen hour days, dealing with parent complaints, and lack of resources. We help you keep your passion for dance alive as you grow your business.

3. What are some of the “perks” of membership in DanceStudioOwner.com?

Our members often say that they don’t know what they would do without the personal support they receive from my mom, Kathy Blake, myself and the other successful studio owners on our discussion forum.

Everything we share and coach our members on is relevant and based on tried-and-true experience from having over thirty five years of consistent growth in the face of changing trends, personal losses, studio splits, and economic ups and downs. Each day we are actively running our studio so we can relate to and help our members with managing the million details it takes to keep your studio running and growing.

They also say that they love the hundreds of resources on our site including: useful customizable downloads, templates, interviews, coloring pages, printable choreography routines, forms, surveys and more. These save time and money when it comes to things such as writing a letter to collect over due tuition, interview and hire a new teacher, contracts for staff, or create a studio rental agreement to name a few.

Plus it’s the best of both worlds, you get to collaborate with owners all over the globe through technology that allows you to do so from the comfort of your home or business.

4. You recently signed on with Dance Teacher magazine. Can you tell readers about that?

It is such a privilege to contribute to Dance Teacher Magazine, “Ask the Experts” is a great advice column for the dance world.

Specifically we have been invited to serve as columnists to focus on the issues that keep dance studio owners and directors up at night and concern them most: many of which we’ve experienced ourselves.

We understand that most dance studio owners and directors have been or continue to be actively teaching. The added complexity of being responsible for handling parent concerns, staffing issues, marketing challenges, and setting policies is what we focus on in this column.

SuzanneBlakeGerety2010 — Suzanne Blake Gerety

5. You work with a lot of studio owners. What do you find they have in common with one another?

Whether a studio focuses on ballet, middle eastern dance, adults-only, ballroom, musical theatre, Irish step, dance fitness, or general performing arts they all need students in order to stay in business.

The other commonalities include staying informed on the latest technology to collect tuition, automating registration, marketing, website and social media communication to name a few. Not to mention each studio owner faces the challenge of a suitable space and facility plus the right schedule to fill their classes.

Although the dance disciplines, teaching methods, and personal student concerns can vary widely, I find that each studio owner has a lot in common with one another when it comes to starting, running and growing their studio.

6. What do you enjoy most about being involved in the dance community?

Being able to lift a dance studio owner or teacher’s spirits, encourage them, and contribute information that makes a difference. This is one of the most creative and enthusiastic communities: often working incredibly long hours, giving so much, whose rewards and satisfaction are found in areas that aren’t often measured monetarily.

In everything I write and create I always imagine that my best friend and trusted business partner is reading and using it. That’s who I feel our members and readers are: friends and trusted colleagues. I’m incredibly grateful and lucky that they give me the grace and opportunity to contribute to their lives and businesses.

7. What is the biggest change you’ve seen in dance studio ownership over the past 10 years or so?

I’d say the marketing channels. It used to be that you could print a nice looking brochure, send it to your mailing list, wait for the phone to ring and people would call to register. Or you could run an ad in the local paper and people would know you were open for classes. There were a few direct paths for people to follow.

Now we have online registration, automated billing, instant website updates, social media interactions, video sharing/critique from our teachers, email groups for communicating, and text messaging. There are review sites like Yelp, Merchant Circle; mobile check ins with Facebook and Foursquare; advertising online and offline, and much more.

Not only do the dance studio owners have many, many more marketing channels to communicate with current and potential students, they have to learn how to compete against the information overload to keep their business running and growing.

8. What has been the largest challenge for you in terms of serving the dance community?

I’d say the largest challenge has been to remind and encourage them to treat and relate to their studio like a business. This goes for everything from charging what your time is worth, properly setting tuition rates and fees, to learning when to let the wrong teachers go or how to hire the right ones.

The other challenge is the lack of time to focus on planning. When you spend so much time working in the day-to-day aspects of your business without taking time to really plan and work on the business you end up reacting to situations. This causes overwhelm and often feast or famine marketing attempts to find students.

9. What do you think about the recent explosion of dance blogs and online dance resources?

As creative and prolific as the dance world is, I think it’s a natural extension to see so many dance blogs and online resources available, they are outlets and access to further self-expression for both the writer and their audience. The other bonus is that the world is that much smaller now, you are not limited by your location anymore, from videos to online learning, you can get instant information when you want it and on very specific topics.

10. What is next for you and for DSO?

KathyBlakeSuzanneBlakeGeretyDSO — Kathy Blake and Suzanne Blake Gerety

My mom, Kathy Blake and I will be presenting seminars again at the Dance Teacher Summit in New York City from July 29-31, this is such a great event for teachers and studio owners. We’d love to see you there! We are also going to offer some limited opportunities for aspiring and experienced studio owners to work with us in a more personalized way to accelerate their results. The site will continue to be enhanced, in fact we just rolled out a new website forum upgrade that members love. Plus we’re working on some products that stand alone and can be purchased separately. So stay tuned, there is much more to come!

BIO: Suzanne Blake Gerety owner of On Pointe Media LLC, the parent company of DanceStudioOwner.com, is the daughter of Kathy Blake and Vice President of Kathy Blake Dance Studios.

She is a regularly featured contributor in various pieces for Dance Teacher Magazine including, “Ask the Experts”, business articles, and has presented live workshops at Dance Media’s Dance Teacher Summit in New York City and the Turn It Up Dance Challenge Conventions. Suzanne is a featured contributor in the The FabJob Guide to Become a Dance Studio Owner, FabJob Guides have been featured in stories at The Wall Street Journal and Entrepreneur Magazine sites.

In addition to a degree in Psychology and Child Development, Suzanne has training and experience in communication and leadership from one of the world’s foremost personal development companies. She is the mother of two young children and is an advocate for dance education throughout the world. Suzanne brings the resources and support to current and future dance studio owners to help them achieve success.

You can follow Suzanne on Twitter:

http://www.Twitter.com/SuzanneGerety or connect on Facebook:

http://www.Facebook.com/DanceStudioOwner

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