There’s a lot to know about summer dance intensives, and both students and parents may have a lot of questions regarding topics such as which one to choose, what to do about housing and which intensives are the best match for their particular situation. And the biggest question of all may be where to find those answers…

Nina Amir is a journalist with a vested interest in the subject–she is also the parent of a dancer, and the author of “My Son Can Dance” – a popular dance blog on the web. She created a handbook that helps answer a lot of the basic questions people may have about summer intensives in the dance world. Today, we talk with her about that resource–and learn more about why she decided to write it…

How did the idea for this handbook come about?

Every year I receive a ton of questions about summer dance intensives—especially about the American Ballet Theatre intensive in New York. From about November or December, when the boys and their parents start gearing up to audition for the bigger intensives, through until May or June, my readership at My Son Can Dance, skyrockets. Mostly these visitors are reading posts about summer intensives. It became obvious parents needed and wanted help not only deciding on an intensive but choosing the right one for their dancers—not just the dancin’ boys but the girls as well.

I’d written a number of blog posts on the topic of choosing and preparing for an intensive that I felt could be expanded into longer articles, if you will, or chapters. Also, I thought I would be doing the community a service by compiling some of the posts I’d written into one document—an easily read handbook—and adding more information as well.

What is covered in the handbook?

The Handbook includes chapters on:

• How to Choose a Summer Dance Intensive Program
• How to Register for a Summer Dance Intensive
• What to Bring to a Summer Dance Intensive
• How to Prepare for a Summer Dance Intensive
• How to Stay Healthy and Strong During a Summer Dance Intensive
• How Dancers Should Conduct Themselves During a Summer Dance Intensive

Plus, it has one full chapter on “What to Consider When Attending the ABT Summer Dance Intensive in New York City.”

The new edition, which I released the last week of January, includes a bit more information than before. I’ve updated it to include the experiences Julian and I had during our additional summers in New York while he was at ABT and Complexions Contemporary Ballet, and what we learned when he attended the School of American Ballet and San Francisco Ballet summer intensives. It also includes a brief discussion of how some of these programs can lead to year-round residential programs.

Can you give readers a few tips for summer intensives that you talk about in the handbook? [Read more…]