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Adult Ballet Student: Johanna Aurava

March 20, 2012 by 4dancers

Here’s our next Q&A with an adult ballet student…

Johanna Aurava

1. How did you first get involved with ballet and what attracted you to it as an adult?

I saw Giselle when I was twelve years old and fell in love with ballet right there and then. But almost ten years passed before I took my first ballet class. A friend had wanted to try jazz dance, and asked me along for buddy support. A few months later my jazz teacher told me that there was a new adult beginner’s ballet class I could take. Up until then I did not even know adults could learn ballet! It was all very exciting, and still is. What I loved right away was the classical music, the structure of class, the concentration it required and the sheer beauty of ballet. There was so much to learn and to discover, about technique, steps and placement but also about the traditions of ballet, the culture and history.

2. How many classes are you currently taking per week?

Currently I take eight classes on five days of the week: five are ballet technique and three pointe classes. The amount varies from time to time, in my mid twenties I used to dance as much as 12 hours per week! These days I make sure quality comes before quantity, but three classes per week is my absolute minimum. I’m not getting any younger, and I just want to dance as much as I can!

3. What do you see as your biggest challenge as an adult ballet student?

Scheduling my classes around study and work used to be a big problem. I know this is a challenge for most adult students; how to fit work/study, family and ballet together. It’s not always possible to attend classes on a regular basis, and that can be very frustrating! But I’m very lucky, my current work schedule allows me to take as many classes as I want.

My biggest challenge right now is to be less demanding and critical of myself. I tend to focus too much on my flaws and faults, and forget how much I have already learned. The thing is, I chose ballet, but ballet did not choose me. I do not have an “ideal” dancer’s physique, and I’m not talking looks here, but anatomy. My turn-out is barely adequate and I have tight muscles and ligaments. You can’t change your skeletal structure, nor stretch your ligaments. In the beginning this did not bother me, but at my current intermediate-advanced level I’m much more aware of my limitations. I’m also not twenty-one anymore… [Read more…]

Filed Under: 4dancers, Adult Ballet Tagged With: adult ballet, adult ballet students, advice, choreographers, dancers

Dance In The UK: “The Place” & Dance Education

November 9, 2011 by 4dancers

Jessica Wilson

by Jessica Wilson

Following the comments made by British Member of Parliament David Willetts, the relationship between dance and education has now been placed under close scrutiny. Dance professionals became increasingly concerned that the position of dance in education was under threat, which consequently sparked the debate. Willetts, Universities and Science Minister, recently remarked that he believed “soft” subjects such as Dance should be of less worth if a student was to apply to attend university. The dance sector strongly rejected this argument. Willetts’s claims were controversially published on the same day in August 2011 as the examination results which precede students’ further studies at university.

At what can only be defined as perfect timing elsewhere in London was the announcement that The Place, the UK’s premier centre for contemporary dance, is to introduce GCSE Dance to their existing teaching schedules. GCSEs are national examinations taken by young people both inside and outside schools; the course offered by The Place is open to students aged 13-18 years old. A parallel to the British school examination system can be observed in the Cecchetti system, used throughout Britain and the United States and enabling students to take exams at different levels and progress to higher grades. GCSE examinations form much of the first preparation for further education and with such promotion by The Place, dance appears to be on the road to recovery. To hear Willetts’s comments on the prospective introduction of this course would be very interesting to say the least. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Dance in the UK, Editorial Tagged With: Cecchetti, choreographers, dance, gcse, london contemporary dance school, peter laycock, the place, uk

Dance Jobs: Princeton University

January 29, 2010 by 4dancers

If you are looking for a really great job opportunity and you have terrific credentials, check out this online posting for Princeton University. They are hiring choreographers and scholars to serve on the dance faculty on a part-time basis. The positions are non-tenure track, but they are listed as renewable.

 

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Filed Under: JOBS Tagged With: choreographers, dance, JOBS, princeton university, scholars

Chicago Artists Resource

October 12, 2009 by 4dancers

Chicago Artists ResourceThe Chicago Artists Resource is a great spot to check out the dance scene in the windy city. Get the latest on Chicago-area choreographers and learn more about the visual arts, music and theatre in town as well while you are at it.

This website also offers good advice for those in other geographical areas, such as how to get grant money and a section that includes some employment links for dance professionals in a variety of different places. Check this out, it’s a neat resource.

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Filed Under: JOBS, Online Dance Resources Tagged With: chicago, chicago artists resource, choreographers, dance, employment links for dance, grant money

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