Dancers who take the summer off lose some of their technique by not practicing all summer. Additionally, for every day a dancer stops dancing, it will take at least that many days to get back to where they were when they stopped. So, if a dancer stops in June and takes two months off, until classes start again in September, they will not be back in shape again until November. Added to this, many dance schools start rehearsing for their recital by February, and there is vacation in December... so this only gives dance students about two months to make additional technical gains. For the dancer who is serious about dance and thinks they may want to go to college for dance, dance professionally, or who just wants to do better at competitions and be a better dancer, the summer intensive is an ideal time to make some progress.
Dance students don’t have school during the summer, so they are able to spend all day dancing- something they can’t do during the school year. Most Dance Intensives usually run from 9:00am-5:00pm Monday through Friday and last from three to five weeks. Picking up a copy of the December issue of Dance Magazine will give you a listing of all the major dance intensives across the country as well as audition information. However, most of the major dance intensives are highly competitive and run auditions in January and February. Major companies such as ABT, New York City Ballet, and Boston Ballet are extremely difficult to get into and are geared for intermediate through advanced dancers. If you have the talent to get into these programs, they are a wonderful experience and they get students seen by important companies who will sometimes offer students invitations to their trainee programs. This can be an important tool for getting into a company. However, few students are at this level. In addition, most of these highly competitive programs involve travel and room and board as they are “sleep-away” camps. Some students aren’t ready to be away from home for such a long time. The cost can also be prohibitive as tuition plus room and board is often in excess of $1000 per week.
For most dance students who are not sufficiently advanced for these competitive programs and who just want to improve technique over the summer, a local option may be better suited and will be half the price because there are no room and board fees to pay. Be careful what type of dance program you choose. If your child’s goal is to improve dance technique, then you don’t want a dance camp which includes lots of non-dance activities. A camp which offers only a couple of dance classes each day is not going to give the intensive experience that gives a dancer’s technique the boost your dancer is looking for. If your child really wants to be a dancer, then all the extra activities will only take away from time that could be spent dancing or learning something about dance. In addition, you need to make sure that the place you are selecting offers technique that is as good as or better than where your child goes year round and that it has well qualified teachers. A good Summer Intensive program will often invite special Guest Teachers to teach a few Master Classes during the program also.
After you research some Dance Intensives, find out what needs to be done to audition and apply. Some places will allow you to send in a video audition and they will tell you what needs to be on the video. Some places will also need a photo- often in first arabesque- they will tell you what kind of photo they need. You may also need to preregister for auditions. It is best not to put all your eggs in one basket. Try to pick several places you might like to go to and audition for all of them. In the event that you are turned down by some, you may be accepted by others. It is also best to choose one place to do a practice audition at prior to all of your other auditions. If you pick a school that you know is too advanced for you to get into and you simply go to take the class as a sort of “Master Class” to learn what an audition is like, then you can go without worrying about whether or not you will get in. You may also get some ideas about where you might be weak, so that you can work on these areas before your real auditions. Taking a practice audition costs you only your time and the $15-30 class fee and will help shake out the jitters so that when it’s time for actual auditions, your child will feel more confident and prepared and less nervous.
When you go to an audition, always arrive early and expect to get out late as delays are common. It is best to find out what the dress requirements are and if none are stated then your child should go with a plain black leotard and pink tights. Make sure hair is in a performance ready bun and that your child is not wearing jewelry or bright nail polish! Remember to pack a water bottle and a few emergency essentials such as safety pins, a pen, headache remedies, bandaids, toe tape, hair elastic, hair net, a book, a snack, dance essentials (shoes, extra tights) etc. Dancers should be prepared to do pointe work if they are en pointe. They should act professionally and warm up prior to the audition. Examiners begin to watch students before the audition actually starts and a dancer’s behavior says a lot about them. Once the audition starts, it is important for dancers to try to relax and have fun! If they mess up, they should never quit in the middle of a combination, but just smile and keep going. Examiners want to see that dancers can handle mistakes professionally and that they enjoy dance. Expect to be notified of results about one to three weeks after the audition.
The Fisher Academy of Ballet & Dance, in Westwood MA offers a Summer Intensive from July 9 through July 27 for students aged 12-18. It is geared towards helping dancers from local dance studios improve their technique so that they can return to their own studios in the Fall and do better in their classes, competitions, and performances. The Intensive consists of Ballet, Pointe or Pre-pointe, Variations (learning ballet solos), Jazz, Musical Theater, Tap, Hip Hop, and Modern Dance. In addition there are enrichment classes offered which can include Russian Character Dance, African Dance, Belly Dance, Flamenco, Chinese Dance, Dance History, Pilates and other dance forms. Audition is April 1st. Video auditions are accepted and should be received by March 31st. Cost for the program is $500 per week and the three week program concludes with a performance. Please call the studio at 339-364-8522 or visit the website www.fisherballet.com for more information!
