Readers tell us what it takes to study dance... a brilliant insight into life as a dancer!
Sydney says:
I live and breathe dance. I do every genre going, eleven classes a week. One night I do a class, come home for tea and then go back for more classes. My mum says she's like a taxi! I stretch every day, practice all the time and the hard work pays off as I have taken mu ISTD Grade 1 and 2 Modern, Grade 1 Ballet and Primary Tap, and achieved distinctions in them all. It started when I saw some ballet on TV when I was just two, and apparently I told my mum that was what I wanted to be. I'm nine now and my passion is as strong as ever! It is very full-on but I don't see it as hard work, just fun!
Molly Anne says:
Dance takes up the whole of my weekend. Sometimes my ankles and thighs ache, or I get bruises, but I don't care, I love it. I do Ballet, Tap, Modern and Limbering. I would rather dance than anything else at all, I just love it. I do competitions and exams and I do a set of stretches every morning even if I am not dancing that day.
Holly says:
Dance means everything to me, it's my world. It gives me an escape from reality while I practice and learn new steps and routines. I do Ballroom, and I spend two hours a week learning and practicing my own routines and another hour on top of that teaching the younger kids to dance. To do really well in competitions you really need to practice several hours a week, two or three hours a day perhaps. But winning really is worth all the time and effort that you put in! Dance is one of the toughest yet most rewarding sports in existence, and that's why I love it!
Caitlin says:
I love dance. In competitions I don't always get through, and I sometimes get upset if I know I've done my best. My dance teacher always tells me there will be other competitions, and that's what I try to remember. Your best may not always be noticed, but there are always new chances to dance your best.
Chloe says:
Tuesday is a very hectic day for me. I wake at 6.15 to get ready for school, and when the school day is over my uncle picks me up at 3.45 to drive to the next town for my dance classes. I get changed - my uniform is tights and a purple leotard - and my first class is tap, so I need my tap shoes as well. After an hour of tap class I have a Modern class, so it's just a change of shoes and onwards! Finally, I have an hour of drama class. My friend's mum gives me a lift home. I have ballet classes too, on a different night, and exams in Ballet, Tap and Modern in March. On stage dance looks so graceful and pretty, but when you're in the audience you don't see the blisters, the aches and pains and the itchy costumes! It all takes a lot of hard work, but I love it!
Alexandra says:
I do two Ballet classes a week plus a Tap class and a Modern class. I'm on advanced level Ballet, intermediate Tap and Grade 6 Modern. It''s very tiring and sometimes I wish I was at home instead, but it's worth it - I am so lucky to be given these opportunities. There have been times I've auditioned for shows and not got in but I don't mind - I love dancing and wouldn't give it up for the world. I injured my ankle and couldn't dance for ages but I kept going to class to practice the arm movements and memorize the dances. I thought I might not dance again but my ankle is almost 100% again and I'm so happy to be back! In December I auditioned for a dance festival at my school and got in - so right now I'm busy training for that. I love dance - it's a huge part of my life!
I live and breathe dance. I do every genre going, eleven classes a week. One night I do a class, come home for tea and then go back for more classes. My mum says she's like a taxi! I stretch every day, practice all the time and the hard work pays off as I have taken mu ISTD Grade 1 and 2 Modern, Grade 1 Ballet and Primary Tap, and achieved distinctions in them all. It started when I saw some ballet on TV when I was just two, and apparently I told my mum that was what I wanted to be. I'm nine now and my passion is as strong as ever! It is very full-on but I don't see it as hard work, just fun!
Molly Anne says:
Dance takes up the whole of my weekend. Sometimes my ankles and thighs ache, or I get bruises, but I don't care, I love it. I do Ballet, Tap, Modern and Limbering. I would rather dance than anything else at all, I just love it. I do competitions and exams and I do a set of stretches every morning even if I am not dancing that day.
Holly says:
Dance means everything to me, it's my world. It gives me an escape from reality while I practice and learn new steps and routines. I do Ballroom, and I spend two hours a week learning and practicing my own routines and another hour on top of that teaching the younger kids to dance. To do really well in competitions you really need to practice several hours a week, two or three hours a day perhaps. But winning really is worth all the time and effort that you put in! Dance is one of the toughest yet most rewarding sports in existence, and that's why I love it!
Caitlin says:
I love dance. In competitions I don't always get through, and I sometimes get upset if I know I've done my best. My dance teacher always tells me there will be other competitions, and that's what I try to remember. Your best may not always be noticed, but there are always new chances to dance your best.
Chloe says:
Tuesday is a very hectic day for me. I wake at 6.15 to get ready for school, and when the school day is over my uncle picks me up at 3.45 to drive to the next town for my dance classes. I get changed - my uniform is tights and a purple leotard - and my first class is tap, so I need my tap shoes as well. After an hour of tap class I have a Modern class, so it's just a change of shoes and onwards! Finally, I have an hour of drama class. My friend's mum gives me a lift home. I have ballet classes too, on a different night, and exams in Ballet, Tap and Modern in March. On stage dance looks so graceful and pretty, but when you're in the audience you don't see the blisters, the aches and pains and the itchy costumes! It all takes a lot of hard work, but I love it!
Alexandra says:
I do two Ballet classes a week plus a Tap class and a Modern class. I'm on advanced level Ballet, intermediate Tap and Grade 6 Modern. It''s very tiring and sometimes I wish I was at home instead, but it's worth it - I am so lucky to be given these opportunities. There have been times I've auditioned for shows and not got in but I don't mind - I love dancing and wouldn't give it up for the world. I injured my ankle and couldn't dance for ages but I kept going to class to practice the arm movements and memorize the dances. I thought I might not dance again but my ankle is almost 100% again and I'm so happy to be back! In December I auditioned for a dance festival at my school and got in - so right now I'm busy training for that. I love dance - it's a huge part of my life!
Dancers have a very stressful but enjoyable life. My best friend is a ballet,tap, modern, street, basically she does every type of dance there is. We're only 12 yet she seems to be on top of it all! Sometimes I go to her practices and its hard to concentrate on all her dances.
ReplyDeleteI have been dancing for 11 and a half years and I love it I currently do ballet tap lyrical acro and street X
ReplyDeleteI thoroughly enjoy ballet dancing too. Just everything about it: the French words, pretty pointe shoes, girlie tutus, music flooding the room-it's sensational! I've been practising and learning new ballet moves EVERY DAY for the past two and a half years. I'm hoping to dance at a studio nearby where I'll meet many other students who have a strong passion for dance as well and also work my way to en pointe.
ReplyDeletePS: There is a blog on Tumblr I follow and it has alot of images on ballet and en pointe professional dancers which I find interesting and inspiring.
Weblink for blog: http://balletballetballet.tumblr.com/
My blog weblink: www.bakingboutiquebirds.blogspot.co.uk/
#sweetreats xxx
I have been doing ballet for 5 years now, but since I started to learn clarinet I began to focus more on that. I still do ballet, but I'm not sure how long I'll be carrying on...
ReplyDelete