When It Comes to Summer Intensives, It’s Not All About the Students
Summer ballet intensives have become an increasingly valuable addition to any dancer’s training. The parents wave goodbye for a few weeks, and the students work hard, but what is the role of their dance instructors? Outside education and summer study should be a positive and beneficial experience, and any issues can simply be avoided from the beginning with the guidance of a helpful teacher. When the dancer decides to train during the summer, preparations are in order. Teachers guiding these eager students must determine how to sort through the overwhelming list of summer programs, prepare their student before they leave for the summer, and finally, determine how to handle a dancer that may return with differences in style or execution. The focus is on the big picture—the improvement of the dancer—but the details are important too.
Students with a serious interest in dance do not want the summer to become time lost, and look to continue their training throughout the summer months. Yet, agreeing on when the dancer is ready to go away requires skillful assessment. The teacher can often provide some advice and determine if the student is up for the challenge.
“Most [students] are eager to go away,” says Mary LeGere, co-director of the Raleigh School of Ballet and artistic director of Raleigh Dance Theatre in Raleigh, NC. “Some we tell them, ‘You need one more year,’ and they are relieved.” For the Raleigh School of Ballet, 14 or 15 years old is the average age for students that are ready for intensives.
“We look for a certain level of technique and emotional maturity before we encourage them to go away,” LeGere says. “We want them to be solid in their technique, so receiving other information is not confusing.”
A teacher’s guidance is also essential, because not every program is right for every student. The one-on-one time taken to research and review a program with a dancer can help to ensure the best possible experience and outcome.
Although most dancers look for their own programs, they often go to the teacher for further recommendations or opinions. “Most come and ask me if I have any feelings about the program,” says Carolyn Clark, director of the New Jersey School of Ballet in Livingston, NJ. “They want to know, is it suitable and will I fit in?”
Some ballet schools get information about summer programs sent to them, which they can review and potentially suggest to their students. “We talk to them about what might be a better fit, a larger versus a smaller program,” LeGere says. “They go to a lot of auditions and once we see where they have been accepted, we talk to them about it.”
The issue of a larger summer intensive, as opposed to a smaller one, can be more about attention rather then reputation. Many teachers find individualized attention yields the best results, and they urge their students to consider a smaller program. While LeGere does encourage her dancers to attend larger summer programs like School of American Ballet or Pacific Northwest Ballet, if they are accepted, her priority is that they get the proper attention and do not simply blend into the crowd. “Not as large of a program is better for them. They can get lost if the class is too large.”
To prepare the students before they go away, many studios provide extra classes after their regular schedule has ended. Half-day programs or evening classes keep the students dancing until it is time for them to leave.
Many ballet schools have their own summer intensives as well, but when students go to an outside program, they can experience different points of view, new teachers and plenty of dancers around their own age. These are all necessary to a dancer’s personal growth. “It’s a way of evaluating themselves. How do I measure up? Am I at the top of the class, in the middle, at the bottom?” Clark says. In addition to going away, many of her students return for the last few weeks of the New Jersey School of Ballet’s six-week program, as with many schools that have their own intensives.
The experience can create a more dynamic dancer, and many teachers find intensives to be a wonderful supplement to their own teaching. “It’s good to be exposed to different styles, a different way of teaching,” LeGere says. “Sometimes with different words or analogies a light bulb goes on. It expands their dance world.”
No teacher can deny the benefits of a good summer program. The students can fully immerse themselves in the training and live ballet for a few weeks. “It’s different, the summer environment from the school year,” says Melinda Roy and Roberto Munoz, directors of the Saratoga Summer Dance Intensive in Saratoga, NY. “It’s really the kids that have a passion and want to be drenched in ballet -- kids in a like mind, that love dance.”
Melinda Roy and student Amanda Luiso
Photo by Susan Blackburn
Without any distractions from school activities or obligations, the dancers can give their undivided attention to their technique classes and rehearsals. Sometimes, it can also provide the much-needed reinvigoration from their yearlong responsibilities. With a complete focus on dance, the student can make individual breakthroughs in their technique, which they will continue to work on throughout the year. “It’s a breath of fresh air, exposure to the dance metropolis of New York City,” says George de la Peña, artistic director of the Joffrey Ballet School and Summer Intensive in New York, NY. “It’s invaluable to any student, with major companies and performances, it’s an unbeatable experience.”
At the beginning of the intensive, most programs hold placement classes to make sure each student will be taught at an appropriate level, avoiding any lack of attention. “We separate them by age and ability, so everyone gets the same treatment…classes are geared toward that level,” Munoz says. The placement ensures no student is dwarfed by a dancer who is older or more advanced. Most programs, like the Joffrey Ballet School Summer Intensive, audition for an intermediate/advanced level student with a strong technique. “We are looking for similarity of language, so we can progress,” de la Peña says. When teaching dancers from all over the country, sometimes abroad, there can be an array of styles or training in one studio. “There is only one basic technique and the rest is style,” Munoz says. “We have a very positive environment and it’s just a different way. We’ll say, ‘Well that is correct, but look at it this way.’”
There is no doubt that summer training gets results, but it also provides a way for dancers to meet other people with similar interests, making life-long friendships, while also receiving instruction from world-renowned professional dancers.
At the Saratoga Summer Dance Intensive, the students take classes all day, and then see New York City Ballet performances in the evening; the company’s summer residency is at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center. “New York City Ballet dancers teach the students, then they get to see their teachers perform at night,” says Roy, a former principal with N.Y.C.B.
Improvement develops quickly in an intensive atmosphere where students are taking daily technique and pointe classes, as well as other disciplines like jazz, yoga and character. “You get results within four to six weeks,” de la Peña says.
A concern of many ballet teachers is how to curb differences in nuance or stylization. Although many studios do not teach just one style, when or if their student returns with certain mannerisms, they can be shortly remedied. “Within a few weeks, they get back into it. It’s not problematic, it’s fixable,” says LeGere, who finds any issues easily handled by saying, “We know that’s how they do it there, but here we do it like this…”
The overall improvement of the dancer usually outweighs any differences they may amass. “We teach correct body placement and alignment,” Clark says. “It’s good for them to be introduced to different styles and approaches as long as there is correct body placement.” When a student seeks outside education for the summer, there is always a chance that they will not return in the fall, but only a very small percent leave and go elsewhere to train. LeGere mentioned if they stay at a program, it is because they have found the right fit at a professional company, which is a great thing if that is the student’s goal.
“Most [dancers] return. Out of a handful of students who go away, maybe one doesn’t come back, but it’s usually not a problem,” Clark says.
Those who attend summer intensives go away year after year, and may try different programs each time. The noticeable improvement in the dancer’s technique is well worth the hard work.
“The students give so much. They work so hard and are very focused, but they enjoy themselves,” Roy says. “It’s very intense, but they do it with a smile on their face.”