I often tell parents of young children that summer is a wonderful time for play and experimentation and that children who are mentally fatigued from the school year should take some time off from ballet. Many of our kiddie classes are shortened and other concentrations are offered throughout summer sesh for this reason.
But I have to be real about this – I would only, only, only recommend that for children who are mentally fatigued and because of that, ill-prepared to advance.
It is not applicable advice for dancers over the age of 8 or so years, who are intent on improving, or even maintaining, their technique.
The reality is that until I started teaching at a competition school on Long Island almost two decades ago, I never even heard of a dancer who didn't study over summer. It really boggled my mind - like, what a waste of the little time we have to really improve.
Point(e) blank: If you are not taking summer classes, you are missing a major opportunity. Summer is a time when we don’t have the mental exhaustion we face during the school year. We have readiness of mind and malleability of body (the body is more flexible in heat) to really up our game. It is a well-known reality that dancers improve three-fold during summer intensives compared to a regular 4-5 month semester, even though it’s only a third of the time. But even taking regular weekly classes will help you maintain your strength, technique, flexibility and stamina.
Not only that, but it will take a dancer at least two months to get back into the shape they left off in June after two months off.
If you blow off summer classes, you are losing half a year of valuable improvement!
I realize that ballet is not everyone’s first priority and I truly believe that is should remain accessible to all regardless of how dedicated you can/are able to be.
But do not be mistaken – DANCERS do not take months off from their technique. Regular people do.

​It’s important that dancers feel encouraged and motivated to ask questions and participate in their learning throughout class, but at the same time we have to keep the pulse of the class moving forward. This is especially important in a physically demanding discipline such as ballet, where the pace of the class directly affects the dancer’s ability to build stamina and strength. We have to ask questions intelligently and in this case, more is not merrier.

Curiosity and enthusiasm are awesome attributes and keep classes fun and lively – lack of discretion however is not so hot. Here are some guidelines to consider when asking questions in classes:

Limit the number of questions you ask when learning new material. More questions do not necessarily equal more learning, in fact just the opposite. Distracted minds flitter from question to question, while focused minds anchor down on the information being given. Our minds can only retain so much new information at any given time so only ask questions once you are prepared to absorb and retain the answer. During classes where you are learning new material, like terminology, sequences, combinations or choreography, keep your brain power available. Trust and respect your teacher enough to know that she will provide all of the information you need at the time you actually need it.

Also keep in mind, a full ballet class is about an hour and half of combos. Add to that time for questions and answers and we’ve far exceeded the amount of time you actually have with your teacher. Multiply that by everyone else’s questions and, OK, you see where I’m going with this. Be choosy – questions about safety/alignment/technique are always welcome - but be choosy. Time for dialogue is not built in to class time.

Limit the kind of questions you ask. When you ask a question, you alter the pulse of class for everyone. Questions directed to your teacher during class time should benefit everyone and not be individualized to only your own personal progress or to satisfy your own curiosity. A lively discussion once in a while is fine – but ongoing interruptions and/or irrelevant questions are problematic. For example, if you are working around an injury and you need information on how to modify an exercise, ask before class, not during. (And by all means, I’d love to know that a combination reminds you of spongebob squarepants, but we’ve got to keep it together people.)

Teachers should be giving between three and five notes to every student throughout a class -that is more than enough information to work with to make big improvements. Process what you’re being given. If you feel like you aren’t getting enough feedback from your teacher, speak to them before class and ask for more. It’s very likely your teacher is noticing that you are improving on your own or with notes given to the class as a whole.

Limit when you ask questions to when you have been invited to (if you have an absolute burning need to ask, jot it down in your notebook or on the mirror). Your teacher has a plan in place to introduce information as it becomes necessary and in a way that is most efficient for the entire class to learn. If you wait, your question will very likely be answered before you have to ask it. Also keep in mind that the more your mind is focused on your specific question, the more likely you are to miss other information that your teacher is relaying.

And finally,

Eliminate side-talking completely. There is no time in class when side-talking is OK. Obviously not while you’re dancing, definitely not while your peers are dancing, and don’t even think about it while your teacher is speaking. Even if you think you’re quiet enough – you’re not. It is amazingly disruptive and hugely disrespectful to your teacher and fellow students. You will miss needed information and will need to ask redundant questions. Chat before or after class with your buddies – do not side-talk.  (To put it plainly- my voice is one of my most precious assets and if I refuse to waste it on repetition and talking over you if you’re busy talking on the side. It makes no difference to me whether you’re talking about the brisé combination or spongebob.)

And so, dancers, we set off an another fabulous school year together! We are very much looking forward to our lively lessons, brisé combinations and overall fierceness.

Ms. Marissa will be performing a quartet with Victory Dance Project April 16th at 7:30. It is an amazing contemporary company directed by Amy Jordan. We hope to see everyone there!
Tickets are available here: http://www.victorydance.org/. The show is at Alvin Ailey Citigroup in NYC.

I’ve been getting a lot of requests for private lessons lately from parents of youngsters as we gear up for the spring company concert and the end of year recital. I definitely appreciate when a family recognizes that a child may need or want some extra help. While I don’t necessarily encourage young students to practice any new technical aspect of ballet at home (practicing something wrong makes you better at doing it wrong) – home practice is the only way to retain choreography and combinations. Just going over something in your head, by yourself without the assistance of your teacher, classmates, or videos, is the best way to practice at home. It only takes a few minutes and you can do it while you’re sitting on the bus, while you’re waiting at the dentist, or right before you fall asleep at night. It’s also a lot cheaper and a lot more effective than private lessons.

Barring any major scheduling issues, special needs, and/or coaching for a solo performance, there should be no reason for private lessons. If your child is doing what is required of them during class time, private lessons would not be necessary. If your child is distracted or not putting in the necessary effort during class, private lessons would be equally as pointless as class time.

My advice for parents wanting to schedule private lessons for choreography retention or general technical improvement is always to put that time and money towards additional weekly classes. I have seen time and time again that the number of weekly classes taken is by far the most impactful factor on a young dancer’s skill, technique, confidence and retention.

In the meantime, here are some pointers to better remember choreography:

1. Take the Steering Wheel and Walk Through It By Yourself (no music, no classmates, no help)
Do this immediately after you learn new choreography or at least before you go to bed that night.
When you think through a sequence of movements (or any thought for that matter), you trigger synapses in your brain. Once those synapses are triggered, they are more likely to repeat themselves. In other words, when you walk through a combination by yourself for the first time, you are laying down the tracks – each time you repeat that walking through in your head, your combination will ride more easily along the tracks. After a couple walk-throughs, you won’t even need to think about it anymore.
Walking Through It can include imagining yourself dancing the movements, marking through it with your body, or even writing it down. Anything that puts you at the steering wheel where you are leading, and not following, the combination.

2. Teach It to Someone Else
Ask a sibling, friend or parent to volunteer to ‘learn’ your choreography. When you teach a sequence of movements to someone else it can have much the same effect as ‘walking through it’ (above).  Unlike simply ‘showing’ your dance to mom or dad, explaining to them how to do it will solidify it in your head. It also will make any questions on the ‘teacher’s’ part very clear.

3. Know Your Terminology
Knowing your ballet terminology makes it much easier for you to talk or sing yourself through combinations. Movement is like a language so ‘fluency’ in that terminology of movement certainly helps. If there is a step that you’re unfamiliar with or you can’t easily recall its name, give it a name in your mind that works for you.

4. Sing It
Sing your counts or the name of the step as you dance it or walk through it. Sometimes we know ‘what’ to do, but we don’t remember ‘how’ it was executed (the phrasing, the dynamic, etc). Signing along as you walk through a combination really helps – just make sure you sing it the same way every time!

5. Cluster Your Steps into Longer ‘Sentences’ Once You’ve Established Muscle Memory
IE -Instead of remembering all 16 steps in a 16 count phrase, cluster the movements into digestible sentences. For example, if you are dancing a petit allegro: glissade, assemble, soubrasaut, port de bras, brisse, brisse, pas de bourree, once the movement is in your muscle memory, you can simply recall the ‘gatsby petit allegro sequence’. (Yes, that is from junior company Gatsby petit allegro).
 
Here are a few articles on retaining choreography that may help:
 
“Making It Stick” Dance Spirit magazine http://www.dancespirit.com/your-body/mind/making-stick/
 
“Strategies for Remembering Choreography” DanceAdvantage.net http://www.danceadvantage.net/remembering-choreography/
 
“Making It Stick” Dance Teacher magazine http://www.dance-teacher.com/2013/05/making-it-stick/