In this blog, we offer insights and guidance based on our years of experience raising serious ballet dancers. We cover a range of topics, including the benefits of ballet, selecting the right ballet school, supporting your child’s training, and navigating the challenges of the dance world.
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Friendships In The Ballet Studio
We’ve been seeing some posts on social media and also recently got some questions from parents about friendships in the ballet studio and how to manage them. This can be especially tough when some of your closest friends can also be your fiercest competition. It can sometimes get complicated, but we’ve got some tips to…
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Choosing A Residential Ballet Program: Part 2
On the heels of our last post where we talked about non-ballet questions to ask, let’s now turn to questions that directly relate to ballet in any residential ballet school. First, here’s the reality: dancers are going to go to the program they get into. We can give you a laundry list of things to…
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Choosing A Residential Ballet Program: Part 1
A while back, we talked about how to evaluate a local ballet program. Now that we’ve looked at local programs, let’s turn our attention to residential ballet programs. By the time your dancer is ready to head to a residential program, they’ve likely decided they want to pursue a professional career. Before your family takes…
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Moving From Traditional School To Non-Traditional Academic Programs
When students enter full-time ballet training, the notion of “regular” school goes out the window. Often, ballet classes start as early as 8 a.m. and run through most of the day, making it impossible for students to attend what most of us consider normal middle school or high school. Because most serious ballet students move…
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Cross-Training: Why It Matters And When To Start
Dancers are athletes. How many times have you heard that? Despite the traditional reputation of ballet as an “art,” professional dancers are commonly regarded as athletes based on the physical demands they sustain through long hours of technical training, rehearsals, and performances. Dancers must possess a high level of fitness, strength, coordination, agility, speed, and…
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When Dancers Want To Stay For The Year-Round After Attending The Intensive
Welcome to the Summer Intensive season. Your kids have been in their program for a few weeks, and they are no longer outliers in their social worlds. They are surrounded by like-minded dancers who are driven and love ballet. Maybe they have connected with a teacher at their SI program and your dancer is growing…
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What We Wish We Knew When Our Kids Were Younger
We got a question a while back that really intrigued us. We were asked this: As experienced dance parents looking back, what things would you have done differently? We’re going to answer this question together. What Would Jenny Have Done Differently? If I knew then what I know now, I would have spent more time…
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Using Summer As Audition Prep
This is a guest post from Elizabeth Sullivan. Elizabeth is a former professional ballet dancer turned performance coach with a mission to bring holistic wellness tools and information to young dancers to enhance their training and prepare them for success, fulfillment, and happiness. Ballet Help Desk has no financial arrangement with Elizabeth — we just…
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Different Levels At Residential Ballet Schools And What They All Mean
We get asked all the time about when dancers should leave home for residential ballet programs and we always hesitate to give people advice on this. It’s not really our call. We don’t know each individual dancer’s situation and we’d be remiss to assume we know best on this. In a future series, we’ll be…
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Your Dancer’s Reputation, Networking And Why They Both Matter
When my son was ten, he got the best advice about his potential dance career that he’s ever gotten. He was doing a short summer program with the Broadway Dance Center in New York, and they brought in someone from a talent agency. I don’t remember the agency nor do I remember much about the…
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Our Summer Intensive Reviews Are Live!
Ever wish there was there was a place online that offered something like Yelp, but for ballet summer intensive reviews? Well, we’ve got you covered! Our Summer Intensive Reviews are now live! We remember when our kids had just turned 12 and they were finally eligible for the “real” summer intensives, not the one and…
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Finishing The Ballet Year Strong
The end of the ballet year is looming and we know your dancer has all the feels right now. And, clearly you’re seeing it as well because we recently got several questions about how to support your dancers through the home stretch. Are you noticing that your dancer is seeming a bit unmotivated to go…
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How Older Teens Can Make The Most Of Their Summer Intensives
In our last post we focused on sending younger dancers for their first summer intensive. In this post, we’re focusing on the older kids, primarily those ages 15-18. Parents, by this time, you know the drill, right? We’re assuming your kids have been to summer programs before. And, if not, we’d really suggest you watch…
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Sending Your Young Dancer Off To A Summer Intensive
We recently got a question from a reader that asked the following: My dancer is heading off to their first “real” summer intensive. What can I do to make sure they have the best experience possible? We addressed this in one of our YouTube videos but some of you asked us to also publish it…
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The Value of Social Media
I bet you thought we were going to talk about how your dancer needs to build their brand on Instagram and TikTok. Nope, we’re not going to touch that. While we have our own opinions on the good, the bad and the ugly of social media, this post is about you, and how you can…
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Is My Studio Toxic?
We recently got a question from a parent saying that they were concerned their dancer’s studio was “toxic.” As much as none of us wants to believe it, there are studios out there that have this reputation. This post will talk about what to watch out for and also how to research your local ballet…
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The Path To Professional, Part 3: Trainee and Second Companies
We are heading for the home stretch in our series, The Path to Professional! Once a student gets through the finishing levels, this is where it gets even more confusing! You’d think that at this point, students are auditioning for company spots, right? Nope! At this point, your dancer is starting to look at what…
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The Path To Professional Part 2: Finishing Programs
We’re back for our second installment of The Path to Professional and this is where it gets a little confusing. Ok, maybe a lot. Once it has become clear that a student is not getting what they need from their home studio, it’s time to move on. Some students leave their home studio and enter…
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The Path to Professional Part 1: Your Local Studio
Ever wondered what the path to becoming a professional ballet dancer is? We wondered that too when our kids were younger. It never occurred to us what a long and winding road it often is. Not to mention, it’s not the same for everyone. But, there is a pretty general path that most dancers follow. …
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What You Need to Know About Boys in Ballet
I’ve been really conflicted about writing this post. There is an Instagram account called @BalletMoods that is clearly run by a professional dancer. Recently, they posted a meme that was meant to be funny. And, to some, it was. While there is merit to what this meme says – I’m looking at you Swan Corps…
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A Little Friday Fun!
Hello and happy Friday! We’re having a little fun going into the weekend! A lot of questions have come in from parents about ballet fashion! So, we’re running a poll on favorite dance wear. So, grab your dancer and tell us what you think below! (If you have trouble with the form, you can always…
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Ballet Competitions: To Compete or Not to Compete
It’s that time of year again – competition season! That means it’s time for everyone’s anxiety closet to open. Every year, we get questions about whether or not ballet competitions are worth it and if they’re necessary to have a career. Like with everything in ballet, it depends. Let’s start by saying you absolutely do…
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Ah, the Dreaded Ballet Exams and Evaluations!
Yes, it’s that time of year! Snow is melting, flowers are blooming and for some angst is through the roof! Why? It’s exam and evaluation season in ballet studios! End of the year evaluations and meetings always bring a flood of emotions. Whether your school holds formal exams or simply provides a written evaluation for…
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Is My Dancer “Good Enough?”
Yep, we’ve all heard that parent talking about their kid who cleaned up at all the ballet competitions. At age ten. That’s great, but from what we’ve researched, just over 50% of dancers, who have won the big awards at ballet competitions at ten, are no longer dancing five years later. So, how to tell…
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Q & A Wednesday Launches This Week!
We are happy to announce that Q&A Wednesdays will be launching this week! Each week (or so), we’ll be answering questions that we get from all of you! We’ve already gotten several good ones and we’re looking forward to giving you all some good advice. If you’d like to have us answer anything you’ve been…
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