Skylar, 13, at The Scripps Performing Arts Academy Pre-Professional Intensive

Skylar in Ballet Technique Class during Week 1

This summer I had an opportunity to dance my way through the SPAA summer intensive. My experience was absolutely perfect and involved training from experts from around the nation such as Michael Fothergill, Brik Middlekauf, Robyn Shifren, Jenny Gilmore, Khamla Somphanh, Audrey Bondoc and one of my great inspirations, Miah Nwosu!

        

In each class, I learned and grew from corrections that helped to build my core strength, technique, Pointe work, jazz, modern, character, choreography and ballet. I am also getting combinations down faster, and built muscle strength each week with hard work and determination.

        

The first week was 9:00-3:00 to help us get ready for the next 2 intense weeks. It was based on ballet and pointe with Michael Fothergill, Miah Nwosu, Robyn Shifren and Jenny Gilmore. Through the first week my technique as a dancer grew while paying attention to my placement, foot work, etc. When the week was done I was exhausted and sore, but that shows how much I grew in just one week.

Character Class with Artour Bajanov, Bolshoi Ballet

The second and third week was great! I was there from 9:00-5:00. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday consisted of ballet, pointe, choreography, character and Pilates. These days were definitely full with plenty to do and many opportunities for growth. Tuesday and Thursday was ballet, pointe, choreography, jazz, modern, and stretch class. This was my favorite day because it included not only ballet but also jazz and modern!

This Summer Intensive I really bonded with all of the other dancers. Before this experience I was still great friends with all of them but I think this intensive brought us all together even more! So much so that at the end of the 3 weeks we all got together had a beach day and a sleepover, what a blast!

        

Skylar during Showcase Performance

On the last day of the intensive we had an amazing performance showcasing our talent within the dances we learned in intensives.  Every seat was filled with parents, siblings, teachers, friends and even people who just wanted to see our growth. The performance was amazing and I felt like I grew so much. With the help of the amazing instructors they fulfilled my dream of becoming a stronger and better dancer.

Even though I was sore, my toenails bruised, toes blistered, and had to use Ora-gel to numb my big toes, each morning I woke up excited to take on the day filled with dance and more opportunities to become even stronger!

Carly, 11, at The Scripps Performing Arts Academy Intermediate Intensive

Carly in ballet class during the Intensive

After waiting all summer for these two awesome summer intensive weeks to come, they had finally arrived. I was looking forward to putting my ballet shoes on again and dancing with my friends. This was my second year of summer intensive, and I knew I would be learning so many more new skills.

What I really love about summer intensive is that I get to learn a variety of dancing styles that expand my knowledge of dance. There was a little bit of everything such as modern, jazz, choreography, pre point practice, pilates, and of course ballet.

Carly during the Showcase performance

It is sadly now the end of the two weeks, and my body feels so much stronger and I am far more confident in my dancing. I loved all the teachers and how supportive they were to me and my dancing friends. Because of summer intensive I am ready and prepared for my fall classes. I can’t wait for summer intensive next year. I will definitely be coming back!!

Vivian at The Scripps Performing Arts Academy Pre-Professional Program

Vivian in a Technique Class During Week

Of all the ways to fill a summer day, dancing until every inch of my body aches is among my all-time favorites. Thanks to our SPAA intensives right here in San Diego, I've had the opportunity to do that for three, going on four, summers. It's always been a fantastic experience for technical and artistic improvement, as well as just having fun! This year is no exception.

The intensive started two weeks ago, with a technique class taught by Michael Fothergill, whom we had never met. At first, his combinations seemed really tricky and I could never seem to remember them or get them quite right. But right from plies, his combinations proved to be a lot of fun. By the time technique and pointe class were over, I was pretty close to exhausted. (Though I can probably attribute that to taking only a handful of classes in July and letting myself get a little out of shape!)
The exceptionally long adagios-- which include a fair amount of turns and quick movements as well as the usual, indulgently slow developpes and promenades-- are the highlight of Michael's classes. I also love that we nearly always finish off class with a zig-zag grande allegro! It's such an invigorating way to end. My absolute favorite thing about having Michael as a guest teacher is that he comes from a Balanchine background. This makes class fairly different, but it also means that we get the opportunity to learn some Balanchine choreography (a snippet from Symphony in Three Movements) as well as Michael's own Balanchine-influenced choreography. Both are an incredible amount of fun to perform, because the movements can be so exaggerated and dynamic!

Vivian in Variations/Rep. Class

In addition to Michael, we also have Brik Middlekauf as a guest teacher. So far, I've only gotten to take two of her technique classes, but both of them have been good opportunities to improve and gain new insight. Robyn Shifren also taught one of the classes in the first week-- it was a pretty challenging class, and Robyn gave a lot of helpful corrections (both individual and general). Jenny Gilmore taught class last Saturday and this morning. The first week, Saturday was a conditioning class with ballet barre immediately following. That really made my muscles sore! Our class with Jenny the second week was one of my favorites of the intensive thus far. We did an allegro combination that included what I think to be the most fun and exciting step in the ballet vocabulary (a sissone croise), and even revived a great piece of choreography that Jenny made earlier in the year during a Friday evening class.

Outside of ballet, I've also enjoyed taking Horton modern classes with Khamla Somphanh and jazz with Audrey Bondoc. We met Khamla at last year's intensive and really liked her style of modern technique, so all of us were looking forward to taking more classes with her this summer! Though modern class is tough, includes some awkward movements, and uses muscles that I'm really not used to working, it's a fun experience to try out new ways of moving. Jazz class with Audrey has also been a good opportunity to move differently than I do in ballet technique class, the way body is accustomed to move. I'm learning about letting go and putting more passion into my dancing, while also working on my technique with things like triple turns, fouettes, and barrels.

And of course it hasn't all been just learning and hard work-- though there's definitely been a significant amount of both! This year's intensive has also been full of memories and shared experiances with the amazing girls at the studio. We play children's board games, walk to Trader Joe's, reminisce about Nutcracker, and just have a great time together laughing and hanging out before and in between our classes.

I'm thoroughly enjoying this year's summer intensive at SPAA, and looking forward to the third and final week. Hopefully the years to come will be equally, exhaustingly fun!

Angela at The Rock School for Dance Education

Angela during a Jazz Class at The Rock School

This summer I chose to attend the Rock School for Dance Education summer intensive. It was my first intensive away from home, so I was pretty anxious and excited. I only stayed for two weeks, but still, I feel I learned a lot. The Rock definitely lived up to my standards.

The studios were gigantic; across the floor was so much fun! Each room had windows that let in a lot of natural light. On the walls, there were also photos of dancers; it was very inspiring. The only downside was that the whole place was five stories tall (crazy right?), and my studio was on the top floor, so each class we would have to walk up.

 The faculty was very diverse, so we got exposed to many different styles. The teachers gave us both personal corrections and general ones. We were lucky enough to have Isaac Hernandez, a soloist with San Francisco Ballet and the Rock alumni, teach us a technique class. He could probably jump straight over me and land perfectly; he’s that amazing.

There were so many amazing teachers, but I especially liked the ones that didn’t just focus on technique, but also artistry, like Phillip Otto, the Director of Huntsville Ballet Company. In his class, we didn’t just “move and jump around”, we actually danced. We did a few combinations across the floor that were to swingy jazz music, allowing us to loosen up. Then, he had us sit down and think about why we dance. Our reason for starting, pursuing, and loving. He gave us a technical, artistic, and physiological view of ballet.

We stayed at Cabrini College; the campus is so green. I felt like I was strolling through a rainforest. I often took walks around the campus, and saw a lot of wildlife. Seven deer, one fox, five chipmunks, and countless birds and squirrels. I really enjoyed it there because it was so different from San Diego. Honestly, I haven’t seen that much green since I visited Sequoia National Park.

I stayed in a dorm with six other girls; I had a single room. I know that some people like that, but for me, it meant that I would have no instant friend. It took me about four days to warm-up to the girls living with me. But by the weekend I was on good terms with all the girls in my classes, and getting along fairly well with the other girls in my suite.

I’m not going to lie about this part, the food wasn’t that appetizing. I ate salad everyday for lunch and dinner. I mean, the first week it was great, but by the second each time I saw green leaves, I felt nauseous. I know that the chefs worked hard to prepare the meals, so I did my best to pile it in.

This experience has definitely been something that I want to do again. I wish I could have stayed for all five weeks, but even just those two weeks were amazing!

Alexandra at The San Francisco Ballet School

Alexandra and Friends in Front of the SFB Building

This summer, I had the amazing opportunity to attend San Francisco Ballet School to train in their Summer Intensive.  It was such an incredible, life-changing experience and I made friends and memories that will last a lifetime.

ARRIVAL IN SAN FRANCISCO

Although I was super excited to be able to attend such a world-renowned program, I was also a little nervous.  I knew that everybody was going to be amazing because it is a hard program to get into and along with such talent can come big personalities and sometimes even bigger egos.  But as soon as I reached the dorms, I was welcomed by cheerful chaperones and kind-hearted dancers.

 DORMS AND CAFETERIA:

We resided at the San Francisco State University campus during our stay in the city. I was both surprised and overjoyed to see that the bedrooms, lounge areas and bathrooms were all nicer than standard dorms.  Students of the SFB Summer Intensive stayed on the 2^nd and 3^rd floors of Mary Park Hall, just one of the many dorm buildings at SFSU. Mary Park Hall was walking distance to a shopping mall, bus stops and college common areas that include restaurants, a book store and also the school’s cafeteria.

BRIGHT LIGHTS, BIG CITY (commute and freedom in the city):

The commute from the dorms to the San Francisco Ballet studios was long. However, this was one of my favorite parts of my experience because I could really get a feel for traveling around the beautiful city of San Francisco.  Every day we walked through campus to the MUNI bus-stop to catch our ride. After boarding the MUNI, a public transportation system (half subway, half bus), we would travel about 40 minutes to our destination where we walked 6 blocks through the city until we reached the gorgeous company studios. Overall, the commute took about an hour.

Alexandra in the SFB Studios

Students were definitely not held back from exploring San Francisco.  We were given the freedom to go anywhere as long as we did not miss class or curfew.  Besides the studios where there was lots to see, we were able to take trips to see the Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman’s Wharf, Union Square and experience the beauty, art and unique personality of San Francisco.

SAN FRANCISCO BALLET’S STUDIOS:

The San Francisco Ballet School facilities are gorgeous. All studios have wood flooring, multi-level bars, and a ton of natural light. There was even one particular studio that had floor to ceiling windows that gave you a view of the city. It was really nice to be able to dance and still see the day go by outside.

What was amazing was that I was able to dance in the same building as the professional company, San Francisco Ballet. The first floor of the building was the lobby, second floor was the ballet school, third floor was offices, and the fourth floor was the company’s rehearsal and class studios. A few times, I was lucky enough to take class in one of the studios on the fourth floor. What was crazy was that we were able to watch company classes and rehearsals whenever we wanted. One of my favorite ballet dancers, Maria Kochetkova, is a principal with the company. The highlight of my summer was being able to actually watch a dancer, who is my biggest inspiration dance and rehearse!  I also saw other remarkable dancers including Yuan Yuan Tan, Vanessa Zahorian, Sofiane Sylve, Frances Chung, Sarah Van Patten, Luke Willis, Pierre-François Vilanoba, and Davit Karapetyan.  It really helped me realize how badly I want to become a professional ballet dancer, possibly even with San Francisco Ballet. Also, after watching them in rehearsal and class showed me the hard work it takes to make everything look so effortless on stage.  It is just like how hard we as students work to get to the next level.  I was humbled to be able to dance in the same place as such amazing artists.

 TRAINING

Along with challenging Ballet and Pointe classes daily we were also able to take Pas de Deux, Pilates, Contemporary, Character and Repetoire classes. We were even able to learn some company repertoire, such as William Forsythe’s “In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated” and “Artifacts Suite”. We also learned more classical works like Paquita Pas de Trois and others.

The teachers were top-notch and were not only focused on technique but also on dancer’s artistry and use of upper body.  Some of my favorite teachers were Tina LeBlanc and Sherri LeBlanc, Shannon Bresnahan, Pascale Leroy, Jeffrey Lyons and Wendy Van Dyck.

FRIENDS

The dancers I met were some of the most amazingly nice and interesting people I have ever met.  They came from all over the world and all had all had a very strong work ethic, but knew how to have fun.  I was impressed by the diversity of the students and although all were extremely talented, there were many different body types and strengths represented in the dancers at this Summer Intensive.  Even more surprising to me was the fact that these dancers were all friendly and modest about their extraordinary talent in dance.

 LAST THOUGHTS

I am deeply grateful to have had the experiences I did this summer at San Francisco Ballet Summer Intensive.  It is a wonderful company and school. It gave me a much better idea of what I am working towards and why it is so important to keep my focus and attention on ballet and my future.  I would return to San Francisco Ballet in a heartbeat!

A Quantum Leap

Stretching to reach your personal best is a journey - not a destination. Quantum is the smallest possible change - so each time you enter the dance class focus on the smallest possible change... or adjustment that you can make in that class and over time... you will be leaping with JOY!

EnJOY your Joy filled life!

Miss Angela