Perform Drama Group - would you recommend?

[extremelychocolateymilkroll]

Dd will be 4 in August and loves singing and dancing at home but is very shy at nursery and doesn't really get involved in the music lessons. Thinking of signing her up for the Peter Pan summer course to develop her confidence. Does anyone have any experience of the company? TIA

[hester]

Yes, my dd (5) has been going for a few months. She absolutely loves it. I feel slightly ambivalent about it: it's pretty expensive, and the company seems very hot on marketing and trying to push you into signing up for more and more. BUT the actual young people who run the sessions (they are all actors) are lovely: very warm and lively and fun. IME most of the children are attending ARE shy, and the Perform programme is really designed for children like that. Emphasis is on getting them developing confidence, working together etc. It has helped my shy dd really come out of her shell.

[extremelychocolateymilkroll]

Thanks so much hester - very reassuring. I have signed her up for a trial class - bit that we can't watch the class but hoping that she'll enjoy it.

[hester]

There is a performance at the end of each term, and we usually get invited in to watch them at work for 30 minutes once a term as well. tbh the end of term performance (I've seen two now) is a bit of a let-down. I think they pitch the script too high for the 4-6 year olds, so they end up doing something too ambitious badly, rather than being able to do something a bit less demanding well.

I've made my peace with this because I think the focus of the sessions is not really on producing an end of term performance but on helping the children develop skills and confidence. I should also add that I have seen a number of children come and go in the time dd has been there, so clearly it isn't suiting everyone. But - despite my criticisms and reservations - it clearly suits my dd as she absolutely loves going and I do think it has really helped her confidence and social skills. Last time we were allowed in to watch, she volunteered to go to the front and devise a series of moves for the other children to copy. She did this with such confidence and style - a few months ago there is no way she would have stood there. So that makes it worth every penny in my book.

[extremelychocolateymilkroll]

Thanks again hester. Great to hear your dd has gained so much from it.