Royal ballet school junior associates

thanks evian, I can't see them on the website I must admit. Will look on ebay.

I've only seen the white seamless pants in M & S here. I buy the nude seamless by Silky, or even katz, from Ebay

do M&S do seamless nude pants? not seen any. could do with some for festivals. will have to have a look on their website.

Mine will be wearing her dance school uniform leotard, though we had the option to wear another of our choice, but preferably pale and sleeveless.

My friend decided to buy her daughter a neon orange leotard, a couple of years ago, at the audition, in the hope of standing out. It didn't work

We were told normal class leotard with belt, standard shoes - pink, leather and full sole and socks not tights.

If you have a child who wants to wear undies under their leotard, then M&S and some of the dance schools do seamless nude pants that don't show.

Main thing to check with leotard is that there are no fiddly straps and that it stays put on the backside.

The best leotard to go for is one your dc is comfortable in, that fits snugly (their normal class leotard will be fine) and that doesn't have any fiddly straps. Oh, and if it is high-cut round the legs then make 100% sure that there's no underwear showing!

Don't go for one that's too low cut at the back either, in case they have to pin a number on the back as well as the front.

Good luck to all those with DC auditioning. I suppose we'll receive details of times soon now that entries have closed.

Oh yes, wouldn't forget the belt. Thank you. Full sole is probably safer I think then.

I'm over on ballet co as well, just couldn't find anything about the type of shoes. Plenty of worry about the best sort of leotard though. It probably doesn't make much difference us worrying whether these small details will impact

Probably the best bet would be full-sole satin shoes - some makes have elasticated drawstrings which make them hug the foot better. Remember to take a belt to wear with the leotard as well.

Split soles generally aren't recommended for younger dancers in class I believe, although you're right, they look much nicer for performances etc.

There are some threads about JA auditions on the 'doing dance' section of Balletcoforum.

Does anybody know if they're allowed to wear split sole ballet shoes for the audition? Dd wears them for festivals and shows, as they enhance her feet beautifully, but not yet for exams. I can't find anything specific about it, here or any other discussions

My seven year old is going to try for a year 4 place. We considered putting it off for her until next year, but as somebody mentioned there are not so many places available in years 5 and 6.

My DD is auditioning for a Y3 place this year (after last year's tantrums and never wanting to do ballet again, we have a new school and teacher and she is loving it and wants to do more and more classes).

I have family members who are ex-RBS and they have said not to even look at the numbers auditioning. RBS know what they want and you either have it or you don't. At this age it basically comes down to the 'right' physique in terms of proportions, feet etc, an innate musicality and ability to move and potential to benefit from their training and most of that is down to genes rather than experience so I'm way more relaxed about this than things like MT auditions where it's current ability needed.

Good luck to all those auditioning, and good luck to all the parents running the extra-curricular taxi-driving/bag carring/hairdressing/shoe finding/tear drying and fee paying service!

My own child is auditioning this year for a year 4 place. Interesting to read the old threads.

She did 'JA for a day', a few weeks ago, and is now looking forward to the audition. I think they said something like 1300+ last year auditioning for approx 100 places!

It would be best on the whole to audition as soon as she is old enough as the first year is the one with the biggest entry. If she waits another one or two years there are hardly any places available, as there will already be people on the scheme moving up. Places in the next year group will depend on people leaving/being assessed out and are very few and far between.

It is all on potential at this age, and if a teacher spots someone they think RBS might be interested in, they will suggest an audition, even if that pupil has only just started lessons.

Which centre would she be auditioning for? The odds are slightly better for the regional ones rather than London, but probably still only about 10/1. Slightly better odds for boys since not so many attend the auditions.

I do wonder also when I hear of somebody having joined a dance school, never having taken a class before, and only weeks later being asked by the school to audition for JAs. I heard of a case of somebody being accepted under such circumstances years ago, and two more recently (though it was via their outreach scheme), I think it must be a rarity. One of my teacher friends says it is more likely boys to be successful in such circs and mainly on potential etc.

She's seven. So of course only just old enough to audition next year. I think that's why she is considering, torn between hope that she may gain confidence if she waits a year or two, and the teacher who says to try to gain a place sooner is better.

How old is she?

Yes of course, and they tend to come from the same group of schools so the training must be excellent.

A friend of mine is considering, with teacher encouragement, letting her daughter audition next year. She has beautiful feet and technique and in festivals her future potential is often mentioned, but she is quite shy and not the natural performer. I wonder if this sort of person would be overlooked at audition.

jodens possibly they are successful at the auditions for much the same reasons that they are successful at festivals. As well as a trainable physique and being a good performer (and the confidence that comes with success), there's probably also quality training from an excellent teacher, rhythm, musicality, balance, co-ordination, grace, charm, style, natural talent, the potential to benefit from further training and an indefinable quality that no-one but RBS can put a finger on!

That was to Marina, back in March I realise now

I don't know if just the right physique is enough. I was in similar situation with my daughter, she had only a moderately arched foot and that worried me (it was a no for us).
I noticed lately that some of the people who win first place all the time in the ballet sections at the festivals and championships seem to have had success in gaining places at RBS JAS, so I wonder if they're also looking for an all-round polished performer also. I really don't know.

If her teacher has made the suggestion then it's certainly worth a try.

Hello, I realise your thread is a couple of years old now, but I'm just wondering what happened in the end. Everything you describe is what I am feeling - my Dd is 8 but has only been going to ballet classes for a few months and her teacher has asked her to audition.

Hello, my dd's ballet teacher has recommended that she applies for the JA programme at the RBS because she absolutely has the right physique for it. My dd will be 8 in November and has danced since she was 4. In the past year she has also started attending extra classes and has taken part in 3 festivals. I am aware of the level of competition and I would love her to give it ago next year but I am concerned about the shape of her feet. Her arch is rather flat (flexible flat) and I am not sure that she will have a chance at all even if her body shape is the right one...what do others think?

Hi Maisy

My DD did her audition last week. It was a lovely day out as a PP said. We took her best friend too: only the 2 of them were recommended to audition by their dance school, so they had each other to help with any nerves, but tbh they seemed quite calm and were beautifully behaved, whereas some were a bit showy offy while we were waiting.

It wasn't too "precious" at all, although one mum said how nerve wracking it was. Tbh I'd been more anxious about not getting lost and getting DD's hair to stay in a bun and as I have NO expectations at all I wasn't at all bothered beyond DD having a good time.

I thought the RBS people were lovely and gentle with the children. The intro talk reminded us all how most of them would NOT get a place "if we don't think you're ready yet, don't be disheartened and please try again next time because we do so love to see how your dancing has progressed". I'm not sure if we'll bother again, and the 2hour round trip would make me think twice should she be offered a place by some miracle....!

Anyway they all seemed happy when they came back from the session and DD is now the proud owner of a Ballet Bear souvenir bought at great expense ;). The experience will likely boost her confidence for years regardless of outcome: "Me and BFF had a day off school and I danced at the Royal Ballet and then we went to McDonalds " is her summary of the experience ;)

I hope your DD has a good experience too.