6 yr old ballet exam-no underwear allowed?!?

@Blooter sorry I wasn't specific. How it fits with this

No, it is much harder to see correct alignment and placing with a catsuit or leggings. The leotard helps to see the hip alignment and also the muscles. It is vitally important that a dance teacher can see the dancer's body in detail, not only to teach and correct technique and alignment, but because doing it wrong can cause serious and long term injuries.

Teachers must have a way of teaching students who do cover up and the choice should be there.

I find it odd the comparison of leotards to swimming costumes. Completely different. Swimmers are not dancing across a stage in their costumes. Swimmers stand on the edge of the pool then dive in and are completely covered by the water.

@Blooter
I think we risk sexualising young girls if we say it's inappropriate for them to not wear underwear under a leotard. PP have even said it is "creepy". I think something is very wrong with you if you think little girls wearing cotton leotards is creepy. Is it creepy for girls to wear swimming costumes?

I was the one who said creepy. My point is that little girls’ underwear is no one’s business except the little girls themselves and their parents. If they want to wear underwear, great. If they don’t, great. If a TEACHER sends home a letter telling them not to, sorry but that’s well creepy. (Telling them not to wear visible underwear doesn’t give me the ick in the same way.)

It's a cotton leotard most of the time. Washed after every use. How is that unhygienic? Adding an extra layer will make the area more hot and sweaty, which could make thrush worse.

Surely the view of the child should trump everything - it's different for an older teen or adult to make a decision on whether to pursue a sport to a higher level and the discipline that comes with that.

Young children should be able to choose whether to wear underwear or not. If they don't mind, fine. If they want to wear underwear they can.

When I did gym (badly) there was no way I wouldn't've worn underwear. Because that is what I felt comfortable in. I didn't care what it looked like and I'm glad my gym instructor or mum never suggested otherwise.

What about it? What are you asking?

@Blooter what about the answers upthread about girls/ women who choose to cover up for religious reasons (including this lady who was linked en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephanie_Kurlow)

Just to add I used to Irish dance (so not ballet) but you’d lose points for not having smooth, tanned legs, make up and also huge wigs. This was preteen. I don’t think dictating things like this to young girls is ok. My mum never complied with this and I lost points but looking back I am so glad she eye rolled and didn’t give in to quite odd appearance ideals.

I always wore knickers under mine, but with tights and a skirt - our uniform was specific to the ballet school though, not your typical pink/blush. Even our ballet shoes were a particular colour to match the leotard and skirt. I can see why it makes sense to not wear knickers if the child isn't wearing tights.

When I was a gymnast, we couldn't wear knickers under our leotard.

I'm finding it really worrying that some people think little girls wearing leotards without pants is "disgusting". It's sexualising young girls.

slate.com/culture/2021/04/gymnastics-unitards-german-women-leotards-sexualization-seitz-bui-voss.html I would hope ballet is headed this way

I have a non vocational but serious dancing dd, and I’ve noticed the better (more professional, higher quality) teachers don’t fuss about uniform or hair, except asking for it to be neat for shoes and exams. It’s the little local ballet schools with lots of pre primary/primary/G1 pupils and a show a year that seem to enforce the very old fashioned rules.

The ballet world used to have a myriad of excuses as to why black dancers should wear pink tights & shoes.

Times change. Thinking becomes more enlightened.

This is grim. Please don’t allow them to dictate when your child can wear underwear. Disgusting.

This is probably more representative.

www.ids.co.uk/idta11-idta-preparatory-primary-ballet-skirted-leotard

Yes DD has done ballet exams up to Grade 5 and no pants allowed!
A leotard is just like a swimming costume - albeit a more expensive one!
Don't worry, soon you will be spending hours perfecting a bun BECAUSE SHE WILL GET GRADED ON HOW YOU DO !!

I think we risk sexualising young girls if we say it's inappropriate for them to not wear underwear under a leotard.

exactly @Blooter

*couldn't find a picture

I was really replying to the bit about little boys wearing shorts, little girls often have a skirt.

No, it is much harder to see correct alignment and placing with a catsuit or leggings. The leotard helps to see the hip alignment and also the muscles. It is vitally important that a dance teacher can see the dancer's body in detail, not only to teach and correct technique and alignment, but because doing it wrong can cause serious and long term injuries.

Why should these children have to cover their bodies because some adults seem to think its creepy for them to wear leotards?

My daughter danced a lot from a very young age, including with ENYB and BRB. I’d have to say she loved the whole dressing up for exams and strict appearance criteria.

Apart from alignment and clear visibility of muscles, I think in exams there is a tendency for little ones to tug at knicker legs to tuck them in if they are showing. It’s only like wear a swimming costume and many children are perfectly happy prancing about in very limited coverage bikinis. Sometimes we impose discomfort on them.

As she got older she did wear a nude dance thong, but rarely for exams. It would be a pity to dumb down the discipline of appearance to appease a few. Discipline and some discomfort is inevitable when they’ve reached higher level work.

Oi, I went all the way through to Advanced 2 in ballet and tap with the IDTA. :p

Pre-juveniles had to wear skirts for their lessons, and in the pre-juvenile group award. It was partly to get them used to demi bras (/low V) is as far as I remember.

It was always a separate skirt and leotard when I was doing it, but that was a while ago and I could find a picture with a quick google search!

I'm struggling to understand some of the views on here. How is it misogynistic? If you look at professional ballet dancers on stage the men's bodies are much more exposed than the women's. Men in tights leaves nothing to the imagination!

PP have talked about "beauty standards" and how you have to look a certain way to do ballet. I think those posters have very little understanding of ballet to think that. Yes when you get to professional standard your body will need to perform a certain very specific way, and create a specific technical alignment, just as any athlete's body is honed to their sport.

If you look at recreational children's ballet classes they are all shapes and sizes, none of that will be reflected in exam marks or competitions. I've seen heavier dancers win medals in competitions many times over slimmer dancers. Weight/body shape is not marked in exams. Technique, artistry, musicality, rhythm, poise, performance technique is what the examiner is looking for.

There is no specific criteria in exam syllabi for correct grooming but it is a very important part of ballet discipline and it would give a much less favourable impression in an exam if hair is messy/make up or jewellery is worn etc. While you don't get marks out of 10 etc. it gives a bad overall impression in the same way as it would if you turned up to a job interview looking scruffy.

I think we risk sexualising young girls if we say it's inappropriate for them to not wear underwear under a leotard. PP have even said it is "creepy". I think something is very wrong with you if you think little girls wearing cotton leotards is creepy. Is it creepy for girls to wear swimming costumes?

Some very odd and concerning views on this thread.

Surely a catsuit/leggings/cycling shorts would show the same line/movement etc?