Summer study guide 2002 - Directory

Dance Magazine, Jan, 2002 by Janet Weeks

SDP has led to company contracts, via BB II, the second company, for a quarter of the dancers in the Boston Ballet. Former students have also been accepted into many other troupes, including New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, San Francisco Ballet, and Joffrey Ballet of Chicago. More than 300 students attended the 2001 SDP, including 32 boys. SDP students come for three- or six-week sessions. DanceLab is a five-week program.

"The big difference for summer 2002 is that DanceLab will be in our new studios," Young said. DanceLab moves into the remodeled studios of the Boston Ballet School -- MetroWest Studio, not far from Mount Ida, where the students will again be housed. They will be bused to classes every day. Classes will run for two hours each, another change.

The $1.5 million upgrade for the Boston Ballet School -- MetroWest Studio provides five high-ceilinged, state-of-the-art dance studios, dressing room facilities that include lockers and showers, and an improved lounge area as well as offices and an enlarged parking area. "We turn away so many students for Summer Dance Program after the auditions. DanceLab is a way to use the suburban studios in the summer and offer places to certain girls who might have been turned down for SDP," Moore said. "Last summer the parents heard `nurturing' and `safe' atmosphere and really responded."

When Young was a teenager, many of the American ballet companies were in their infancy. She studied with E. Virginia Williams, founder of the Boston Ballet, at the time when Williams was making the transition from running a group of well-regarded schools and a regional ballet company to starting a professional troupe. Williams picked Young to join the company and served as her mentor, guiding her progress from the corps de ballet to leading roles. Young went on to dance under other directors, but Williams gave her what DanceLab girls gain. "The DanceLab students have learned things they can use for the rest of their careers," she says.

Iris Fanger is a longtime writer for Dance Magazine.

FINDING THE DANCE PROGRAM THAT FITS

BY COLLEEN PAYTON

For many teens, summer means relaxing days by the pool. But thousands of serious young dancers spend their summer vacations in the studio working harder than ever. Intensive summer training sessions are a great way to try out new teachers and styles--or to delve more deeply into the technique you enjoy most. They can also give you a feel for what rigorous conservatory training is like. Indeed, some young dancers use summer programs to sample schools they might want to attend year-round.

That's true for 12-year-old Jane Yoon. The fact that she was shopping for a great summer program that might also become her year-round school made her choice especially exciting and challenging. "I know I'm choosing good places to audition," said Yoon, "but sometimes it feels like I'm just going by the pictures in brochures. I'm glad my parents helped me figure out what I really want. All schools have hierarchies and things that go on under the surface. I'd like to know in advance if those things are ones I can handle, or maybe even ones I'm looking for. How competitive will it be? Will I make friends easily?"