Director's Philosophy

KRISTEN POTTS, DIRECTOR – TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

I believe that all children benefit from structure and a creative outlet in their lives. If movement engages their imagination, dance, ballet in particular, is a wonderful vehicle in their development. Most dance schools advertise their programs with promises of fitness, confidence, grace, poise, and elegance. While these attributes are definitely developed through the study of ballet, they are certainly not the most valuable by-products of serious dance training. Students enrolled in a serious program routinely gain in those all important abilities including to focus for extended periods of time, to multi-task at a high level, to problem solve, to discipline themselves, to persist against adversity, to express themselves at a deep level, to generously share their gifts with their audience. I jokingly tell my students that if they can be successful in ballet that performing brain surgery will be “a piece of cake”. Actually, it is very common for advanced ballet students to also be at the top of their academic classes. If they choose to go to college, they often receive both academic and dance related scholarships.

So what exactly is a “serious’ ballet program? It is one in which there is a definite program that students go through that includes a syllabus that guides the teachers in a unified manner to a common goal. A “serious” program also has definite criteria that must be met for a student to advance. As students advance, they take a required course of classes that serves to move them forward while maintaining safety for that level. The instructors are all experienced with professional experience, academic degrees, or both. Students are expected to dance year-round with intensive study during the summer. Note: It is perfectly acceptable and encouraged for students to take time off from their dance studies in order to enjoy family vacation time for a few weeks. However, taking three months off is not appropriate for serious students after age ten.

A serious dance program is not for every child. Serious students should display a “passion” for dance. If they are not enjoying their classes, parents should allow and encourage them to try other avenues of expression, focus, and discipline such as music, martial arts, or certain sports. Once a child finds their passion, it is key that parents support them by allowing them to really commit to their chosen activity. There seems to be an idea floating about our society now that all children need to be “well rounded”. While I agree with that to a certain extent. I also believe that a child needs to learn to persist at something until they are very good at it. This gives them a sense of mastery and confidence that will support and inform all of their activities as an adult. Fortunately, we all have our entire lives to become totally well rounded individuals. Children only have a very few formative years in which to mold their character.

And now the all important answer parents want to know to the question, “Will my child have fun?”. The answer is YES! Children love to move to music. They love structure. They love discovery. If they are not having fun then ballet is not for them. One caveat…be sure to give them at least 3 months to decide if they like ballet. It takes awhile to get one’s “ballet legs” so to speak.