Professional Dancers’ Teaching Diploma
WHAT WAS YOUR BACKGROUND BEFORE STUDY WITH THE RAD? I trained in Australia with Marie Walton Mahon until I was 14 and then in Paris and Marseille, and for three years at The English National Ballet School.
I have been dancing professionally since I was 18, mainly in continental Europe. I was fortunate to find a director at Stadt Ballett Koblenz in Germany whose choreography and approach to performing I found creative and fulfilling and I stayed with that company for five years.
WHAT AREAS OF THE PROGRAMME DO YOU ENJOY MOST AND FIND MOST SATISFYING? I find the basic question of how learning happens very intriguing. The sessions introducing research articles about the learning process taught me to evaluate my teaching in a more structured way. I also enjoyed being shown wider ways of introducing people to dance through community programmes.
WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO DO WHEN YOU GRADUATE? WHAT ARE YOUR FUTURE ASPIRATIONS? Ballet has enriched my life and I am passionate about sharing the experience of dance to as wide a range of people as I can.
For young students of ballet, I want to ensure they are very well trained and if they have the potential and inclination to become professional dancers I would like to help them find career opportunities. I hope to excel as a teacher and possibly to go on to become a ballet examiner.
For those who didn’t have the chance to learn as children, I plan to organise workshops and classes so adults too can experience the joy of achieving and expressing themselves through ballet.
HOW HAS STUDYING WITH THE RAD ENHANCED YOUR TEACHING CAREER? Several different benefits come from studying with the RAD. Professional training means I am more confident in my teaching skills and I am aware of where I can improve. I have a strong foundation as a teacher of ballet, and I have made contacts which will give me possibilities for future programmes such as exchange visits between schools in different countries.
WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THIS PROGRAMME TO OTHERS? Anyone wishing to teach ballet needs a systematic understanding of teaching methods, and of the progression of levels of ability for students. The RAD is the most widely known and respected institution for ballet training and examinations in the world and to have such an acclaimed and internationally recognised qualification for teaching ballet from the RAD is a privilege and opens the door to many career opportunities.
ARE YOU PLANNING ANY FUTURE STUDY? I have no immediate plans for study but I am very interested in teaching methods and I will continue to access the research being done in dance faculties and institutions across the world. I have future aspirations to further my academic study into action learning which I became interested in whilst studying for my Bachelors degree with London University (BA Hons Professional Practice).
ROYAL ACADEMY OF DANCE PROSPECTUS 2014/15
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STUDENT PROFILE
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