How to Choose A Ballet Teacher

From as early as I can remember, my ballet teacher was Mrs. Short.  I know I had another instructor in my wee years, but as the start of my “formal” ballet training, I had Mrs. Short and stuck with her through high school.  My other dance experience was doing plays and needing to learn from other choreographers, which was easy peasy, I thought.

When I arrived at college, I had a ton of new teachers.  This became a problem.  Fast.  I had three new teachers my first semester:  Mr. Chang, Miss Jane, and Kate.  Miss Jane was a ballet instructor that put so much fear into me, I had insomnia.  

She was infamous for videotaping our midterms and then play it back for us with a laser pointer- “Do you call this a turnout?”  “What position is this?  Somebody tell me please, because I don’t know!”  Who was this monster???   There were some students in the class that had just as much trouble adjusting to her than I did, but there were plenty of others that weren’t phased at all. 

 I decided the next semester; I would not take class with Miss Jane.  Then one class, she pushed my left hip forward lightly and it POPPED into place and said, “There.  Do you feel that?”  YES!  Yes, I did.  I ended up staying the next semester with Miss Jane, not because she saw something Mrs. Short or my other college dance instructors didn’t- but because I adjusted to her.  She no longer frightened me.  I was able to understand Mr. Chang’s very thick accent over time as well- and he was so great about explaining the origins of each ballet term that it helped me not only remember them, but execute them properly.  And Kate, who was actually a grad student who taught a beginner’s Modern class and would force us to improvise, something I was very uncomfortable with.

The wonderful thing about ballet is that it is universal.  A tendu is executed correctly everywhere, all around the world... However, you might have to hear it three different ways (which typically means from three different people) before that “ah ha” light bulb goes off.  As dancers grow up, they have to adjust to other teaching styles, different choreographers, etc.  Professionals may have to learn choreography from several different dancers, from different dance backgrounds, and from all over the world.  

So what happens when you need to find a new instructor?  Great.  This is a good thing and will benefit your dancer in the long run. My parents are always so apologetic when they have to move their child to another instructor and I reassure them that their child will be fine, our other instructors are great, we're all teaching the same thing, and that ultimately it might be even better for them.  I think the same rule of thumb should be applied to seasoned dancers looking for a new instructor as a dancer new to dance trying to find the "right" teacher.  

A few things to keep in mind:

1. It typically takes a few classes for the teacher and the dancer to become oriented with each other.

2. Repeated injuries, frustrations, or boredom probably means it's time to switch teachers rather than quit dance.

3. If your dancer doesn't "like dance," I would try a new instructor whose personality might "vibe" with your young dancer a little better.  

4. You know your dancer better than we do. Utilize the staff to help you with the right "pick."  Does your child need a strict instructor in order to focus, personality types that work or doesn't work, etc.

Happy Dancing!

~ Miss Jenna


"It's a supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge," - Albert Einstein