How to choose your Ballet Teacher

Ballet is one of the most popular dance styles in the world and always had a vocal and strong fan base in the UK. While it’s a dream profession of little girls everywhere, people of all ages have taken up ballet for fun or to build a possible career as a professional ballet dancer.

Whatever your reasons for wanting to learn ballet you’re going to need a good teacher and that might be harder than you think. There’s plenty of options out there in most UK town and cities so how do you go about picking the best teacher you can? With our helpful tips you can ensure you get the best teacher for your money and enjoy learning this wondrous classical dance style.

Qualifications Are Key

There’s many dance qualifications available and if you're not familiar with them it can get quite confusing. Don’t be worried about asking you ballet teacher about their accreditations, the good ones will be happy to share their dance education and experience. The type of dance teacher that you choose and their qualifications can also have links to which exam boards they use for ballet examinations.

There are many different types of dance qualifications at various levels awarded by groups like The Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) or The Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD) - these are two of the larger UK wide ones but you may also find more locally based qualifications. Exam boards like the RAD have dance qualifications that range from G.C.S.E and A-Level to degree level qualifications and beyond, if you are looking for this type of dance qualification ensure you do your research before jumping in.

Remember experience also plays a part in qualifications someone could have many certificates but may never have taught before so make sure you consider this. You may also be wise just trying a single one off lesson first before committing to long-term plan to make sure you’re comfortable with your teacher. 

Find The Ballet Style for You  

There are several styles of ballet and while some teachers may have an understanding of multiple types some may only specialize in certain types. While there are many styles they’re usually placed into the following four categories: Romantic Ballet, Classical Ballet, Neoclassical Ballet and Contemporary Ballet. So make sure you research the types of ballet you want to learn before searching for a teacher. 

Check The References

It’s something many people will either forget or not want to ask but you really should and don’t worry no professional teacher will take offence from you asking for references. You can ask for professional references which will give you an idea about their skills or you can ask for references from other customers to see how they are as a teacher. Many teachers offer an introductory lesson to see if you (or your child) likes the class, so take the opportunity to ask questions of their other students (or parents)

Look Around

You might be thinking this is all well and good but where exactly do I find a dance teacher? Well there’s lots of places to look the internet is of course a great resources with sites like ITSD Dance Teachers, The Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) and there’s even Facebook groups that will help put you in touch with dance teachers in your local area. And of course there’s more traditional methods like phone books, community notice boards and business flyers and cards. You can also check out dance studios and leisure centres to see what they recommend and they might also make great starting points for your search. 

Ballet Shoes & Ballet Uniforms

Many ballet schools and ballet teachers will have specific uniforms that you will be asked to wear for classes or examinations, these can include things like which colour ballet shoes to wear or what style and colour leotard is appropriate – do you wear dance tights or dance socks? Some dance teachers are very flexible with what you wear so you can choose how to express your love of dance in your own way!

For a full range of ballet shoes and ballet uniforms and leotards click here