It's the Holidays and Exam Results

Merry Christmas Everyone and Best Wishes for 2013!!!!!!! 


Salem has had a great Christmas but has still kept up his dancing even though his dance school is having a break until after the summer holidays.
He has been practicing up at the gym five days a week as he has a few things he wants to work on and to keep his fitness up for Summer School which is held at The New Zealand School of Dance in Wellington.
Summer School is held over five days with dancing from 8 am til after 4 pm.
He's going to be exhausted as we have to travel in by train and bus.

At the moment Salem is working on the Peasant pas de deux second male variation  from Giselle Act I.
He has got some great ideas from the video below of David McAllister from the Australian Ballet's production of Giselle from 1990.
His teacher will be choreographing a more appropriate version for his level.

Last week Salem did a floor barre class with Louis Solino at Thistle Hall in Upper Cuba Street in Wellington with the Freelance Dance Community.  It was a class with all adults but he did fine.
He really enjoyed the class, Louis is such a good teacher and Salem said it was the best ab workout he has ever done.

Then on the 22nd we were able to pick up his RAD Ballet exam results.
He got Distinction for both his Grade 5 exam and the Solo Performance Award exam.
He was really pleased with himself as he was worried that he made some mistakes during the Grade 5 exam.
Well done Salem!!!!!

So it was back to the gym today, luckily the weather has cooled down a lot today so it was a lot more pleasant for him.

Having Fun Now Exams Have Finished

Exams are all over and done with for the year and this is the last week for lessons at Kapiti Dance Centre.
Monday's New Grade 6 class was heaps of fun, it wasn't too serious at all.
Miss Pond choreographed all this new stuff for us to have a fun class and we all kept mucking up and then laughing lots.

Up at the gym, Mum has been getting me to do lots of different things.
I'm working on my Intermediate Foundation stuff and polishing up my competition dances.
We aren't being too serious with this either.
I wore my "Bah Humbug" hat to practice.
I have to keep my fitness up for Summer School in January.

So I have normal classes today and tomorrow and then on Friday we have the dance school's Christmas Party and Prize Giving.
The parties are always heaps of fun!!!!!!!!

Yesterday's RAD Ballet Exams

Getting ready for the Grade 5 exam

RAD Grade 5 Exam

More practice

Yesterday's exams went well, only a few little mistakes and the new white ballet shoes were a little slippery on the dance floor.
Let's hope the examiner didn't notice.
It was an early start to a Sunday, we had to be at the studio at 8 in the morning with the exam at 9 am.
It's a relief that the exams are over now so Salem can have a bit more fun with his dance practices and not have to go over exam stuff so much now.

Waiting to go into the exam

RAD Performance Award Exam

Dressed for the Neo-classical dance

The performance award exams were a bit more fun and Salem was not nervous about these at all.
He just went in and enjoyed himself without the pressure of the graded exam.
Plus he was more awake for them as his exam was at 4 pm.

Ready for the classical dance

He went in with two other class mates and they had to do three dances in total each, one at a time.
As soon as they had danced a dance, they could go out of the room and have a quick change for the next dance that they were doing.

And a different cummerbund for the character dance

Salem's changes were very easy, putting on a jacket for his second dance and then changing his cummerbund for the third and final dance.
Can't wait for his results!!!!!