DANCE STUDIES
Introduction
Dance is an essential part of our everyday lives; it is a form of communication and jubilant expression.
It transcends all social and cultural boundaries, and allows freedom of movement and spirit.
PRO ARTE ALPHEN PARK’S Dance Department is part of a very special and important school, which offers talented students the opportunity to grow and explore their creativity as dancers as well as personally.
The present Dance Faculty has evolved from a past that gives it a strong foundation to build on. The vibrant and enthusiastic staff has the required passion for dance, and being experts in their respective fields, the necessary skills to take the department proudly forward into the future.
The Dance Department offers: Ballet, Spanish and Jazz dance as part of the curriculum and include the theoretical subjects: Anatomy and Health Care, Dance History and Music.
This is a unique environment that not only nurtures the students’ individual talents, but also offers the theoretical background that allows them to pursue diverse career paths within the dynamic world of dance.
The talented teaching team comprises of:
Helen de Jongh (HOD, Jazz Dance, Theory), Nigel Hannah (Junior Ballet and Ballet Theory), Sue Kirkland (Senior Ballet), Maria Lorca Montoya (Spanish Dance), Petrus Meyer (Gr 8 Music Theory), Tebatso Molapo (Gr 9 Music Theory) and Ferdi Geyer (Pianist for all Ballet classes).
This dedicated team shares a strong bond of friendship, mutual respect and passion for their jobs that stimulate the learners to achieve their full potential.
The Dance Department offers Ballet, Jazz and Spanish dance from Grade 8 – 12. In Grade 12, learners choose one of these practical dance genres for their final practical exam, and focusses on that for the full year.
Helen de Jongh, the head of the Dance Department, insists on Ballet being the foundation of the Dance Department. Ballet offers technical ability, teaches discipline and is the basis of all other dance forms offered. Jazz, however, is more popular in South Africa than the other dance forms, but Mrs. de Jongh is adamant that all three dance forms should be offered to assure that the dancers are well rounded by the end of Grade 12.
When learners enroll in Grade 8, those learners who have not done Ballet before, are required to do two extra Ballet classes a week. Extra Ballet classes are available in the afternoons via our Junior and Senior Ballet Academies. Extra Jazz and Spanish classes are available as needed. Learners are encouraged to do extra dance classes as dance is a practical art form and there is only one way to improve and that’s practice, practice, practice!!!
Pro Arte Alphen Park dancers are exposed to all aspects of dance from the moment they enter the dance department in Grade 8. This includes the department’s annual prestigious dance production, “Absolute Dance”, at the State Theatre as well as various other productions. Show-work is done in the afternoons, over and above what they do during regular school time.
Goals of Pro Arte Alphen Park’s Dance Department
To raise all-round dancers and artists with different dimensions to their lives which dance has given them.
Apart from dancing, dancers will also be able to do any of the following when they leave school after Grade 12:
- Use their writing skills, as learners also learn to write articles and reviews.
- Become physiotherapists with their anatomy background.
- Become clothes and costume designers.
- Learn commitment, as with the shows, they can not come and go as they please.
- Learn time-management.
The Process of the Auditions:
DANCE AUDITION CRITERIA
Dance Audition:
- Grade 8 – 11: Consists of a ballet class assessment to ascertain dance ability and aptitude for dance.
- Grade 10: Learners must have passed an Intermediate Foundation ballet exam or equivalent dance exam.
- Grade 11: By appointment only. Learners will only be accepted under exceptional circumstances.
- Clothing requirements: Leotard or tight-fitting full piece swimming costume, tights or jazz pants and a soft pair of ballet or jazz shoes (no takkies)
During the audition class prospective learners will be assessed on:
- The potential ability of the body to cope with the rigorous demands of dance.
- The mobility of ankle and hip joints.
- The skeletal structure of the spine and legs.
- Overall muscular strength.
DANCE QUOTE
- “All that is important is this one moment in movement. Make the moment important, vital, and worth living. Do not let it slip away unnoticed and unused.” MARTHA GRAHAM (1893 – 1992)
FOR MORE INFORMATION
- Dance Department
- +27 (012) 460 6222 X 1111
- +27 (083) 225 8097
- dance@proarte.co.za