Comments on: Late starter -Can I ever be good?

By: meliise97

meliise97 — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 10:34:23 +0000

I’m 13 years old and I danced at an RAD level since I was 4, But when I was 10 years old I seriously injured myself and my doctors advised me to take sometime of dance I had planned for 1 and a half years but when it came to the time I felt my body was just not ready. I know now for sure that I am capable but I will not be ably to pick up where I left of in my grades so I won’t have my certificates. Will this affect my hopes of becoming a principle Ballerina??

By: Bri'ana

Bri'ana — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 02:50:01 +0000

I started ballet when I was 3 and continued it til I was 12. Ten I ventured off to other sports. I have danced my whole life. My worry is that I will have to start back with the basics again. I have always been told that I am very talented, a quick learner, and very graceful but will that be enough to get me caught up.I’m 16 and is have found another dance school but I dont want to be in class with kids younger then me because I would be a beginner again. But I do know one thing….. dance is in my blood there is nothing in the world that can keep me from it! whish me luck!

By: Melissa

Melissa — Sat, 15 May 2010 16:04:22 +0000

Hey, its Melissa again, and you can get better. Because I have, and now i am on pointe!!!!!

Live To Dance!!!

By: holly

holly — Thu, 06 May 2010 21:24:27 +0000

…also i have a problem with remembering dances…not a very good quality in a dancer really is it..

By: holly

holly — Thu, 06 May 2010 21:22:28 +0000

i am 19 and ive done some ballet, and did a performing arts course for a year and did ballet most days, i really want to be a ballet dancer, would love to be able to dance en pointe and being able to just do that would be amazing! I have started a class at northern ballet a few times and dropped out again because i feel like all the other girls are bitchy, and it puts me off, but im determined to not let it defeat me. i would also love to become a proffession dancer, i know this is out of my reach though, my back is wonky too, although my back specialist said i have a dancers back… :/ im not in it to make friends i justwant to go, DANCE and come home. i do feel im too old for eveyone there though..

By: sara erian

sara erian — Sun, 28 Mar 2010 18:39:15 +0000

hi everyone, well i have the same situation but iam also not so skinny like we should to dance ballet..so iam asking is that okay..

By: Mei

Mei — Sun, 28 Mar 2010 10:47:31 +0000

it’s never too late to start! I started late too- at 15 years old, and I’m now 19 like you! I took regular classes for about a year and a half and my teacher suggested I take it to a professional level! now I can go on pointe and am in Intermediate. if you work hard you won’t ever fail! keep your will strong because you’ll need a lot of that, sure there will be girls with years of experience but you’ll have to start somewhere! read up on techniques, get dance magazines, stretch often (I stretch every morning, I stand on tippy toes when I brush my teeth and I stretch before bed every night!)! nothing will stop you if you have true passion for it!

By: Ashley

Ashley — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 19:11:53 +0000

i started when i was 10, really just because i loved to move to music. in one year i was moved out of the baby class (6 and 7 yearolds) and into the girls my own age group who had been dancing since thay were 2. 1 year sfter that i was on pointe, this year ( 3 years later) im with the girls who were on pointe when we were 10 and can do anything they can. trust in god and yourself, go for it and anything is possible. I dont even go to a professional ballet school just one in a REALLY small town. Go for it!

By: Janesse

Janesse — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 11:39:41 +0000

Hi all.
I’m 26 and only went back to ballet last year. when i was little i went up to grade 2 but then stopped for many years. I’ve always loved ballet. I’m not the best or the strongest in my class but i keep trying and i have set goals. i believe never limit yourself always just try. does doesn’t always have to be about being the best. I would love to teach ballet one day but I’m not sure if I’ve set my sights to high.

By: Vicki

Vicki — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 01:31:02 +0000

I also started dancing ballet a little late (15 years), but with effort it is possível.At 16 I did my first solo, of course it was nothing too spectacular, but for me it was like being in heaven!

By: liv

liv — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 23:47:01 +0000

I started pretty late too but I’m on a professional track. there is a dancer named Vanessa Sah who is in the corps at anaheim ballet and she started in college.

By: Jessica

Jessica — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 18:44:50 +0000

I’m 16 and desperatley want to be a professional. Would love to go to ballet school. waht do you reckon? Is it possible?

By: AThomas

AThomas — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 11:09:31 +0000

I started when I was 13 and I loved it. I am going to audition for ballet school when I’m 18 which is extremely late, but it will be good experience just to audition! But I struggle a lot with grasping sequences quickly, and I have no natural turnout which doesn’t help. It definately feels awful when you’re in a class with people that can do everything and are really thin and perfectly shaped! (My spine is rather wonky - its not serious but it puts me out of line!) So, yes, I guess what I’m saying is I really hope to be good to, and I feel just the same!

By: Anthony

Anthony — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 08:30:44 +0000

I never did any form of dance as a kid. At age 39 I suffered a prelapsed disk in my lower back triggered by a bad fall that had me in bed for a month. It cost me all flexibility in my right side. I vowed to not let my back get the better of me and took up ballet (for the first time) at age 40! The beginning was very frustrating (and being a male did not make it any easier). However I’ve been attending classes consistently three times a week for the last two years (as well as pilates) - I’ve managed to squeeze 6 years of technique into just 2. My foundation is sometimes lacking as a result but I have really come far. In fact I’m now preparing for a short (6 minute) piece in a small community performance later this year. It’s never too late - certainly not at 19!

By: Leticia

Leticia — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 07:48:34 +0000

Heyy I started when I was 16 and now I’m 20. I thought I was the one who tried to learn ballet when it was ‘too late’ yet I kept pressing on. I joined regular class with junior high students and joined the major exams also! My skills have been developed well and I’m currently teaching kids also! So don’t give up! Ballet is a beautiful pain, Your body may cry, but your soul laughs inside

By: christi hardy

christi hardy — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 05:52:44 +0000

Well, I’ve got you all beat! I’m 52 and I’ve been taking class for a solid year 2 times a week. And my teacher says I’m almost ready to start pointe. And my goal is to dance on stage in pointe before I’m 80. I’ll be the 80 years old grandma dancing in pointe. Yeah!
It’s great to start young, but you can do it at any age. Look at Mikhail Baryshnikov

By: elizabeth

elizabeth — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 02:46:57 +0000

I started ballet when I was 21 which is considered wayyyy to old. I took a class and fell in love with it, and continued dancing. Now a year later I’m dancing with girls that have been dancing since they were children. I constantly practiced, and read about ballet and it’s techniques. Focus during class, and listen to every correction even if it’s not directed at you. And most importantly enjoy dancing!!! It’s an amazing way to express yourself.

By: shannon

shannon — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 01:00:14 +0000

I am going to be 47!! AND, I really want to do ballet again. It has been like 30 years….i LOVED it!
Why not hey?

By: Maura

Maura — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 01:51:20 +0000

Well, I just started ballet this year and I went straight to pointe. I do recommend ankle strenghtening though. Try a class, if you don’t like it- try private lessons!

By: Iustina

Iustina — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 20:14:40 +0000

Hello:* Yes, you can! I’m 16 and I just started ballet this year. I’ve always been told that I was too old for ballet..ever since I was 10. I’ve recently found out that there is no age for ballet. As long as you strongly wish to do it, you have to do it and no one would ever stop you from becoming a good dancer.I promised myself that I will not quit ballet until I’m pleased with myself and until I think I have performed everything that was needed. I was kinda asking myself the same thing. Will I ever be good enough? In ballet, you’re never good enough. Yes, but will I be at the same level as the best in my school (I’m talking about the girls in the 5th year, ’cause they’re the best). I was told that I already am.. I don’t really believe that..since I’m not as flexible as they are. But the people that had always said that I was not good enough and that I was too old have now said that I’m better than all the girls there.
Taking into consideration that you have a great will to do it, you will do it properly and you will be good at it. You must know that ballet means hard work and determination .. but as long as you put your heart into it, it will seem easier than it actually is. “If ballet were easy, they’d call it football”(that’s what a ballerina friend with a 9 years experience in ballet told me). Never give up ! You can and you will do it. No matter what others thing, if you really want something and if you really thing you’ll get that something, then you will.
You’ve also told me that you’ve been in contact with music almost all your life.. that you’re flexible..
What a good ballerina needs? An ear for music, balance, flexibility and grace. :* Good luck in developing those!