Lower School (ages 8-13)

Placement Policy
Students age 8 and older, with previous dance experience, please contact Managing Director of Schools, Vicki Parsons, to schedule a placement class for the remainder of the 2009/10 school year. Early placement classes for fall 2010 will be held on Saturday, June 5 for students, age 8 and older with previous dance experience who are new to Ballet Austin. These classes may also be used for placement into summer classes and intensives. Class for students age 8-12 will be from 2:00-3:30pm and class for students age 13 and older will be held from 3:30-5:00pm. Both classes will be held at the Butler Dance Education Center. Please arrive one half hour early for check-in.

Printable version of Lower School flier (including schedule and tuition information)

Starting in Level 1 of the Lower School, students begin formal training in traditional classical ballet. The syllabus progresses at a rate that allows the student to learn the exercises correctly and with full physicality. Repetition and slow careful work is emphasized, with the students learning discipline and control of their bodies. Students progress to the next level when they have mastered the material and physical understanding of the syllabus in their current level. For some students, this may take more than one year. Students may be moved to the next level during the year if they have met the requirements of their level before the end of the year.  

Level 1 meets two times per week for 1 hour.
Level 2 meets two times per week for 1.25 hours.
Level 3 meets three times per week for 1.5 hours.

Level 4A meets four times per week for 1.5 hours.

Level 4B meets two times per week for 1.5 hours and two times per week for 1.75 hours.

 
Lower School students (Levels 1, 2, 3, 4A, 4B) are required to attend all scheduled classes for their level.

All Level 4 students begin individual evaluations starting with a mid-year conference with Academy Artistic Staff and may participate in the Young Artists Program as an additional performance opportunity in the spring. Girls in Level 4A will get their pointe shoes in early spring of the school year.
Young Artists I information  
Children in the Lower School are encouraged to take as many make up/extra classes as they can in the same or a lower level. For highly motivated students this will help accelerate their progress; the more classes a student is able to take, the quicker the work of each level will be learned.

All Lower School students are eligible to audition for Ballet Austin’s The Nutcracker.

Dress Code

Level 1 and 2 Girls: Lavender Bloch or Capezio leotard, short sleeve style only, pink tights, pink ballet shoes.

No skirts. Hair should be secured in a bun.

Level 3 and 4 Girls: Royal Blue Mirella, Bloch or Sapphire Capezio leotard, cap-sleeve or short-sleeve style only, pink tights, pink ballet shoes. No skirts. Hair should be secured in a bun.

Boys: White short sleeve leotard or T-shirt, black footed tights, black ballet shoes, dance belt.

Electives through the Butler Community School (Lower School)
Additional dance classes are offered specifically for Academy children through the Butler Community School.  BCS Kids Zone classes include jazz, tap, hip hop, and musical theatre. Students are encouraged to participate in order to expand their physical understanding of movement and build connections to the greater dance community. Both the Academy and Community School are housed at the Butler Dance Education Center. Community School classes allow for a flexible, pay-as-you-go schedule with no minimum attendance requirements. Class-Cards may be used interchangeably at any or all of the BCS Kids Zone classes. While enrolled in the 2009/10 school year, students may purchase a class-card at a special rate of 50% off the regular class-card rate. Schedules will be available in the Schools Office or online.

2009/10 Class Schedule

Students age 8 to 12, with no previous dance experience, are placed in Level 1 of the Lower School. Students age 13 and older, with no previous dance experience, are recommended for the Butler Community School's Beginning Ballet for Teens and Adults.

Students registering after the start of the school year will be asked to take a class with their age group as a placement class.

The 2009/10 school year begins September 8, 2009.