Review by Booklist Review
Gr. 4-6. A guide to classwork at the Royal Academy of Dancing in England, this book details everything from dress, hair, and shoes to advice on finding a good ballet school and taking dance examinations. A chapter on each class level explains the correct positions and movements for typical exercises, with clear black-and-white pencil drawings of children performing each step. First-person narratives of dancers at various stages of their careers and two sections of full-color performance photographs provide information and inspiration for young dancers, but the book's main value is its no-nonsense approach to the every~day practice of ballet. ~--Carolyn Phelan
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review
This title follows the updated International Examination Syllabus by illustrating a selection of exercises for pre-primary through grade five students taught at the Royal Academy of Dancing. Professional preparation is also discussed. Unfortunately, the illustrated instruction assumes a high level of knowledge and instructional assistance for comprehension, and access to the glossary is restricted by its awkward placement on page 14, between "How To Tie the Ribbons" and "Taking an Examination." Of greatest interest is the section that tracks a day in the life of two ballet students and provides eight short autobiographies of international dancers. For instructional purposes, the format is simply outmoded, as many dance guides are now on videocassette, including the Royal Academy's own 1991 videocassette, Grades Examinations Syllabus for Girls and Boys. For comprehensive dance collections only.-Irene Herold, Monmouth Coll. Lib., Ill. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
