5 March 2023

Exploring Repertoire: Swan Lake (Open House)

Join us for the Spring instalment of our repertoire workshops – from cygnet to Swan, be expertly guided through the dance steps!

Explore the magic of ballet through our insightful repertoire days, with practical dance workshops lead by our team of experienced dance artists, and featuring live piano accompaniment.

The youngest dancers will uncover the story of the ballet through dance, mime and music. More experienced dancers will rehearse as if as part of a company corps de ballet, as they learn a piece of group choreography, focusing on musicality and dynamics.

If you are not quite ready to grace the studio barre in a dance workshop, we invite you to come and enjoy our repertoire themed arts and crafts, live performances from English National Ballet School students, a relaxed film screening of Swan Lake, and make-up demonstration with Royal Ballet First Soloist, Claire Calvert.

General entry is just £10!

Pre-registration closes on the 1st March, walk-in entries will still be accepted on the day, subject to availability. 

Book Now

Key Information

Level Age Duration Fee
Beginner+ 3+ All day event from 10am-4pm. Practical workshop sessions are open for pre-booking at various times across the day. From £10

Date

Sunday 5 March 2023

Workshop Times

  • Adults: Level 1: 10am-12.30pm or Level 2: 24.30pm
    Suggested for age 18+ choose from two levels
    Join Damien Lee Stirk, a graduate of English National Ballet School, for a session exploring Swan Lake Act II Waltz by The Royal Ballet (Level 1) and the more challenging choreography as staged by Nureyev for the L’Opera de Paris (Level 2)
  • Ballet beginners age 57 years: 10am11am
    Suggested for school year Reception – Year 2 (no parent/carer observation)
    An inspiring session will introduce classical ballet steps in a fun warm-up, before highlighting key characters and mime sequences from the ballet Swan Lake.
  • Pre-School Adventures: 11.30–12.30pm
    For children age 3-4 years, to enjoy with a parent, grandparent or carer. F
    rom the birthday party in Act I, through the forest and to the ball in Act III, you will go on a journey with your little one discovering the magical story of Swan Lake together. With an introduction to ballet and mime, including lots of fun props to aide their imagination!
  • Primary and Grade 1: 11.15am12.30pm SOLD OUT or 2–3.15pm
    Suggested for age 5+ (no parent/carer observation)
    Take the Corps de Ballet challenge with Karen Cadogan and Ruth Henry. Young dancers will explore choreographic motifs and learn a sequence building on ballet vocabulary from across each level highlighted.
  • Grade 2 and 3: 2–3.30pm SOLD OUT
    Suggested for age 7+ (no parent/carer observation)
    Take the Corps de Ballet challenge. Young dancers will explore choreographic motifs and learn a sequence building on ballet vocabulary from across each level highlighted.
  • Grade 4, 5 and 6 (including Inter-Foundation): 3-4.30pm
    Recommended for young dancers age 9+ (no parent/carer observation)
    Join Natalia Watt, a graduate of Tring Park and White Lodge, for this exploration of choreography, building on ballet vocabulary across the graded levels, with a focus on musicality.
  • Silver Swans: 24pm
    Recommended for age 55+
    Join our champion of dancing for life-long wellbeing, Sarah Platt, for the perfect introduction to Swan Lake repertoire.

Other activities you can enjoy

If booking one of the practical dance workshops above, this is included in the workshop fee.  Otherwise, we welcome you to book a ‘General Entry’ ticket to enjoy all of the below.

  • arts and crafts, all day
  • make-up demonstrations with Royal Ballet First Soloist, Claire Calvert, from 2pm

    Claire Calvert, Royal Ballet First Soloist

  • performances from current dancers on the Pre-Professional Programme at English National Ballet School – includes an excerpt from Swan Lake Act II and a working rehearsal of The Carnival of the Animals, from approximately 12.45-1.45pm

    ENBS Pre-Professional dancers in rehearsal for Swan Lake, coached by Anne-Laure Vergnaud and Julia Ellis.

  • a film screening of Swan Lake (Opus Arte/The Royal Ballet) starring Marianela Nuñez as Odette/Odile and Vadim Muntagirov as Prince Siegfried
    Act I and II,  10.30-11.45am
    Act III and IV, 2.30-3.45pm

Plus further surprises on the day!

Venue

Royal Academy of Dance headquarters
188 York Road
London
SW11 3JZ

Booking process

  • Places in the repertoire sessions for different ages and levels are limited and secured on a first-come, first-served basis.
  • Payment is required at the time of booking.
  • An automatic email will be sent via the booking platform Cvent to confirm your registration and payment were successful.
  • Please quote the Cvent order no/ticket ref. when contacting the RAD with any queries related to your booking.
  • Please read and familiarise yourself with our workshop and short courses Terms & Conditions before you book, this includes our cancellation and withdrawal policy.
  • When a class is fully-booked, a waiting list will be activated. The Learning and Participation team will contact you via email should a suitable place become available.
  • After the closing date, you will receive an additional confirmation by email, detailing registration and collection times for your child, suggested dress, and all other relevant information for the course and venue.
  • For all queries, please email participate@rad.org.uk

The RAD uses Cvent for ticketing and registration for events (including workshops, masterclasses, CPD, and a range of free activities). We only store your personal information in order to register and facilitate your attendance and to request feedback. We will not use your information to contact you unless you have opted to receive marketing materials, or have signed up for our e-newsletter. Please read Cvents Privacy Policy. For further details on how your information is processed, please see the Student Activities Privacy Notice.

Book Now

What to expect from your day

Arrival

There will be a warm welcome when you arrive – The RAD’s onsite shop will be open to browse dancewear and gifts, and our café will offer to quench your thirst and tempt your taste buds.

The reception team will be there to check your registration and present you with a wristband, a schedule of the activities on offer across the day, and a map of the building, including changing spaces. The information presented will allow you and your friends and family to make your way freely between the film screening, performances, workshops, and the arts and crafts station.

In the final confirmation details sent the week before, a studio number or name for your booked workshop will be highlighted, along with confirmation of the registration and collection times. You are welcome to arrive before your scheduled workshop to enjoy what else is on offer!

Pre-school adventurers

In the pre-school sessions, we invite one adult to actively engage in the dance session with their child. We welcome other young children to observe this session if required.

Children’s workshops

These are primarily ‘register and drop’ sessions. We have a separate register for the children at the studio entrance. You will be able to see the studio space your child will be dancing in, meet the teacher and class assistant and help to settle your child in.  We also have a pianist in each workshop, and all our staff have an Enhanced DBS.

Once outside the studio, we kindly ask that you help your child remove their outdoor shoes, as required, and place them in the racks provided.

Our team are very experienced at supporting each child’s learning, encouraging their participation with a fun warm-up, and providing ideas to support different ways of expressing themselves creatively through the movement and mime they explore.

We tend to find that the children are more engaged with their peers, without their main carers in the room.  However, we welcome you to stay nearby on a bench outside the studio or visit the arts and crafts room or film screening whilst your child takes part in the dance session. We do take a contact number when your register so that we may reach you if there are any concerns or your child gets upset.

At the end of the session, there may be an opportunity for you to watch the last 5 minutes, and we will confirm this in writing to you after the closing date. The faculty wait with the group of students at the end of each session until a parent is present to collect them and you can go about enjoying the rest of the activities on offer together.

Adults and Silver Swans

A clearly designated male and separate female changing rooms will be available for participants over the age of 18 to use. Showers and toilets are available to use within these changing room spaces. All valuables can be taken into the studio with you, along with a towel or bottled water should you wish.

If you have any queries or concerns please get in touch by email: participate@rad.org.uk and the team will respond as soon as possible.

Book now

Find Us

Local transport links for the Royal Academy of Dance
Find us

Newsletter

Stay in touch via our newsletter and be the first to hear when courses are live to book, receive exclusive news and stay up to date with all our activities. You can also contact the Learning and Participation team by email: participate@rad.org.uk.