Oregon Ballet Theater

[les_sylphides_]

I thought this school should be added to the pre-pro list. Has or does anyone attend OBT year-round?

[les_sylphides_]

Well, I guess I can talk about the year-round audition/placement class that took place on August 5th . . .

There were two levels, one for the younger group which had maybe 20? children auditioning--for those not on pointe. The second level were for older students who were on pointe, I think the youngest in the audition was 12, and there were 7 students.

Both auditions lasted 30 minutes long! There were 3 "evaluators" sitting in front of the room, one was the school director, one was a teacher, and I assume the last person was a teacher as well. They were all females. There was another teacher that taught the class and was directed by the school director in terms of what she wanted to see.

The barres were placed VERY close to the front of the room where the 3 evaluators were sitting--when my arm was held in second position, it was maybe 4 feet away from the seats?

All exercises at the barre were done in profile.

 

To the best of my memory:

 

At the barre we did:

--plies (demi, grande, in 1, 2, 4, 5 positions)

--tendus and degages, each with either fondus or pas de chevals (I don't remember which went with which, but the tendus and degages were two separate exercises)

--rond de jambes a terre, en dehors and en dedans, including one grand rond de jambe in each direction

--all these exercises included balances at the end, either in 5th, sur le coup de pied, or retire (all on demi-pointe)

 

In the center:

--adage (develope front, develope back, develope side--turn to arabesque--promenade 3/4 en dehors, and a few other simple steps afterwards that I forgot

--from 5th pique into arabesque fondu up fondu up fondu up close to 5th en demi pointe, tombe pas de bouree into 4th, pirouette en dehors closing in 5th, other side

--warm up jump (16 changements)

--petit allegro (right glissade-- jete--temps leve, left glissade--jete--temps leve, right glissade--jete--temps leve, small rond je jambe en l'air saute en dehors, working leg piques into attitude efface, tombe pas de bouree en tournant ending in 5th, entrechat quatre, other side!

--grand allegro (tombe, pas de bourree, glissade, saut de chat, contretemps, repeat to left

 

Side Notes:

--There was no pointe asked for at the audition, although one girl did the entire audition on pointe

--Some exercises were repeated, and not all were done on both sides (at the barre)

--Corrections were given during or after each exercise. Some were turnout, pulling in abdomen, pointing feet, and moving all the way across the floor in the grand allegro

--Letters will be received by the end of August but may be received earlier

--I am still not clear upon whether it's placement class or an audition. I was told that they would place a student if they saw fit to . . . but the answer was rather evasive and has been both times I have asked.

--I know of one other member on BT who attended this audition so maybe she can add some more or fix any mistakes if neede

 

If you want to know anything else then I'd be glad to answer your questions!

[Kyone]

I noticed that this was posted quite a while ago but I'm still curious! How did the audition/placement turn out? Do you go to their school now? What is your impression of the program? I'm trying to figure out if I'd like to go there or another studio in Portland.

[the_pointe]

I was curious about the Professional Division of The School of Oregon Ballet Theatre. If anyone has any information about how many people are in this division or anything at all, it would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

[Pasdetrois]

I know of dancers from pre-pro programs who have been offered the pre-pro program at OBT but, in honesty, if you are getting training of this same calabre in your home school, why spend the money. A trainee or studio company maybe, but a pre-pro? I'm beginning to wonder what this years SI auditions are trying to accomplish!

[iheartballet]

has anyone had experience as a PD here?

[Momof3darlings]

I'm hoping someone will be able to update on the current "graduates" (if any) in this program and what their plans are for next year. If they have company positions, please let us know if those are trainee, apprentice, corp and then male/female. This information helps others track the true success of the program from year to year.

[leebick]

Does anyone have any information about the pre-professional program at Oregon Ballet School?

[treecer_ballerina]

I am a year round student as Oregon Ballet Theatre in level 5 of 6. This is a wonderful program with a really cohesive and supportive community and a great and experienced faculty. I've been at this school for 6 years now and they've helped me grow as a dancer. As I'm only 13, I'm not ready to answer your questions about professional applications but I can tell you that I was excepted into several prestigious summer intensives including CPYB and the Boston Ballet. Girls in my level and the level below me have been accepted into SAB, Exploring Ballet with Suzanne Farrell and other intensives of national renown. The girls in the highest level have gotten apprentices and jobs with companies all over the world. It is an extensive program with up to 21 hours of ballet a week. During the summer there are other styles of dance as well, mainly modern, flamenco, and character. The school recently gained a new artistic director, Mr. Anthony Jones, and things are in the process of changing but the core values of good technique and hard work remain the same. At SOBT, we have 2 performance opportunities a year, one being the Nutcracker with the affiliated company, Oregon Ballet Theatre and the second being The Annual School Performance, which is a show case of everything we've learned. I highly recommend this school to anyone! We would love to have you!

 

Dancing is living- everything else is extraneous. (Unknown)

 

[justdoit94]

Does anyone have some current information on this program? On their website they say one needs to take a placement class. Does that mean they accept everyone?

I got into their Summer Intensive (level 5) and am hoping to be able to stay for the year.

[lorimac13]

justdoit94 - do you mean stay for the year as a member of OBT2? For the last 2 years, no level 5's have been part of OBT2 that I'm aware of. DD has been with Oregon Ballet Theatre for 3 years - one as a trainee (before OBT2 was official) and two as an apprentice. I could be wrong, but OBT2 kids have come from Level 6 in the SI and the School of Oregon Ballet Theatre year round, to the best of my knowledge. That doesn't mean it couldn't happen - just letting you know my experience.

 

They do not accept everyone - this I know for a fact.

[dancemaven]

Justdoit94, if you are asking about the OBT2 program, then these last two posts need to be moved to that dedicated thread.

 

Please do let me know if you are asking about OBT2 or the regular pre-professional school program.

[justdoit94]

I'm sorry I wasn't that clear. I was asking about the pre-professional program.

 

Thank you lorimac13 for your response. I saw your answer on the other thread as well, thanks! ? Do you know if some dancers from the SI get to stay for the pre-professional program (yearround)? I would really like to try to get into OBT2 but if that isn't possible I was wondering if it would be possible to join the schools pre-pro. program insted?

I hope my question makes sense...? ?

[dancemaven]

Thank you for clarifying, justdoi94. . We are in the right thread, then.

[lorimac13]

You're welcome justdoit94! Yes, I'm sure they would love to have you, but as I said before, there is no housing so you would need to find your own. If you are under 18, that could be a little difficult, but if you are over 18, there are plenty of apartments - a little on the pricey side, but there are many. Portland also has a good public transportation system. If you really want to stay, you should probably speak to Tony Jones, who is the Director of the school. He normally teaches many classes at the SI. You may be able to share an apartment with someone else who is staying for OBT2 or just the year round program. I hope you enjoy the SI and best of luck to you!