Ballet4Life prides itself of creating a supportive and friendly environment in which to have a dance class whether you are a retired pro, someone returning to dance classes after many years, or as a novice. Our teachers care about our clients, get to know them by name, and give feedback in each and every session. We also encourage people to work at a pace that is suitable for their needs and perhaps with physical limitations that may pre exist. It is a thorough and proper class but offered in a fun way with lovely music, positive comments, and yearly outings to see professional dance performance should people wish to partake.
If you have no or little previous ballet experience, we recommend you start with Ballet4Life 1: Complete Beginner Course. This weekly class is offered each term. Age and ability are not concerns here! We teach the basics in a caring and careful way. This includes: posture and alignment, musicality, positions of the arms and feet, series of exercises at the ballet barre such as plié, tendu, glissés, ronds de jambe, develop, grands battements. The price is £140. Pre-registration is required.
We also offer a number of Drop-In Ballet Classes at locations across London. See below for a full overview, class descriptions, and video. We ask our clients to register the first time they are taking any of our drop-in classes. This allows us to know you and your level of experience ahead of time, as well help us anticipate the demand for particular class times and venues.
Donna Schoenherr and Ballet4Life classes are featured on the sixth day of the Get Active video series from TedMedia. In this video on Youtube, Patricia Ferreira-Lopez meets up with Donna Schoenherr of Ballet4Life.com in London, England, UK. It’s Patricia’s sixth day and her sixth sport in her “Get Active” challenge.
| Ballet4life 1 | Complete Beginner Course | |
| Ballet4life 2 | Complete Beginner: Follow On Course | |
| Ballet4Life 3 | 50+ Ballet and Movement | |
| Ballet4Life 4 | Drop-in Beginner Improvers | |
| Ballet4Life 5 | Drop-in Beginner Pointe Exercise | |
| Ballet4Life 6 | Drop-in Ballet Barre | |
| Ballet4life 7 | Drop-in General | |
| Ballet4Life 8 | Drop-in Intermediate | |
| Ballet4Life A | Drop-in Complete Beginner Contemporary | |
| Ballet4Life B | Drop-in Beginner Improvers Contemporary | |
| Ballet4Life C | Intro to the Ballet Barre Register at Earthlife |
Complete Beginners Course
suitable for all
Beginner level - for people with no pervious ballet experience or a very small amount of ballet training
Age and ability are not concerns here! We teach the basics in a caring and careful way. This includes: posture and alignment, musicality, positions of the arms and feet, series of exercises at the ballet barre such as plié, tendu, glissés, ronds de jambe, develop, grands battements. You then progress to short movement sequences standing without the barre in the centre of the ballet studio. Lovely musical accompaniment is used throughout. The teacher and the assistant are there to ensure you are working safely and to assist at every moment. By the end of the course you will have a good grasp of the basics that make up a beginner ballet class. You will hopefully feel stronger, more flexible, more graceful, and generally speaking have better sense of your body and of the joy of movement. You will have the choice to enroll again or to try the beginner improvers drop-in lessons that are offered each week during term time.
Ballet4Life 1
Complete Beginners Adult Ballet Course
Lead by: Donna Schoenherr
Classroom assistant Arisa Nonomura
Suitability
This course has been designed for adult learners with either no previous training in ballet or with a small amount of experience Age is not a concern nor do we require the attendees to be in top physical shape
Location:
Arts Ed School, Room # 102
14 Bath Road, W4 1LY
Transport:
Turnham Green /District Line tube Bus lines 94, E3, 272 Limited metered parking bays along Bath Road and side streets Upon entry of the building please give your name and name of this course to the person at reception
Time: Thursday evenings 7.30-8.45 pm
Dates: 27 September – 22 November, 2012 Half term: 01 November
Fee: £140 for Autumn Session payable in advance by cheque or by bank transfer
Online Payment via Credit Card: After pre-registering, you will be given the option of paying online with a credit card through a secure payment via paypal.
Cheque: After pre-registering online, you may also opt to pay by cheque. Please contact Donna directly for the mailing address.
Bank transfer: Please give me your mobile number and I will text you my bank details if you wish to pay by bank transfer
There is a £35 cancellation fee should you cancel one week or less prior to the start date
There are no refunds should you have to miss lessons on the course or if you drop-out
Attire
Please wear clothing for exercise that you can move freely in.
Jogging bottoms and T-shirts, or leggings and jogging top or ballet gear if you already own some.
Dance belts or athletic supporters for the gentlemen
Attendance
If you have a planned absence you may find out from Haylee beforehand what material you might miss. Should you miss a lesson there will be no refund. There may be an opportunity to make up one lesson on the course the following term but this cannot be guaranteed. Confirmation of your place on the course After you have completed and returned the enrolment form and your payment has been received, you will be sent an e-mail confirming that you have secured a place on the course
Please Note
As part of correcting placement, carriage of arms or alignment there will be physical contact between the students and the teacher
Complete Beginner; Follow on Course
suitable for all except complete beginners
Beginner level - for people with a very small amount of ballet training
This course was created for our clients who have taken the Complete Beginner Course once or more than once. Other adult beginners who wish to refresh their understanding of the ballet vocabulary, structure, and exercises are also welcome. This provides an intermediate stage before progressing to the Improvers drop-in class in which to gain further strength and confidence especially in the centre exercise portion of the class.
Longer movement sequences are taught, more challenging use of the supporting leg at the barre is implemented. Patterns will have more challenge and musicality builds to be more varied. Execution and practise for pirouettes are worked on and practised in a slow and steady manner. New jumps are introduced and added to the longer centre allegro combinations. Thereby re-establishing what has been taught and practised in the Beginner Course and carrying it further in the same directions so the clients gain more security standing on their own and moving through the ballet studio. The teachers encourage and keep an eye on good placement, good habits that keep the body free from strain and stress, and support the joy and freedom of moving through the centre of the dance studio without restriction.
50+ Ballet and movement
suitable for all
Created for the more mature body this is a wonderful hour to stretch, learn and try very enjoyable and stimulating ballet exercise at the ballet barre, plus learn ballet and dance sequences so that the minds are also attended to! We will also have fun and few laughs along the way!
Ballet targets core strength, flexibility, muscle strength, posture, and alignment. It has the added benefits of providing personal expression to music and mentalstimulation. The brain is challenged to remember patterns that are tricky and changeable and to move to the music effectively. The body is stretched and toned and fun is had by the entire group in this positive and supportive environment. This new class is offered at a convenient time of day in a local and pleasant dance studio.
Special rate offered.
Beginner Improvers drop-in classes
suitable for clients with at least one year of training
Beginner - Advanced beginner Level
A popular drop-in class for ballet lovers of all ages.
This class takes what has been established in Ballet4Life’s courses and follow on classes and clients past training and slightly increases in its levels of difficulty by having longer barre and centre movement sequences to memorise, more strengthening exercises, more pirouettes and quicker allegro. There is also the fun of one or two big sequences on the diagonal which incorporates waltzes, turns, and or jumps.
Barre work goes at a quicker pace than the Complete Beginner or Follow Course. Clients change from one side of the barre to the other more frequently and new steps are introduced to one’s barre exercise repertoire. The sequences are longer and stretching is often given as well. In the centre exercise portion of class clients work on pirouettes in the open and closed direction, small, medium, and large jumps, moving through the space on a diagonal, change of the weight of the body, implementing connection steps that clients have practised in order to build the longer and more varied movement patterns. The teacher advises and helps when there may be difficulty is gaining the understanding of a new step or in practicing steps that are especially tricky.
Beginner Pointe Work
suitable for clients with at least one year of classical ballet technique training*
Beginner Level
Your health and well being is our main concern so we will make sure you are ready to try Beginner Pointe and we can advise you on Pointe shoes and accessories.
This class takes what has been established in Ballet4Life’s courses and follow on classes and clients past training and slightly increases in its levels of difficulty by having longer barre and centre movement sequences to memorise, more strengthening exercises, more pirouettes and quicker allegro. There is also the fun of one or two big sequences on the diagonal which incorporates waltzes, turns, and or jumps.
Barre work goes at a quicker pace than the Complete Beginner or Follow Course. Clients change from one side of the barre to the other more frequently and new steps are introduced to one’s barre exercise repertoire. The sequences are longer and stretching is often given as well. In the centre exercise portion of class clients work on pirouettes in the open and closed direction, small, medium, and large jumps, moving through the space on a diagonal, change of the weight of the body, implementing connection steps that clients have practised in order to build the longer and more varied movement patterns. The teacher advises and helps when there may be difficulty is gaining the understanding of a new step or in practicing steps that are especially tricky.
Lunch time ballet barre drop-in class
suitable for all except complete beginners
Beginner – Advanced beginner Level
A nice way in which to give yourself one hour of exercise in the middle of the day whilst perfecting your ballet moves, learning new steps and vocabulary, and addressing core strength, muscle strengthening, alignment, and posture. Ballet barre exercises can stretch, tone, strengthen the body and memorising the sequences can keep the mind alert and stimulated.
Done to lovely music and with mirrors to use as tools, ballet barres to hold onto for added stability and security, and good dance flooring to work on. Ballet4Life’s feedback and tips are given on an individual and group basis. This class is aimed to help you gain confidence; improve your strength, understanding of the basics, alignment, posture, and preparation for your centre exercises. The attainment of a good standard with ballet barre exercises helps any other dance or form of exercise you are practicing and doing.
Mixed ability drop-in classes
suitable for all except complete beginners
Open/general level
Our Monday & Thursday morning, Wednesday lunchtime, and Saturday afternoon classes are a haven for clients of many skill levels and are an enjoyable chance to implement 60 – 75 minutes of exercise into your daily routine. We work with beginner improvers up to professional dancers in these drop- in classes. A very thorough series of barre exercises is taught and executed and we also have a complete centre exercise section in each class complete with slow sustained movement, placement exercises, turns, and jumps.
Intermediate drop-in classes
suitable for clients with more than 2 years of training
Intermediate level
These day time and evening drop-in classes are for those clients who are ready to progress from the Beginner Improvers as well as for those wishing to keep up their ballet technique. Many take this class along with another one during the week. The more advanced clients use it as a way to work on technique and all can enjoy building up their strength, confidence, and knowledge of ballet vocabulary and movements. The exercises will be greater in length, have changes of direction and placement of one’s centre, and have more complex musicality with changes of rhythm and timings.
The barre work is more challenging than our Beginner Improvers class and will include battement fondu, battement frappé, exercises for rond de jambe en l’air, series of single leg strengthening steps at the barre, more balances on one leg, practice for turns, more complex use of the arms and co-ordinated movement in conjunction with each barre exercise, and more extensive stretching of the legs and the upper body.
The centre exercises will cover sequences for placement, preparation for pirouettes, diagonal movement through the studio and allegro movement. Patterns will be more complex including transference of direction and weight, more challenging musicality will be implemented, and before finishing the class the clients do small, medium,and large jumps. A sense of expansion and reaching one’s potential whilst working correctly and with good habits is encouraged .Many clients take both the Wednesday and Thursday evening drop-in classes since they compliment each other well.
Beginner Contemporary
all welcome
no previous experience required
Rejane Garcia's contemporary class is based on the Release Technique with Merce Cunningham technique influences. It involves a strong emphasis on body and spatial awareness. It is a dynamic class where use of breath is connected to the movement. Rejane values and works with the relationship between body and gravity thus resulting in a better understanding of connection with the floor. In the beginners class, the focus on the discipline of body; the muscles, the spine and strength, and core stability. Rejane uses a combination of joyful movements where students will feel more toned and stronger by the end.
Introduction to the ballet barre at Earthlife
suitable for all
Complete beginner Level
To be booked in directly with Earthlife please
60 minutes
Angela will slowly and carefully introduce the basic elements that make up a ballet barre. Movement will include pliés, battement tendu, rond de jambe, port de bras, développé, grand battement, and releve.
Angela will sometimes do a short sequence first on the floor for helping clients to get a sense of their body, its alignment and placement and will sometimes also add a short sequence walking through the dance studio with some very basic movements to encourage spatial awareness, release of unnecessary tension, and ease of movement.
Queries?
Please email Donna@ballet4life.com Please check in time to time for special offers
