IBC Helsinki

General

Reviewer:

Dancer

Dancer Age:

Older than 21

Pre-selection details:

Video of classical variation in only a leotard and tights. No tutus, skirts, etc. Make sure you follow directions, as they will automatically reject or ask for another submission following the proper guidelines.

Competition experience:

This was their first ballet competition

Event Details

Round:

Final

Season:

2026

Location:

Helsinki, Finland

Entry affiliation:

Independent

Rules Easy to Access?

Yes

Did Dancer Miss School?

Yes

Days of school missed:

Attended master classes:

Yes

Master Classes

Master Class Types:

Technique

Master class teachers:

Jarmo Rastas, Anu Sistonen, and Michal Krčmář

Distance from venue:

At the same venue

Received corrections:

Yes

How corrections were given:

Individual and group corrections.

What corrections were about:

All corrections were appropriate, positive, and motivating to all dancers

Anatomical language:

Yes

Correction tone:

Positive

Teacher engagement:

Very engaged teachers. Made the dancers feel inspired everyday and created a positive, motivating, encouraging, fun atmosphere

Crowding:


Really Crowded	Plenty of Room to Move

Master Class Feedback

Technique:

Additional master class comments:

All classes were available to all dancers regardless if you made it to the next round or not.

Performance Details

Venue name:

Finnish National Opera and Ballet

Venue description:

Finnish National Opera House

Stage description:

Marley flooring. Stage was very deep (longer than wide)

Off-stage warm-up space:

Smaller studio available backstage to warm up. 1 dancer allowed in the wings while the dancer before them was dancing on stage.

Dressing rooms:

Designated dressing rooms available for all dancers

Parents in dressing rooms:

Yes

Male dressing room:

Yes

Parents backstage:

Yes

Onstage warm-up:

Stage was open before start of competition round. 30 min before start of competition the stage was closed.

Schedule adherence:

Tended to mostly run on time

Other schedule comments:

Each dancer was given 30 min of private studio rehearsal time and 30 min stage call run before they competed

Staff communication:

Group chat

Parent seminar offered:

Yes

Parent Education

Seminar content:

Zoom meeting prior to the competition. Welcome meeting on first day.

Seminar helpful:

Yes

Why (not) helpful:

Very well organized. Provided all the information needed for the week

Judging

Judging rubric clarity:

Unsure

Judges' attentiveness:

Yes, all judges were actively watching

Feedback turnaround:

Approx. 2-4 hours after conclusion of the competition day

Type of Feedback:

No feedback or score sheet given

Feedback helpfulness:


Not Helpful At All	Extremely Helpful

Main takeaway:

No feedback was given on performance

Scoring felt fair:

Yes

Awards & Scholarships

Awards ceremony:

Gala performance with previous winners and the finalists before award ceremony. Very enjoyable

Won an award or training offer:

Festival offer:

Gala offer:

Final Comments

Best aspect:

Even if you got eliminated in the first round, daily technique classes, master classes, seminars, Pilates classes, etc. were offered to all competitors throughout the week. So even if eliminated in the first round, you could still participate and enjoy, learn, and grow as a dancer.

Worst aspect:

Needed to prepare 4 classical variations and 2 contemporary variations for the competition. For the next rounds you only got a 30 min time slot to rehearse…

Competition culture:

Positive and such a great experience!

Attendee culture:

Made so many new friends. I came to the competition alone without parents or a coach but felt supported by everyone there.

Suggested changes:

N/A

Cost vs. expectation:


Significantly More	Significantly Less

Time worth it:


Not Worth It	Worth Every Minute

Overall rating:

Anything else?

Even though I was eliminated, my days till the end of the competition were filled with classes, seminars, video choreography project for the final gala, etc. I very much enjoyed this experience and would recommend it to everyone!