"Ashley Bouder taught technique, and John Selya taught contemporary."
How corrections were given
"Corrections are given to the group"
"In technique, corrections were given to the group as well as individually. Some individual corrections would be presented/demonstrated to the rest of the class as well."
What corrections were about
"Corrections about the technique"
"Corrections I received were about dancing: how to improve a penché in center, which muscles to think of using, etc."
Correction tone
Neutral
Positive
Teacher engagement
"Very engaged. My dancer always comes out with a big smile and loves the energy they bring."
"Both teachers were highly engaged. Ms. Bouder in technique walked around giving corrections and explained in detail, which helped me get a better grasp of each concept.
Mr. Selya made it a fun, easygoing class where the focus was more on having fun (rather than receiving corrections"
Crowding
Really Crowded
1
3
Plenty of Room to Move
Master Class Feedback
Contemporary
A
B
Additional master class comments
"Classes are always at the end of the competition, and feel like a celebration. The dancers understand that this can be a opportunity to earn scholarships. This helps to maintain a serious tone in class, and the teachers bring good energy. It's a nice balance."
"Ballet technique was challenging, but Ms. Bouder gave in-depth corrections which were useful. I enjoyed her class.
Contemporary felt like it was more focused on having fun dancing since Mr. Selya didn't give many corrections."
Performance Details
Venue name
"Hays ISD Performing Arts Center"
"Hays CISD Performing Arts Center"
Venue description
"single story building (or we only use the 1st story) it's a clean and comfortable location. Easy to park. Hotels are not near so it's not walkable."
"Large lobby, and hallway down the side led off to restrooms, hang-out rooms, stage etc."
Stage description
"Marley, not raked, sometimes the floor seems slippery. Original choreo fine."
"Marley was NOT raked. The floor was quite slippery, so the pirouettes en pointe in my variation felt scary. They told us we were not allowed to use rosin. The stage had space to travel, so I didn't have to make any modifications."
Off-stage warm-up space
"Lots of room/ dressing rooms open area to warm up"
"There were a few large open rooms designated for us to hang out. It served as a place to warm up, do makeup, wait, etc. There was one mirror, and some chairs. It was not a studio."
Dressing rooms
"unsure"
"There were no real dressing rooms; we just stay in the hang-out spaces. You need to go to the restroom for privacy to change into costume."
Male dressing room
Yes
No
Onstage warm-up
"It's a quick open stage, gotta get your most challenging things done quickly"
"We had several minutes to be on stage (all dancers together who were in the division about to begin)"
Staff communication
"Great communication. I love their use of social media to alert when running ahead."
"I went as an individual, so I felt uninformed sometimes. My mom and I had to figure some things out ourselves."
Judging
Judging rubric clarity
Yes
Unsure
Type of Feedback
Numerical scores
Brief written feedback
Feedback helpfulness
Not Helpful At All
4
5
Extremely Helpful
Main takeaway
"The judges at YAGP are incredibly knowledgeable and helpful. Never comments about costumes or things the kids can't control."
"I received positive feedback as well as things to keep working on. Each of the four judges wrote one or two sentences."
Scoring felt fair
Yes
Unsure
Why Scoring Unfair?
"Each judge gives a technical score as well as an artistic score. The two are averaged out to make each judge's average score. Then all average scores are averaged to create the total score."
Awards & Scholarships
Awards ceremony
"Fast awards ceremony. I appreciate the way they give dancers one last time on stage to take a bow, turn and thank the parents/acknowledge the parents, and then have the larger categories stand at their seats rather than to the the stage. It seems respectful of everyone's time."
"Students walked out by school for a bow, then entered the audience to sit in the front rows. Top 12 of each division was called up to receive their certificates, and first, second, and third place were announced right after."
Festival offer
Yes
No
Gala offer
Yes
No
Invited to finals
Yes
No
Award or Training Offer Description
"Colorado Ballet Academy SI partial, Cranko SI partial, ICM"
"Colorado Ballet Academy--summer intensive with 20% tuition scholarship, short stay offer
John Cranko Connecticut--summer intensive 3 week program with 10% tuition scholarship, 5 week program with 15% scholarship
Vaganova International Program Las Vegas--acceptance
Nashville Ballet--summer intensive acceptance"
Festival offer details
"Ravenna, acceptance, $850 USD; International Contemporary Ensemble, acceptance, unsure cost"
Gala offer details
"YAGP NYC Gala, no cost to participate. Dancer paid for travel."
Final Comments
Best aspect
"YAGP has the best judges - decision-makers who offer excellent comments and scholarships. Love that they sometimes remark about seeing improvement from past. Makes you feel like they know the kids and watch for them."
"The opportunity to perform on stage with some audience and a little feedback from the judges on the score sheet."
Worst aspect
"In central Texas, our closest venue is very early and the next closest is very late. If a Finals invite is your goal, it can require travel for an additional venue."
"How difficult it was to be competing as an individual (not with a school). This was my first competition, and I had no idea what to expect. I didn't have a teacher or parent backstage with me to help me get ready, but luckily my best friend who was in an older division saved me."
Competition culture
"The staff is the absolute best! They are friendly and professional. They work so hard to make sure everyone feels welcome."
"Competition seemed somewhat organized."
Attendee culture
"The kids all love to cheer each other on and make new friends from other studios. It's a great balance of competitiveness and camaraderie."
"Not cold but not super friendly and warm either. I feel like others mostly stuck with their schools. However, I did meet some friendly people, and one girl's older sister kindly helped me do the hooks on my costume since I was alone."
Suggested changes
"It would be great of competition days ended earlier in the evening, or if they are going to go late, start with a different age category in the morning."
"Make things more clear, especially to individual participants--some things I didn't know of since I was an individual."
Cost vs. expectation
Significantly More
2
3
Significantly Less
Time worth it
Not Worth It
4
5
Worth Every Minute
Anything else?
"YAGP is competitive. It's the best of the best, and competitors must bring their best if they want to place. Strong classical technique is rewarded."
"YAGP mostly judged based on your performance on stage--there is no class where competitors are given scores, it's just your variation etc."
