BALLET HELP DESK

Summer Intensive Reviews

Programs Reviewed: 223
Total Reviews: 1727

Nashville Ballet

Summer Intensive Reviews

General

Dancer age

1
1
6
7
8
2
4
4

Gender

27
6

First time at a summer intensive?

25
8

Year of SI

1
4
11
11
6

Weeks available

1
3
27
2

Weeks attended

13
10
10

Reviewer

8
24
1

Curriculum

Techniques taught

1
1
2
25
8

Partnering (based on age)

11
10
7
2
3

Dedicated men's program?

3
8
22

# of boys in level

15
18

Other dance genres

1
1
1
11
28
1
1
29
23
19
1
1
1
1
1
1

Quality of other classes

Not Helpful
1
1
8
12
11
Helpful

Injury Prevention

Strength classes?

24
1
24
13
21
3
26

PT offered?

8
14
11

Extra fee for PT?

1
28
3

Injury rate

15
17
1

Teaching

Who taught?

16
16
1

Guest teachers

5
6
22

Year-round teachers taught

6
1
24
2

Attention from teachers

Very Little
2
8
13
10
A Lot

Technique improved?

No
2
4
6
13
8
Yes - Tremendously

Studios

Dance floors

1
1
1
1
31

Studio space

Cramped
1
1
7
13
11
Lots of Space

Studio cleanliness

Dirty
3
12
18
Spotless

Schedule

Classes per day

1
16
14
2

Saturday classes

1
32

Saturday class duration

32
1

Leveling

Leveling

31
2

Leveling type

27
6

Did students move levels?

15
18

Leveling fair?

7
26

Students per class

2
14
11
6

Performance

Performance?

6
12
15

Rehearsals happened

2
14
5

Casting equitability

Uneven
1
4
8
3
5
Even

Rehearsals detracted from class?

Completely
1
2
5
2
23
Not At All

Housing - General

Housing provided

1
28
4

# of roommates

2
1
2
18
5

Bathrooms

4
24

Coed bathrooms

27
1

Air conditioning

28

Housing comment

  • Housing was in a relatively new dorm at Belmont. It was 4 girls per suite, so my dancer had her own bedroom which was awesome! Food was ok. There weren’t a ton of option for dietary restrictions, but it was doable.
  • Close to shopping center, use wheeled buckets/suitcases for move in as there is a big hill from the parking garage to the dorms (or use the bottom floor back door)
  • It was very nice.
  • AC on the floor broke and rooms were 82 degrees for 5 days. They were moved to another dorm after parents complained. Breakfast and lunch were in the college cafeteria. Same foods daily but there were choices. Lunch was catered daily at the ballet. Choices were very limited and 2nd lunch did not get a replenishment of food, so there were often less choices. One day there was no vegetarian choice for my dancer. Pack snacks for lunch if you have dietary restrictions or a picky eater. Move in day was a nightmare because there was 1 elevator for 100 students to use to move in during a 2 hour window. If you walked two flights of steps, there was an additional elevator. Rooms were spacious and well furnished. Each dancer had their own bedroom, there was a common shared living room, kitchen and bathroom for each suite of 4 or 5 students. There was a nice shopping/food area close by that students could walk to in groups.
  • Overall it was great!
  • Full kitchens in suites
  • Stayed at Belmont University. Students had their own bedrooms but shared an apartment with one bathroom. Apartment had living area and kitchen. Men stayed in 1st floor. Girls stayed on upper floors. Opposite sex could not go on floors.
  • Temperature uneven, parking
  • This year, we had to pay $375 to have lunches served M-F . I had specifically asked if they could accommodate Gluten and wheat-free and they assured me they could. It has been an abysmal failure. More than one day, my child did not have food because they "forgot" to order something for her. She has had a baked potato on 2 days and just fruit and chips on another. Instead of ordering GF pizza with pepperoni or just cheese, there was some weird veggie that was slimy. There has been zero concern for her getting food and we have not had any luck contacting anyone who cares. We are outraged and frustrated. One day they put out a charcuterie board for lunch and didn't monitor who even had the meal plan and it was completely cleaned out before the 2nd lunch arrived. They then ordered food and "forgot" to get her something. We are paying $15 daily for food and have yet to receive anything worth that amount.
  • A/C wasn't working well the first few days which required purchasing fans. It was fixed after about 4 days.
  • Beautiful campus and individual bedrooms within the suite. The living rooms in the suite made it so nice and easy to hang out and make friends with other dancers on their floor. Great social environment.
  • Lunch was fabulous! Dining hall was not
  • If 18 no curfew or night checks but you had to checkin and out of dorms. Also if 18 did not have to buy the meal plan, allowed to be responsible for your own food. Saved $1500 this way!
  • The Nashville Ballet utilized the Belmont Campus Dorms for their housing. The girls liked the room setup, 5 bedrooms per suite with a shared bathroom, kitchen and living area. The dining hall was down the street and everyone went as a group. My daughter was sometimes frustrated with a lack of options and ended up eating pizza multiple days a week. Also, the quality and consistency of the food was sometimes questionable. Many students ended up doordashing food later in the evening, which makes for a very expensive intensive.
  • The nicest dorms! Each dancer has their own dorm room within a suite and 4 dancers share a full kitchen, bathroom and living space! It’s a true apartment style living situation!
  • Housing was beyond strict. Many of us who attended the summer were given guidelines stating that 13-17 could roam free in group. Once arriving at the intensive we were informed this rule had changed and were unable to leave without a chaperone present. there were 7 chaperones for around 60 kids and kids were never able to get out.
  • Each dancer gets their own room which I really enjoyed because I appreciated the privacy, but the suite had a living room so that we could all still hang out together. The kitchen was nice and provided plenty of room for storage, food and supplies. A microwave and refrigerator was provided making it very convenient for dancers who might need to make their own meals because of allergies, food restrictions, or food preferences. The bathroom provided plenty of space for dancers to get ready and shower when needed and also included a double sink. The living space and bathroom is shared with your suite, so there are about five to four girls depending on your room.
  • The dorms at Belmont were subject to Belmont rules which were very strict. The students were not allowed outside of the building without a chaperone at all. No groups, no age exceptions. They are stuck indoors and at the discretion of the RAs and how they want to participate. Some RAs did not give enough time for eating and grocery trips where others were extremely flexible and amazing. So RA roulette does impact the experience. The dining hall we all paid for tried to quit serving breakfast and Nashville staff had to scurry to fix it. I hope the ballet chooses a different accommodation next summer. Belmont was awful and really impacted our opinion on the outside the studio life.
  • Beautiful campus and building. 4 individual single bedrooms. Full bath with toilet and shower having their own room so super convenient for getting ready. Full living dining kitchen with a full size fridge and stove/oven that students could use. The AC was locked at a single temperature I personally found to be a little warm but it was definitely bareable. Students were spread over multiple floors with men having their own and strict rules about staying within your genders floor. Everyone was able to hang out in common areas. Dining was the Belmont dining hall with multiple food stations open for meals offering much variety even with allergies. GF buns and cookies and more were available along with alternative milk options.
  • Dancers are not allowed outside without a chaperone, not even to sit on the front porch of the dorms. My daughter found this rule stifling as it did not allow her to just get a little alone time and fresh air since the chaperones were generally not available to go outdoors.

Where did they stay?

1
3
1

Housing - Supervision

Curfew

28

Curfew reasonable?

1
27

Room check

1
27

How strict were dorms?

16
6
2
1
3

Infraction handling

3
19
1
6

Housing - Cleanliness

Laundry available

28

Laundry free

4
1
23

Housing cleanliness

Dirty
11
17
Spotless

Cleaning required

6
22

Meal Plan

Meal plan

28

Food quality

Gross
1
4
9
12
2
Excellent

Enough food

6
22

Dietary needs?

20
8

Specific needs

1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1

Dietary options

Limited
3
1
1
3
Lots

Activities

Weeknight activities

28

Weekend outings

2
31

Attended weekend outings

7
5
19

Favorite

  • Water park
  • Treetop Adventure Park
  • Nashville Shores
  • Shopping center
  • Nashville Ballet Dance Festoval and Nashville Shores Waterpark
  • Nashville Shores
  • Waterpark
  • Nashville Shores water park
  • Water park
  • Bowling Rock Climbing
  • Science Center
  • Exploring 12th south, target runs, science center
  • Rock climbing
  • Waterpark
  • Waterpark
  • Zoo
  • Target
  • The mall
  • cheekwood
  • Nashville Shores
  • Nashville zoo
  • Nashville Shores

Least favorite

  • Ropes course. It was too hot and there were not enough options or breaks for food/water.
  • None.
  • None
  • None
  • None
  • n/a
  • Loved them all
  • All were good
  • Water Park
  • The science adventure museum
  • Plantations and Garden visits.
  • I truthfully don’t remember what else was offered for my weeks there.
  • N/A, they were all enjoyable

Logistics

Quality of handbook

Spotty
2
3
4
7
16
Comprehensive

Program communication

Limited
5
4
5
10
9
Comprehensive

Transportation

1
1
1
29
1

Neighborhood safety

Not Safe
1
11
21
Very Safe

General Comments

Overall recommendation

Definitely Not
1
2
6
11
13
Absolutely

Best aspect

  • Different ballet styles, partnering, very positive environment
  • They offer a variety of weeks you can attend
  • The dorms were the best!
  • Having men's class and partnering multiple times a week
  • The best aspect of this program was that the teachers were very supportive and encourging and want to help you improve.
  • They focused on technique.
  • The training. Taught mostly by Nashville Ballet staff and company members. Great opportunity to get a feel for Nashville Ballet instruction and atmosphere.
  • Teachers gave a lot of personal attention considering the class size.
  • Technique
  • Strong, consistent, supportive training for all dancers.
  • Getting to meet other dancers. My son’s self confidence was built up and he got to meet good friends that share his love for dance.
  • the classes
  • my son loved the faculty and made a lot of friends being around other ballet dancers
  • Dorms
  • Food and friendships
  • The dorms were fabulous and the ballet school was very nice
  • Individual attention, several male dancers
  • Excellent faculty
  • The interaction with friends. Certain teachers were friendly and helpful. The vibe of the city is great. The dorms were clean and well organized and we did feel that they were safe (once they were safely in the building as the police were called to the dorms twice in three weeks).
  • Dorms were amazing and allowed for a lot of fun!
  • I loved getting to try new styles of dance and have the chance to train in a new studio with new teachers. We had frequent breaks but we learned many tips to maintain strength and technique which I appreciated. I also enjoyed getting to meet new dancers through the dorms and I was able to create new friendships while also getting to learn new styles and work on my technique and strength throughout the program. I enjoyed all of the teachers and their way of teaching. I felt like I was able to learn something new in each class I had, regardless of the teacher.
  • the chaperones try to get to know all of the students even though there aren't very many of them and there are a lot of us
  • The classes and ballet training was excellent and the main reason my student chose to attend. My student was able to roll with the outside ups and downs because of the excellent staff and great fellow students the program tends to attract.
  • I loved how helpful all the teachers were making sure you understood the corrections.
  • Warm, positive culture with high quality technique and artistry
  • Training was hard but fun and community was welcoming and always kind
  • Solid technique class

Least liked about program

  • Bus to ballet and field trips
  • I feel they moved a boy up who wasn’t ready and he got injured
  • Certain levels were not offered the opportunity to learn from guest faculty.
  • I didn't like the fact that I didn't get the opportunity to have contemporary or modern because of the many rehearsals we had for our show pieces.
  • Levels were partly determined by the extra large class sizes. A little cramped dancing conditions.
  • Students didn't hey to take all of the classes offered
  • The communication (if you emailed, they took three business days to respond) and the organization at housing.
  • Too many repertoire classes
  • Food on campus was bad; food brought in for lunch was excellent
  • Not being able to hang with girls all the time
  • Drug use elevator smelled of pot
  • housing and food
  • the communication in the beginning seemed a little scattered - we got emails that he was accepted into a program that was way beyond his age level and had to write back to the intensive. A lot of parents were on forums on facebook talking about the bad communication, so it scared me a little. but once we got there, it was fantastic.
  • Large class and not much individual attention.
  • Initial placement class was too crowded to make an accurate assessment
  • The program was great for lower level dancers but not very challenging for more experienced dancers.
  • Belmont changed the rules this year and students could not walk on campus or leave campus without a chaperone. Were escorted everywhere. (This was not what was in the handbook, it was a change made last minute and was frustrating after having attended other SIs with more freedom.
  • When faculty would alter from what was scheduled
  • For the price of the Intensive we felt it could have been better organized and each student should have gotten more personal attention. She said she did not like how the levels were set up as they seemed arbitrary. She felt the classes were very easy with little to no personal corrections/improvement. The management was atrocious and could not respond to emails, calls, or anything for most of the last few months. Which made the whole thing very precarious and would not have felt safe had my daughter not had a cell phone to keep us updated at all times. Police were called to/surrounded the dorms multiple times during her stay and we as parents nor her as the student were told what was going on other than to "stay in their rooms" for many hours at a time, which led us to believe the dorm and surrounding area were not as safe as we were led to believe.
  • The classes were not very challenging!
  • I really enjoyed this program, and I don’t have anything to complain about.
  • the male modern teacher gave almost everyone the creeps and nobody liked his class
  • The university they used for housing really jerked around the kids when it came to meals and being able to explore the city. There were not many solutions to this. There were reportedly a second bus that was showing up right at class time meaning no warm up time for some dancers. My dancer did not find the bus schedule as challenging as most, but it did put a bummer cherry on the “outside the studio” cake.
  • I was trained with diversity and the contempoary and jazz classes I felt were an odd style
  • More or longer ballet classes
  • The inability to be outdoors almost ever, certain teachers being rude and ignoring atudents

Suggested changes to program

  • Bus
  • Allowing more people into 5 week program
  • All levels given the opportunity to learn from guest faculty.
  • I would change the bus times.
  • Offer the 5 week to more students.
  • Classes available for everyone
  • Better housing organization and larger/working laundry facilities.
  • More Contemporary classes
  • Food on campus
  • housing and food. better attention to detail and an ability to fill our a questionnaire for a better roommate situation.
  • just the communication leading up to the program
  • Focus more on technique and less on tricks.
  • Placed in level upon acceptance not the first day in a class of 100 people with 1 person watching and no line rotation so the people in the back of the placement class were not accurately seen
  • Higher level classes for the intermediate program.
  • The food in the cafeteria
  • The instruction would be more intensive and less focused on favorite students. She felt the five week students were favored over her and her group which were the three week students. The communication between families and the ballet school needs to be GREATLY improved as I am not sure how it could possibly get worse.
  • More challenging classes and more levels based on ability
  • I think I would like if there were shorter technique classes and longer pointe classes, and I also wish that pointe would be included in the parent observation.
  • the male modern teacher
  • Different housing location. More freedom for those 16+
  • My year there was a lot of communication things and stuff that should have been figured out sooner. When I moved in the water in our dorm didn’t work and they refused to move us. We also didn’t have a way to the studio so there was some time we were getting in Ubers and RAs cars until we got a van and students were taken in multiple trips then we had a bus for a short time and lost it…
  • As a parent, I would have loved to observe more.
  • Shorter lunch break maybe 45 minutes instead of 1 hour
  • Allow dorm students to walk outside even if just on the dorm patio. If they’re old enough to live in a dorm, they are old enough to stand just at outside the doors of it. Have parents sign permission for their dancers to do so if necessary.

Culture of program

  • Very positive environment, also very fair and inclusive. Great intensive.
  • Good, my son enjoyed it
  • Positive, I came in with an injury and was well taken care of!
  • Overall, everyone was welcoming and kind.
  • Mix of serious and less serious students.
  • Very good and supportive. My dancer loved it despite the housing inconveniences.
  • Encouraging and positive
  • Intense but fun
  • Supportive
  • The overall culture of the intensive was very above expectations . Clean facility, high level of training, and positive environment.
  • class wise....excellent
  • healthy, fun
  • positive
  • Great
  • It’s a great first intensive!
  • Positive
  • Hard working but fun.
  • Positive
  • Friendly, easygoing. More of a social event than a hard working ballet intensive.
  • Warm and friendly
  • Everyone was super sweet and supportive, including the chaperones, teachers, staff, and the dancers. I had never came across one person who was mean to me or others, and I created friends and memories that I will likely have forever.
  • supportive, challenging
  • In studio excellent. My student would recommend this to someone looking to attend year round or employment. They attract excellent people all around.
  • I wouldn’t say it was the most organized but they responded to emails very promptly and the teachers were nice and wanting to help.
  • Warm, inclusive, supportive while being very focused and organized.
  • Inclusive, very positive, respectful, and professional
  • Supportive

Other comments

  • It's a good intensive to improve your overall technique.
  • Dancer had a great time and felt her ballet technique improved in just 2 weeks.
  • Showcase was very good. Each group was in two dances and the dancers skills were very well represented.
  • Overall my dancer loved it!
  • Class placement, at the top level, was determined by if you were seeking a spot in the training program or PD. No matter of your dancers talent level. So unless you checked that box, your dancer was put in a lower level class.
  • Overall great program
  • There were many returning students, which I think speaks volume of the quality of the program. My son would love to train here year round.
  • She enjoyed exploring a new town with her new friends, however she would have loved to seen more about Nashville that is why it's famous-- music in every form. If they could have taken the girls to the Country music hall of fame, or a local music cafe, or somewhere that they could have enjoyed the Music City rather than the Zoo and a Water park on their day off, it seems like it would have made more sense. The direction and organization of this Intensive started out good but attempting to get ahold of or get answers about literally ANY question was nearly impossible. The parent groups were the only source of information because the Ballet rarely answered any phone or email that was sent their way. We were disappointed for the price of the Intensive how laid back the training was. We were hoping for more of a challenging experience in which to grow, but this was her first away from home intensive so we will select more wisely in the future.
  • Great for younger or beginner level dancers
  • I loved the dorms and the location of the dorms as well as the studio. Everything was very nice and in a very good location. I had fun going on walks and exploring after a long day of dance.
  • Both parent and student , we were so deflated after finding out some small details that were out of the control of the ballet. However, my student was there for ballet instruction and found it to be excellent. So while they would not return for an SI, they would leave the door open for other capacities. They shared that they have grown in the ways they were hoping to this summer in studio.
  • This program was BEFORE the new directors came in and since, I did the winter intensive with the new directors and they have made so many changes for the better in my opinion
  • A joyful experience resulting in technical improvement.
  • Partnering was amazing and led by directors or company members that knew what they were doing and staying safe while having fun! Very hands on environment and experience! 10/10 would go back to this intentsive!
  • Communication was prompt and thorough
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