but it was incredibly boring and easy per all the dancers including my kid. So much so that they nicknamed it Nap class…
Pilates if you signed up for it
Pilates Mat
Pilates Reformer
Progressing Ballet Technique
Stretch Class
Weight Training
Yoga
PT offered?
No
Not sure
Yes
Extra fee for PT?
No
We didn't use PT
Yes
Injury rate
I wasn't aware of injuries
Seemed average
Seemed like a lot of injuries
Teaching
Who taught?
Different depending on week
Different each day
The same every day
Guest teachers
No
Unsure
Yes
Year-round teachers taught
Alongside guest faculty
Throughout the program
Throughout the program, Alongside guest faculty
Attention from teachers
Very Little
1
2
3
4
5
A Lot
Technique improved?
No
1
2
3
4
5
Yes - Tremendously
Studios
Dance floors
My child doesn’t know
Sprung floors with secure marley
Sprung wood floor
Studio space
Cramped
1
2
3
4
5
Lots of Space
Studio cleanliness
Dirty
1
2
3
4
5
Spotless
Schedule
Classes per day
3
4
5
Saturday classes
No
Yes
Saturday class duration
Half day or less
N/A
Leveling
Leveling
Assigned when accepted
Leveling type
Ability
Age
Unsure
Did students move levels?
No
Yes
Leveling fair?
Yes
Students per class
10-15
16-24
25-30
31-34
Performance
Performance?
Nothing
Parents observe a class
Rehearsals detracted from class?
Completely
1
2
3
4
5
Not At All
Housing - General
Housing provided
No
Yes and my dancer lived there
Yes but my dancer did not live there
# of roommates
0
1
2
Bathrooms
One big bathroom on the floor
Private in suite
Coed bathrooms
No
Air conditioning
No
Yes
Housing comment
Lovely campus and dorms were nice. Common room in lobby where kids could hang out.
Great experience at the PNB dorms!
It was different in 2021 than in 2022. Different location and no roommates but suite mates shared a bathroom. They weren’t allowed in each others rooms. All due to Covid concerns
Staff was amazing and so organized and helpful.
The kids were housed in the Seattle Pacific University dorms, which was a 10-15 minute shuttle ride away from the studios at Phelps Center. The dorms are in a very quiet and safe (very hilly!) residential neighborhood.
The RA's for my daughter's group were pretty strict, giving warnings 1 minute after lights out, etc. I think some RA's were more strict than others.
There was no AC, and the dorms felt pretty hot. We were told by others to definitely bring a fan, which we did, but there were extra fans available when checking in so that was much appreciated as well!
Seattle in the Summer can get VERY hot. Surprisingly. Get to check-in early to get a large working fan(s).
Security on campus, "dorm dad" lived on campus with students, RAs live on same floor as students
I didn't hear first hand about any problems with the food, but the food inspector sign in the window of the dining hall stated that the facility had just barely passed inspection.
The number one downside on housing was that the Dorms got super hot and AC was not provided, bring lots of fans for the first couple weeks. Also the showers water temperature was either extremely hot or extremely cold most of the time.
It was way too hot and there were really only two working showers on the floor I was on. (There were other showers but they were either too hot or cold.) Other than that, loved the dorms.
Need a fan.
Where did they stay?
Rented an apartment or house
Stayed with local family or friends
Student lived at home
Housing - Supervision
Curfew
Yes
Curfew reasonable?
Yes
Room check
Yes
How strict were dorms?
Just about right
Somewhat lax
Somewhat strict
Very lax
Infraction handling
A little harsh
Fair
N/A
Skewed depending on the RA
Housing - Cleanliness
Laundry available
Yes
Laundry free
No
Unsure
Yes
Housing cleanliness
Dirty
1
2
3
4
5
Spotless
Cleaning required
No
Yes
Meal Plan
Meal plan
Yes
Food quality
Gross
1
2
3
4
5
Excellent
Enough food
Yes
Dietary needs?
No
Yes
Specific needs
gluten free and dairy free
lactose-intolerant, peanut allergy
No nuts
Nut allergy, lactose intolerance
Vegetarian
Dietary options
Limited
1
2
3
4
5
Lots
Activities
Weeknight activities
Yes
Weekend outings
No
Yes
Attended weekend outings
I didn't attend any of them
Yes, all of them
Yes, some of them
Favorite
They enjoyed the sports ones - attending a game
They were only available to dorm students
I loved visiting Pike Place, and the cat bookstore! As I recall, the outings weren't full-group activities, they were something we did with our individual cohorts and RA. This, however, could've been a COVID thing.
It was different in 2021. She enjoyed trips to the parks and just getting out and exploring this year
Baseball game. Boat ride. Museums Dave’s burgers
Boat trip
Space Needle
Space Needle
Space Needle
My daughter wasn’t allowed to not being a dorm student.
Cruise
The water park and aquarium. She preferred to organize her own outings exploring Seattle with her friends.
Baseball game
Space Needle
If you don’t stay in the dorms you are not allowed to participate
The Space Needle
Mariners Game & Wild Waves
Waterpark
Wild Waves water park
Mariners game and Wildwaves trip
Cruise
Mariners game or Waterpark
Target trip, water park
waterpark
Least favorite
I think they all are great. My son had attended before so he didn’t do the ones that were duplicative.
Baseball game and water park and boat ride they are all good
They are all good
None
They are all great and I would recommend any that seem fun to you
N/A
N/A
Museum of Pop Culture
n/a
N/a
MoPop (unless you havent been and are really into that stuff)
None
All of the ones that I went to were fun!
Logistics
Quality of handbook
Spotty
1
2
3
4
5
Comprehensive
Program communication
Limited
1
2
3
4
5
Comprehensive
Transportation
In 2021 they each had a chaperone that bussed them everywhere. It’s different than normal summers
No housing or transportation for younger students available
Parent drove from airbnb
Private bus
Private vehicle
Walked with chaperone
Walked without chaperone
Neighborhood safety
Not Safe
1
2
3
4
5
Very Safe
General Comments
Overall recommendation
Definitely Not
1
2
3
4
5
Absolutely
Best aspect
I truly feel that the program is an excellent summer program. Great training and teachers. Peter Boal does teach class and also will observe as well. I highly recommend the program.
Great instructors and very focused peers
Challenging classes
This was my first experience being immersed in Balanchine training and repertoire, and I absolutely loved it. The faculty at this intensive is impeccable. Also, the musical theater, jazz, and hip hop classes are amazing. We learned choreography from West Side Story, An American in Paris, and many other musicals. Highly recommend!
Focus on artistry and strength
Classes and how supportive they are
The organization and overall quality of the program. Technique training was amazing and all the “little details” of running an intensive were handled so well.
technique classes
The supportive environment yet professionalism of both the teachers and students. A wonderful environment to learn in, and teachers are excellent.
Every person you interacted was so sweet, from teachers to RAs, to front desk staff, even security guards
Classes were great for building strength and stamina. The environment was supportive and laid back.
Very organized, the audition class was an easier representation of the difficulty of the SI classes, and the levels were filled with extremely high caliber dancers; my daughter felt pushed to do better based on her peers alone.... The push from her teachers added to that. The breadth of class was well varied, introducing dancers to other types of dance in addition to ballet, though these were also at a non-introductory level. It seemed like the majority of class could pick up on a number of styles easily. The teachers are amazing and seemed to be very articulate with feedback, really enjoyed their jobs, and provided a lot of feedback during be classes we observed. I did not observe any favoritism.
Very organized and stayed true to the schedule. The office was easy to communicate with. All of the kids in my daughter’s level were dedicated and hard working.
Per my child: the teachers were great at giving all students lots of attention equally
Great teachers, great program. Lots of partnering opportunities. My son will be attending full year PD program.
Technique training
Strong focus on technique, and top-notch, world-class, attentive teachers. The results are undeniable! This program has become our first choice for next year as well.
High level technique instruction
It is impossible to not be inspired here. So much talent and I saw many company dancers.
Well ran and organized. Stayed true to the schedule.
The community was supportive.
Range and rigor of classes.
Good environment, excellent training
All the people I interacted with were really nice and I enjoyed the variety of teachers we took class from
Friendships formed
Strong strict training
The Character and technique teachers were awesome and the quality of the instruction was amazing. Ms.Foster was incredible and the character teacher was super fun
Solid teachers and newer facility for the Bellevue location.
I thought the teachers were great and I learned a lot from them, they clearly had very strong training.
The teachers and students were all so nice and everyone seemed to improve greatly
Getting to learn a lot of ballet, and meet new people!
Least liked about program
Sometimes the RA’s were super strict and depending on who you had- impacted your experience. For example, my child’s room was across from the bathroom. In room was at 11 and he walked out of the bathroom and it was 11:01…. He got a demerit for that. He literally was at his door at 11:01. I recognize rules are rules and important- but this RA took things and was super strict compared to others in the program. The head of the dorms has been there a long time and is very helpful and communicative.
Only 3 classes per day and large gaps of time in between them, at least in my daughter's level (4). She also wished they'd had partnering but that wasn't offered for her level. I think it was in level 6 and above.
Nothing
I wish we would've had pas de deux, however, this was a COVID thing.
That it’s so far away. Nothing bad about this program
Nothing
Expense
This year was during Covid restrictions so it was quite different from the first year our DD participated. Classes were extremely small in person (4-7 dancers depending on how many of their home students came). Some of the home students seemed to be training there off and on while managing injuries. Seminars and yoga were both done virtually. While the level normally had partnering, they didn't offer partnering (or anything else in its place) this year - so the actual studio time was only 3-4 hours per day.
The packed lunch options become repetitive and are not always the best
Long breaks in between classes. Schedule would be something like 8:30-4:30 but oftentimes only around 4 hours of that would be class time. Some days had 3 classes, some had 4. There were 1 or 2 classes on Saturdays (depending on level).
We had expected the intensive to be more "intense" in terms of number/duration of classes (their schedule was 22hrs/wk). Further, there were long 2 hour breaks in between key classes (ie technique and pointe) for some days which isn't great for keeping bodies warm. Some scheduling issues the first week (class started late on two occasions because the teacher went to the wrong site), yoga was dropped and not replaced after week 2. The kids all get ready in the hallways and it makes the building feel humid and smell a little gym-lockery. I eventually accepted the "less intense intensive" for this age given that the pace of class was very quick, and there were zero injuries over the 5 weeks.
No performance opportunities.
“The boring mat class”- per my daughter ha!
Long breaks between classes.
My daughter's level only had one section which wound up being very large (30+ kids). PNB eventually moved up 8 kids to the next level (which had 2 sections and thus fewer students). It took about 2 weeks for them to level up those kids so the classes felt cramped for those first 2 weeks.
Fewer classes
Lack of attention. Seemed that a handful of the kids received most of the attention. Possibly due to the class being fairly large and the same kids dictating the most visible placements.
There were some favorites.
The FOOD! Different vendor than in years past.
Not enough attention to all dancers. Teachers definitely had favorites who they gave all their feedback to. Realize this is the norm during school year but for a summer intensive, all kids should get some feedback each class and not have all the attention be on certain kids.
No partnering at all for a lot of the boys
The RAs were often unfriendly and or made me feel like i was bothering them when i had small questions or clarifications. It seemed like they were annoyed to do their job. The lack of AC furring certain weeks was really uncomfortable and made it hard to sleep.
Communication wasn’t always made on the date they initially told me through email such as registration, acceptance into year long program, schedule or even parent observation dates that were switched, done only verbally for parents that were in attendance than an email to everyone.
A good amount of bullying that the counselors did not handle well.
The building is safe but the area around the studio had so many homeless people that could be agressive and/or try to get ur attention/talk to u. We were allowed to walk around in groups outside but we found ourselvs huddled close and walking quickly
I liked the balance of having lots of pracicing doing many types of dance, and hanging out with friends!
Suggested changes to program
Wish it were 6 weeks
Add longer technique classes and more pointework in the lower levels.
Start earlier in the summer
I wish we had a culminating show at the end of the intensive where we could perform the rep we learned.
Nothing
Move it to Texas lol
Add more partnering
More opportunities for partnering and rep
some days we had 3hr breaks, which is due to studio availability but still not ideal
Only the long breaks. Would've preferred either more class time or a more block type schedule.
Shorten the breaks and include variations or pas de deux. Most kids at this age are already in a variations class in their home studios, it would have been nice to keep this up. Pas would be nice for kids who come from studios without many boys. 2-2.5 hr breaks in the middle of the day is a lot of time for the kids to kill.
Would be nice for the "dorm" activities (especially weekend trips) to not be limited to kids in the dorm.
Adding a variations and/or repertory class to the lower levels schedule.
More intense Pilates needed
Wish it went back to 6 weeks!
Additional partnering classes per week.
Air conditioning in dorms
It was difficult to schedule around the program dates of mid-July to mid-August. Wish this program started in late June like most others.
More variety in classes
I wish the teachers would’ve done a better job rotating the room. If you started in the back you stayed in the back unless you were willing to fight for front positions.
No favorites. More conditioning classes.
Less breaks during the day.
I would like the breaks between classes to be shorter (sometimes we had 2 or 3 hr long breaks)
Find a way to have partnering for boys beyond the oldest tier.
Add partnering, neoclassical and repertoire to lower levels as well as higher difficulty strength and conditioning classes.
Communication to parents would be improved.
Air conditioning in the dorms.
Nothing
Air conditioning in the dorms.
Culture of program
Very positive and a rest experience
Supportive, challenging
Supportive
I loved my cohort in this intensive! I felt so supported and inspired by everyone around me.
Open. Friendly helpful. Supportive caring
Amazing culture. Caring supportive wants everyone to learn and grow.
So positive!
Training focused
inclusive, supportive, professional
competitive, yet supportive and fun
Encouraging, challenging
Welcoming, fun, inclusive, and dedicated. The classes are full of kids who are focused and determined, and the relative ease the teachers have in teaching them feeds off each other.
Very talented kids but the air seemed laid back and welcoming.
Very inclusive of all!
Very positive. Teachers invested in dancers success and improvement. Challenging but positive:
Good
Great immersive experience into a professionally run program. The kids are all very focused and talented and the staff are supportive and attentive.
Dancer felt it was surprisingly positive and friendly
Competitive in a good way, people were very nice
This year felt very different than last year. My grouping was pretty cliquey and was difficult to feel embraced.
Positive and fun.
Positive, warm, welcoming, encouraging
Supportive
A bit snooty. My kid usually makes friends easily and found this summer to be cliquey and isolating unfortunately.
The teachers and PNB itself was amazing everyone was warm and friendly but also challenged me it was a really good mix of healthy competition and a supportive environment. It was disappointing that the RAs didn’t seem friendly/warm about their jobs or getting to know the dancers better. The program was super well run and very organized communication was super good, all in all i loved my summer at PNB and would highly recommend it, the small downsides were really pretty normal.
Serious and focused yet the students all got along with year long and summer only students. Teachers did show some favoritism to certain students. Some teachers were nice and firm to strict.
Loved it.
Supporting
It was fun, and balanced!
Other comments
One of the best overall experiences. We have attended 3 years over the course of my child’s training.
Great instructors but she did wish there was more class time. She primarily loved it because she'd never been around so many focused, committed, competitive peers and enjoyed that experience.
Terrific training
Some of my answers were affected by the fact that I attended in 2021, and we were very much still in the pandemic. For example, I believe that partnering is usually offered, the class sizes are usually larger, and those staying in the dorm would likely have at least 1 roommate.
2021 was a little different due to the pandemic. A lot of rules that year no longer exist
They didn’t have parent observation in 2022. When we went in 2017 they did. They might bring them back eventually
This will always be a top pick for us and we 100% recommend it!!
While the program is Balanchine based, a dancer doesn't necessarily need to be in a Balanchine program YR to benefit from the training.
I had an incredible experience at PNB and would highly recommend it. Even if you’re not used to Balanchine technique at home, the teachers give many valuable corrections and pieces of advice that are applicable to all styles. They generally are very good about favoritism and give corrections to all students. The dorms are great, and I have very few complaints about the program
My daughter noted that it was interesting that it is supposed to be a Balanchine based program but there were some non-Balanchine teachers who did not seem to be fans of the style. One teacher in particular complained frequently about how much they disliked the style and all the reasons that they felt nobody should ever dance in that style.
Beautiful city for the most part, though this changes very quickly when walking to/from the Seattle center. We rented a PNB dancer's apartment from her while she went to her own SI - this worked really well given rates in the area are 4k a month!
My daughter would love to have the opportunity to attend again.
I highly recommend it!
The Residence Director is the MVP of this program, haha. Dave is a long-time Director of the Dorms/Residence activities and he was always quick to communicate and helpful in so many ways. He sets up a Facebook page for the Residence students' families where he shares updates and photos as the summer progresses. He runs a seamless residential program from the moment the kids touch down in Seattle to the last point when they get back on the plane. Everything went off without a hitch. We LOVE Dave, may he never retire!
Come in shape and bring plenty of pointe shoes
PNB is loaded with a ridiculous amount of talent. The classes are challenging with live accompaniment. There are many positive aspects to the program.
Seminars offered once a week and multiple shoe fitting opportunities.
The way that technique was touchy often carried a lot between teachers and it became a little bit confusing to know what the expectations were.
PNB Bellevue School location hosted levels ll to V, all local students that I am aware of, and all higher levels and non-residential students attended Seattle. Beware the final schedule only came out 1.5 weeks for the lower levels in Bellevue before the SI started which is quite late when local auditions were held in April.
