The New Ballet School Presents Students for Examinations in the ABT National Training Curriculum

The New Ballet School director Dalia Rawson has announced the School will present its students for examinations in the American Ballet Theatre National Training Curriculum between March 1-4, 2018. Located in San Jose, the New Ballet School is an ABT Certified School whose faculty are certified to teach the ABT Curriculum. Student participants total 173, all of whom train here locally. Two who train in San Jose are from South Africa (see South African Dance Students Talk About Ballet Technique, Inspiration, and Integration). 

The American Ballet Theatre National Training Curriculum is a nine-level program that combines high quality artistic training with the basics of dancer health and child development for students of all ages and skill levels. 

"Students can pass the examination, pass with merit, pass with honors, and pass with high honors, and these distinctions are internationally recognized," said Rawson, "Some students who pass at a certain level receive automatic acceptance to other American Ballet Theatre programs. In my mind, the greatest benefit is having a goal to work towards that focuses on process. This gives students a pathway to work on developing their technique and helps them gain confidence."

The Examinations are being conducted by Franco De Vita and Raymond Lukens, co-creators of the ABT NTC. Teachers of the Examination classes include ABT Certified Teacher and Affiliate Examiner Dalia Rawson, ABT NTC Fellows Amy Macon, Le Mai Linh, Mads Eriksen, and ABT Affiliate Teacher Alexandra Meijer, who have successfully completed the ABT Teacher Training Intensive in Pre-Primary through Level 7 and Partnering of the ABT National Training Curriculum. Examination classes will also be taught by ABT NTC Fellow Dr. Elizabeth Hutter and ABT Affiliate Teachers Laura Burton and Nicole Riga, who have successfully completed the ABT Teacher Training Intensive in Pre-Primary through Level 3 of the ABT National Training Curriculum. Both Dalia Rawson and Alexandra Meijer were Principal Dancers with Silicon Valley Ballet (formerly Ballet San Jose).

Directed by ABT Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie, ABT's National Training Curriculum is a program for the development and training of young students that embraces sound ballet principles and incorporates elements of the French, Italian and Russian schools of training.  The Curriculum aims to assist beginning through advanced teachers in training dance students to use their bodies correctly, focusing on kinetics and coordination, as well as anatomy and proper body alignment. The National Training Curriculum strives to provide dance students with a rich knowledge of classical ballet technique and the ability to adapt to all styles and techniques of dance.