I'm always pushing my students to do summer workshops elsewhere, I'm always saying 'go take an open class', 'get out of this small town for awhile!'. I tell them to go to the ballet, to modern dance performances, and, yes, to other schools shows. I try to educate them as to where they reside in the world of dance. I think they get it, I think that they understand that while they are not in the same class as the students in a professional ballet program--and thats ok because they don't want to be professional dancers, but that they're technique and performance level is far above those in the nearby studios.


Last year I went to alot of recitals, but I just started to get so bored and angry with the state of dance in this country. I only went to one recital this year, the main thing that I got out of it was the realization that I'm doing things the right way and that I wanted no part of a different school.